Associate Manager, Marketing Activation - Dolls

CREATIVITY IS OUR SUPERPOWER. It's our heritage and it's also our future. Because we don't just make toys. We create innovative products and experiences that inspire fans, entertain audiences and develop children through play. Mattel is at its best when every member of our team feels respected, included, and heard-when everyone can show up as themselves and do their best work every day.

We value and share an infinite range of ideas and voices that evolve and broaden our perspectives with a reach that extends into all our brands, partners, and suppliers.

Location:

El Segundo, California

Support the development and execution of commercial marketing strategies for the Dolls portfolio across the United States. The Associate Marketing Manager will translate global brand strategies into locally relevant activation plans that drive brand growth, consumer engagement, and commercial performance across key retailers and omnichannel partners.

This role serves as a key cross-functional partner across Global Brand Marketing, Sales, Omnichannel Retail Marketing, Demand Planning, Consumer Insights, Finance, Licensing, and Retail customers to develop and execute integrated marketing programs that deliver business results.

The ideal candidate combines strategic thinking, strong business acumen, project management excellence, analytical rigor, and exceptional communication skills. They are comfortable leading cross-functional initiatives, translating data into recommendations, and managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

• Partner with the Senior Marketing Manager to develop integrated commercial marketing plans that translate global brand strategies into successful US activation plans.
• Lead the development of retailer and consumer activation plans, marketing briefs, launch strategies, and promotional calendars across assigned brands.
• Develop activation strategies that align with brand objectives, commercial priorities, retailer opportunities, and consumer insights.
• Manage execution of marketing initiatives across retail activations, partnerships, promotional events, and omnichannel campaigns.
• Define project timelines, key deliverables, success metrics, and cross-functional responsibilities to ensure flawless execution.
• Identify opportunities to improve marketing effectiveness through innovation, new activation approaches, and learnings from previous programs.

• Partner closely with Sales, Omnichannel Retail Marketing, and retailer teams to develop customer-specific marketing plans that drive distribution, velocity, and category growth.
• Serve as the marketing expert for assigned brands, maintaining a comprehensive understanding of every SKU including product features, pricing, launch timing, retailer distribution, embargo dates, promotional support, historical performance, POS trends, and business objectives.
• Develop retailer presentations, seasonal selling materials, customer marketing plans, and business updates that support retailer line reviews and selling initiatives.
• Lead execution of retailer-exclusive programs, promotional events, and channel-specific marketing activations.
• Gather retailer feedback and marketplace insights to influence future commercial strategies.

• Analyze POS performance, retail trends, consumer insights, competitive activity, and category performance to identify business opportunities and risks.
• Monitor performance of marketing activations and recommend optimizations to maximize commercial results.
• Develop post-program analyses that evaluate campaign effectiveness and provide actionable recommendations.
• Create compelling presentations that clearly communicate business performance, strategic recommendations, and marketing opportunities to leadership.
• Partner with Demand Planning, Sales, and Analytics teams to support forecasting assumptions, promotional planning, and business planning.

• Lead cross-functional work streams across Global Brand Marketing, Sales, Retail Marketing, Demand Planning, Creative, Consumer Insights, Finance, Licensing, and external partners.
• Drive alignment across stakeholders by facilitating meetings, managing project timelines, and proactively resolving issues.
• Coordinate development of licensor presentations, retailer materials, launch communications, and executional assets.
• Influence decisions through thoughtful recommendations supported by…