Studio Management Director

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Studio Management Director - Lion Studios based in Netherlands.

This is a senior leadership opportunity overseeing a global studio management function within a fast-growing mobile gaming publishing environment.

• Lead, mentor, and support a global team of studio managers, helping them build high-quality developer relationships, secure premium studio partnerships, and achieve commercial and operational objectives.
• Recruit, develop, and scale the studio management organization as the business grows, including organizational design and role calibration across regions.
• Support the business development responsibilities of studio managers by helping them identify, win, develop, and retain high-value external development partners.
• Develop and implement regional and global business development strategies, adapting approaches to individual markets while maintaining alignment across the broader portfolio.
• Oversee the game pipeline across multiple external studios, ensuring titles progress efficiently from prototyping through soft launch and that blockers are identified and resolved early.
• Take accountability for pipeline velocity and studio-signing targets, using data and performance indicators to drive improvements.
• Develop, negotiate, update, and manage publishing contracts in collaboration with legal stakeholders, ensuring terms remain commercially appropriate and aligned with partner and industry requirements.
• Build strong working relationships with Game Design, Data, Intelligence, Product, Growth, Finance, and Legal teams to improve cross-functional collaboration and publishing execution.
• Maintain a strong understanding of portfolio and game-level P&L, including cost structures, attribution, and financial performance.
• Partner with Finance teams to improve the accuracy, visibility, and usefulness of financial information supporting publishing decisions.
• Regularly review publishing processes, KPIs, benchmarks, and workflows and introduce improvements as business needs evolve.
• Translate changing strategic priorities into practical changes to internal processes, systems, and ways of working.
• Represent the studio management function to senior leadership, reporting on team performance, pipeline health, business development progress, and key commercial indicators.
• Contribute to publishing strategy at the executive level by providing insights from studio relationships, market dynamics, pipeline performance, and commercial data.

• 7+ years of professional experience in studio management, business development, product management, or project management within the mobile gaming industry.
• At least 3 years of experience managing and developing teams.
• Proven track record of building and managing relationships with external game studios or developers, ideally including the acquisition and retention of premium partners.
• Hands-on experience with publishing contracts and the commercial processes surrounding external development partnerships.
• Experience overseeing game pipelines across multiple titles, from early concepts or prototypes through launch.
• Strong business development skills, with the ability to identify opportunities, negotiate partnerships, and build long-term commercial relationships.
• Strong understanding of mobile gaming markets, current industry trends, and relevant performance metrics.
• Comfortable working with P&L statements, KPIs, pipeline data, and the systems used to monitor business performance.
• Experience collaborating effectively with Finance and Legal teams in a publishing or similarly complex commercial environment.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work confidently with both technical and non-technical teams.
• Excellent organizational and analytical capabilities, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-moving environment.
• Experience working across regions, markets, cultures, and time zones.
• Strategic mindset combined with a hands-on approach to execution and operational problem-solving.
• Strong leadership skills, including the ability to coach managers, develop organizational structures, and create accountability across a distributed team.
• Previous experience in a startup, scale-up, or high-growth environment is advantageous.
• Professional English proficiency of at least B2 level, with the ability to participate confidently in meetings and communicate clearly across a global organization.
• Ability to work effectively in a fully remote, internationally distributed environment.

• Fully remote position within Europe.
• Opportunity to lead a global studio management function within a high-growth mobile gaming environment.
• Significant influence over business development strategy, publishing operations, game portfolio, and team development.