Senior Business Planner, Gaming

Microsoft; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 143,000 - 275,000; Full time

Job summary

Microsoft Advertising is seeking a Senior Business Planner to drive planning for our gaming ads business. You will translate ideas into plans, size opportunities, build business cases, and align cross-functional teams across product, engineering, and sales.

You will lead end-to-end planning, manage governance, use data and AI insights to inform decisions, and communicate recommendations to executives. This role requires strong program management and collaboration in a fast-moving, global

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development.
• 3+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.
• 8+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects (for senior track).
• Experience with gaming, entertainment, or media and working with publishers/advertisers is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Program / Project Management: develops detailed plans, timelines, and deliverables across workstreams.
• End-to-End Planning: leads planning across demand, supply, products, and platforms with quantified positions.
• Problem Solving and Insights: uses data, VOC, market research, and AI insights to make recommendations.
• Communication and Stakeholder Management: communicates plans to leaders and aligns across teams.

Skills

Strategic planning

Cross-functional leadership

Data analysis

Stakeholder management

Executive communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Overview

Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset, inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us to achieve our mission.

Microsoft Advertising is at the forefront of the digital advertising industry and empowers advertisers around the world to reach and expand their potential through our full-funnel digital marketing solutions.

Gaming is one of the largest and fastest-changing audiences in that portfolio, spanning Xbox, King, Activision Blizzard, and our broader gaming supply across console, PC, mobile, and streaming. We are looking for an initiative-taking Senior Business Planner to drive business planning for our gaming ads business. In this role you will take work from idea to reality: sizing the opportunity, building the business case, bringing customer and market evidence into product planning, and driving initiatives through to delivery.

Responsibilities

1. Program / Project Management

• Develops detailed project plans, timelines, and deliverables for their assigned workstream, consolidating milestones and dependencies across projects
• Identifies and manages interdependence across workstreams to avoid bottlenecks and ensure timely delivery
• Leads governance rhythms, enforcement, and execution excellence including regular updates to stakeholders, maintaining clarity on status and risks

1. End-to-End Planning

• Develops strategic plans to drive and transform the gaming business across demand, supply, products, and platforms, and influences prioritization of initiatives within these areas
• Leads workstreams across opportunity identification and sizing, demand strategy, and business requirements documentation, so gaming enters planning cycles with a quantified position rather than a directional ask
• Works with cross-functional teams to ensure business and demand plans are comprehensive and rationalized across publishers, surfaces, and sales motions
• Supports publisher planning with sizing and business cases, including monetization and ad policy considerations

1. Problem Solving and Insights

• Structures ambiguous situations into a defined plan, including root cause identification, hypothesis testing, and implementation of the proposal
• Leverages insights across voice of the customer, voice of the field, market research and stakeholder input to develop recommendations and provide thought leadership around potential growth opportunities
• Leverages AI and automation to synthesize data and identify patterns, owning the integrity, relevance, and limitations of AI-generated insights used in business decision making
• Contributes to the Gaming Ads competitive intelligence rhythm and market benchmarking, and represents that evidence in product planning and prioritization forums

1. Communication and Stakeholder Management

• Communicates and advocates plans to business leaders and conveys viewpoints through written documents such as memos, perspectives, and business requirements docs, and through influence models such as meetings and presentations
• Builds end-to-end storylines, leveraging data to demonstrate measurable outcomes of work
• Delivers recommendations and implications to stakeholders to facilitate discussions and decision making
• Partners across Product, Engineering, Operations, Finance and Sales to ensure alignment

Your role involves strategic planning, collaboration, and staying ahead in the dynamic digital advertising landscape. By connecting gaming supply, advertiser demand, and Microsoft’s broader advertising portfolio, you will contribute to Microsoft’s success in the ever‐evolving industry.

Qualifications

Required/minimum qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development
• OR equivalent experience.
• 3+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.

Additional or preferred qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree AND 12+ years experience engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development
• OR equivalent experience.
• 8+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.
• 1+ year(s) of experience reading and/or writing code (e.g., sample documentation, product demos).
• Experience in gaming, entertainment, and media, or working with publishers and advertisers to create and sell media products.
• Strong familiarity with the digital environment and a clear understanding of the media planning and buying process.
• A proven track record of working across diverse stakeholders, including sales, to define and execute strategic initiatives with passion, precision, and excellence.
• Solid business judgement and ability to make decisions leveraging strategic thinking complemented with a bias for action and operational excellence.
• Ability to communicate at an executive level through visual, written, and verbal communication within a global context, technical and non-technical.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-moving and exciting, but oftentimes ambiguous environment.

Technical Program Management IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:

https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay