Lead Publishing Producer

NCSoft; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

NCSoft Irvine is seeking an experienced Publishing Producer to lead pre-launch, launch, and live service initiatives for North American titles. You will align product goals with player needs, work with development, platform, QA, and operations to resolve issues, and drive strategic Live Ops across content, events, and monetization.

You will own schedules, manage risks, and communicate KPI trends to leadership while coordinating external partners as needed.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in game production, publishing, Live Ops, or related management
• Experience in fast-paced live service environments and rapid issue response
• Strong understanding of North American game market, player expectations, and platform requirements
• Experience working with development, engineering, platform, QA, and operations to diagnose issues and priorities
• Ability to translate technical issues into production plans, escalation steps, and business impact summaries
• Experience building or improving production, publishing, and Live Ops processes across titles

Responsibilities

• Lead publishing execution across pre-launch, launch, and live service phases, aligning with product goals and NA market expectations.
• Identify, prioritize, and drive resolution of production, service, and Live Ops issues with cross-functional teams.
• Oversee Live Ops at strategic and operational levels focusing on service stability and rapid incident response.
• Translate business and player needs into clear production requirements for timely decisions during live service.
• Own production schedules, milestone tracking, and cross-functional coordination for publishing initiatives.
• Identify risks early and implement mitigation plans to reduce player impact and business disruption.
• Drive major updates, events, hotfixes, and lifecycle initiatives aligned with global roadmaps.
• Improve workflows by establishing scalable processes, reporting structures, and escalation paths.
• Partner with data, marketing, platform, QA, community, and development teams for cohesive execution.
• Present KPI trends, incident learnings, production risks, and actionable recommendations to leadership.
• Manage external partners or studios to align with goals and delivery expectations.
• Represent NC America’s publishing and Live Ops needs in global planning discussions.
• Foster accountability, ownership, urgency, and continuous improvement across publishing and Live Ops

Skills

Game production

Live Ops

Technical program management

Cross-functional collaboration

KPI analysis

Stakeholder communication

Leadership

Job description

Responsibilities

• Lead publishing execution across pre-launch, launch, and live service phases, ensuring alignment with product goals, player needs, and North American market expectations.
• Act as a technically fluent publishing producer who can identify, prioritize, and drive resolution of production, service, and Live Ops issues in close partnership with development, platform, QA, and operations teams.
• Oversee Live Ops at both strategic and operational levels, with a focus on service stability, rapid incident response, issue escalation, content readiness, and continuous optimization of retention, monetization, and engagement.
• Translate business, player, and operational needs into clear production requirements, helping technical and cross-functional teams make timely decisions during live service situations.
• Own production schedules, milestone tracking, issue follow-up, and cross-functional coordination to ensure timely and scope-accurate delivery across publishing initiatives.
• Identify risks early across development, publishing, and live operations, and implement practical mitigation plans to reduce player impact and business disruption.
• Drive major updates, events, hotfixes, and lifecycle initiatives, ensuring seamless execution and alignment with global content roadmaps.
• Improve publishing and Live Ops workflows by establishing scalable processes, reporting structures, escalation paths, and communication frameworks for fast-moving service environments.
• Partner closely with data, marketing, platform, QA, community, and development teams to ensure cohesive execution and high-quality player experiences.
• Present KPI trends, incident learnings, production risks, and actionable recommendations to leadership in a clear and practical manner.
• Manage external partners or development studios as needed, ensuring alignment with product goals, service standards, and delivery expectations.
• Represent NC America’s publishing, Live Ops, and technical service needs within global planning and decision-making discussions.
• Foster a culture of accountability, ownership, urgency, and continuous improvement across publishing and Live Ops functions.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in game production, publishing, Live Ops, or technical program/production management, preferably for online or live service titles.
• Proven ability to operate in fast-paced live service environments and respond quickly to production, service, player-facing, or technical issues.
• Strong understanding of the North American game market, player expectations, platform requirements, and live service operating conditions.
• Experience working directly with development, engineering, platform, QA, and operations teams to diagnose issues, define priorities, and drive practical solutions.
• Ability to translate technical issues into clear production plans, escalation steps, business impact summaries, and stakeholder communications.
• Expertise in Live Ops operations, KPI analysis, incident follow-up, and data-driven decision-making.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex cross-functional projects with multiple stakeholders across development, publishing, marketing, data, QA, and community.
• Experience building or improving production, publishing, and Live Ops processes across one or more titles.
• Strong analytical, organizational, ownership, and communication skills, with the ability to present complex information to leadership in a clear and actionable way.
• Preferred: hands‑on experience or strong working knowledge in technical development, backend/service operations, build/release processes, platform certification, tools, or game systems development.

Irvine, CA pay range$130,000—$170,000 USD