Senior Manager, Studio Operations

Overview:

The Senior Manager of Studio Operations will lead our photo and video studio team internally and build a team of external creative storytellers producing materials to promote the brand and further sales objectives. The studio team is responsible for delivering all photo and video assets for Weedmaps & WM Business.  The Senior Manager inspires the team to bring the Weedmaps brand to life with a keen eye on execution excellence within known constraints and with a strong understanding of delivery timelines and budget efficiency. This role has responsibility for studio strategic planning, process development, and creative collaboration across the organization to bring campaigns to life. 

The impact you'll make:

• Studio Management:
  • Overall studio lead for all projects/production, sets goals and OKRs, determines demand for internal resources and makes hiring/termination recommendations as the organization’s needs evolve. 
  • Procures and maintains third-party vendor relationships and talent procurement processes,  and develops work processes to address gap(s) of internal resources. 
  • Leads weekly Studio all-hands stand-up meetings to discuss current project statuses, future requests, project prioritization, and ensure deadlines are met.
  • Provide business best practices oversight – talent, usage/permission, location, IP, contracts. Know when to engage legal counsel or outside consultants on rights-related matters.

• Production Management:
  • Uplevel creative workflow and output anywhere possible
  • Provide guidance and creative direction to allow the team to make decisions to support business goals and needs.
  • Inspire the team to achieve their potential and seek constant growth and development through providing a clear vision and goals while providing actionable feedback
  • Be responsible for all team deliverables
  • Develop functional studio strategy and collaborate with cross-functional teams to plan, analyze, organize and execute brand initiatives. 
  • Develops SOPs for the creative production process within Studio Operations to guide cross-functional teams with the goal of delivering effective deliverables.
  • Provide insight and improvements to tools and workflows to increase team effectiveness and efficiency.
  • Manages Studio project requests and outset of project workflows  – reviews, delegates/assigns, tracks and reports all incoming production requests. 
  • Leads production briefing to ensure team’s understanding of deliverables and manages feedback sessions to take projects from concept to completion.
  • Collaborate with Creative teams and cross-functional partners to gather feedback and project requirements to execute video and photo productions. 
  • During productions, must remain flexible and foster strong communication across all parties involved to ensure highest quality output. 
  • Align with Brand & cross-functional teams to bring tactics, campaigns, and big ideas to life through storytelling 

• Budget Management:
  • Develops annual production budget and tracking to meet fiscal accountability.
  • Establishes a procurement process to leverage freelancer network as turnkey solutions.
  • Manages software & hardware needs for studio team: gear inventory, contract renewals, studio upgrade approvals.
  • Establishes a bidding process for large budget production to ensure delivery of best quality work at a competitive price.

What you've accomplished:

• 5+ years of creative production experience within an advertising agency, studio, or in-house creative department.
• 3-5 years supervisory/management experience with ability to lead and mentor creatives in a highly collaborative environment.
• Bachelor's degree in film/production, marketing or equivalent degree/work experience
• Ability to work under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to communicate  and convey thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively in visual, verbal, and written format.
• Strong knowledge of all production and post production processes – photo,  video, and motion graphics/animation.
• Strong understanding of a variety of workflows with varying time constraints across brand marketing: paid media, owned & editorial media, and social media. 
• Ability to negotiate alternative deliverable options with stakeholders, given internal constraints.
• Flexible, adaptable, and able to navigate creative scope and scheduling changes swiftly. 
• Able to balance multiple tasks for multiple individuals and manage multiple projects in various stages simultaneously. 
• Ability to travel and attend productions when required (30%) including a minimum of 4 days in office per month. 

Pluses: 

• Cannabis knowledge preferred
• Experience navigating, negotiating and partnering with external, 3rd party vendors.
• Able to anticipate change and react efficiently; comfortable with ambiguity
• Experience with Photoshop, After Effects and Adobe Premier a plus 
• Comfortability and experience with project management software systems a plus

Our Benefits:

• 100% paid employee monthly Medical, Dental and Vision premiums AND 80% paid dependent monthly premiums
• HMO (California residents only) and PPO option offered through United Healthcare
• Company-paid $50,000 in Basic Life/AD&D (Accidental Death and Dismemberment) coverage
• 401(k) Retirement Plan: 100% match on the first 1%. 50% match from 2-6% of employee contributions
• 3 weeks PTO (accrued) and 5 sick days (immediate)
• Supplemental, voluntary benefits
• Kindbody (family planning/fertility) including up to $10,000 towards cash-pay services
• Goodly (Student Loan Repayment/529 Education Savings) including a company contribution of up to $1,000/year 
• Flexible Spending Accounts (Medical, Dependent, Transit and Parking)
• Voluntary Life Insurance
• Critical Illness
• Accident Insurance
• Short- and long-term disability
• Pet Insurance
• Paid parental leave
• During current work-from-home:
•  Reimbursements for home office setup and monthly WiFi

Our Culture:

• 11 company-paid holidays
• Catered lunch and snacks provided when working in the office
• Snack boxes sent straight to your door when you work-from-home
• Casual work environment, read no fancy clothes required, but you are free to dress to the nines!
• Monthly virtual happy hours
• Quarterly all-hands meetings

Weedmaps is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law, and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. We are looking for the smartest and most passionate people who want to join our team and develop the services, systems, and marketplaces that will serve the marijuana industry in the decades to come. Our company uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.

Applicants may be entitled to reasonable accommodations under the terms of the ADA and state/local laws.  Please inform us if you need assistance participating in the interview process.

About Weedmaps:

Founded in 2008, WM Technology is a leading technology and software infrastructure provider to the cannabis industry, comprising a B2C platform, Weedmaps, and B2B software, WM Business. The cloud-based SaaS solutions from WM Business provide an end-to-end operating system for cannabis retailers. WM Business’ tools support compliance with the complex, disparate, and constantly evolving regulations applicable to the cannabis industry. Through its website and mobile apps, WM Technology provides consumers with the latest information about cannabis retailers, brands, and products, facilitating product discovery and driving engagement with our retail and brand customers.

WM Technology holds a strong belief in the power of cannabis and the importance of enabling safe, legal access to consumers worldwide. Since inception, WM Technology has worked tirelessly, not only to become the most comprehensive platform for consumers, but to build the software solutions that power businesses compliantly in the space, to advocate for legalization, social equity, and licensing in many jurisdictions, and to facilitate further learning through partnering with subject matter experts on providing detailed, accurate information about the plant.

Headquartered in Irvine, California, WM Technology supports remote work for all eligible employees. Visit us at www.weedmaps.com.