Senior Technical Program Manager - Central Technology (Temporary)

Activision Blizzard; Santa Monica (CA); On-site; USD 94,580 - 174,988; Full time

Job summary

Activision Blizzard is seeking a Senior Technical Program Manager for the Central Technology team in Santa Monica. The role focuses on partnering with game development studios on online services, engine tools, graphics, systems engineering, security, and infrastructure to support the full development lifecycle and align with publishing priorities.

The position emphasizes proactive risk management, strong communication with internal teams and external studios, and analytics-driven planning to

Qualifications

• 5+ years of technical program management or similar experience.
• Deep experience with each stage of the software development life cycle, from inception through design, implementation, QA, and deployment.
• Experience practicing Agile development practices and strong working knowledge of a variety of project management techniques.
• Proactive navigation of roadblocks with effective solutions, keeping projects moving efficiently.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Familiarity with data protection laws and regulatory requirements (a plus).
• Experience in game development or game publishing environments (a plus).

Responsibilities

• Support the creation, development, and execution of production initiatives, projects, pathways, and overall plans; continue to provide supervision and support through full operational life-cycle.
• Create a culture that promotes collaboration, continuous feedback, support, and empowerment. Set clear goals for the team and hold employees accountable for deliverables; recognize and reward employees for strong performance.
• Identify risks early and often and suggest mitigation strategies that consider multiple paths to a solution.
• Effectively collaborate with internal teams and development studios within the video game industry.
• Serve as the main point of contact for a major entertainment franchise and maintain best-in-class and timely communications across all mediums.
• Engage in strategic technology planning and analytics to develop key processes, procedures, and recommendations across Activision and its studios.
• Provide analysis of the intersection of business needs and technology initiatives across the portfolio, including game, infrastructure, and other business operations.
• Liaise with first-party and internal teams to track efforts, perform analysis on data and user experience, and ensure work is progressing.

Skills

Technical program management

Communication

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

Tools

JIRA

Trello

Confluence

MS SharePoint

MS Project

Smartsheet

Job description

Senior Technical Program Manager – Central Technology (Temporary)

The Central Technology team serves as the strategic partner for game development studios in the areas of online services, engine tools, graphics, systems engineering, security, and infrastructure. We support all aspects of the development process from build pipeline to launch, collaborating with studios on best practices in technology and architecture to help build franchises and the Activision IP portfolio. All the while, we also serve as the bridge to the publishing organization to align game technical development with first‑party management, analytics, product management, marketing, and public relations.

Responsibilities

• Support the creation, development, and execution of production initiatives, projects, pathways, and overall plans; continue to provide supervision and support through full operational life‑cycle.
• Create a culture that promotes collaboration, continuous feedback, support, and empowerment. Set clear goals for the team and hold employees accountable for deliverables; recognize and reward employees for strong performance.
• Identify risks early and often and suggest mitigation strategies that consider multiple paths to a solution.
• Effectively collaborate with internal teams and development studios within the video game industry.
• Serve as the main point of contact for a major entertainment franchise and maintain best‑in‑class and timely communications across all mediums (emails, phone, meetings, presentations, etc.).
• Engage in strategic technology planning and analytics to develop key processes, procedures, and recommendations across Activision and its studios.
• Provide analysis of the intersection of business needs and technology initiatives across the portfolio, including game, infrastructure, and other business operations.
• Liaise with first‑party and internal teams to track efforts, perform analysis on data and user experience, and ensure work is progressing. Provide reports to senior leadership and represent Central Technology in the wider business externally.
• Provide analysis showing areas of strategic weakness and improvement, and track the surface area between Activision and the broader industry.
• Liaise with senior business leadership to present and explain technical problems within the context of their business impact.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of technical program management or similar experience.
• Deep experience with each stage of the software development life cycle, from inception through design, implementation, QA, and deployment.
• Experience practicing Agile development practices and strong working knowledge of a variety of project management techniques.
• Experience with project management tools such as Atlassian JIRA, Trello, Confluence, MS SharePoint, MS Project, Smartsheet, etc.
• Proactive navigation of roadblocks with effective solutions, keeping projects moving efficiently.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Formal project management qualifications or accreditation (a plus).
• Familiarity with data protection laws and regulatory requirements (a plus).
• Experience in game development or game publishing environments (a plus).
• Familiarity with working alongside software engineering teams.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&D insurance, and disability insurance.
• 401(k) with company match and tuition reimbursement.
• Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leave, and parental leave.
• Mental health and wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and more.
• Relocation assistance if the company requires you to move geographic locations for the job.

In the U.S., the standard base pay range for this role is $94,580.00 – $174,988.00 annually. Incentive compensation is not guaranteed. Compensation is negotiable and will consider relevant experience, performance, and work location.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or other protected characteristics. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with physical or mental disabilities. If you require an accommodation to apply, please email your request to [e-mail]. General employment questions cannot be processed here.