Sr Director, Head of AI at Mattel in El Segundo, CA

companyDescription 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. jobDescription The Opportunity: The Sr. Director, Office of AI is a senior leadership role within Mattel's Global Technology Organization (GTO), reporting directly to the VP of Technology. This role is the company's primary driver for AI adoption strategy, value creation and governance, translating the fast-moving AI landscape into meaningful, responsible, and scalable outcomes for the business. The Sr. Director leads a small team of AI practitioners and engineers and operates at the intersection of strategy, engineering, and cross-functional partnership. They are expected to be both a visionary and an executor, capable of prototyping solutions, managing business relationships, and navigating legal, security, and privacy frameworks, while maintaining a clear lens on enterprise value. What Your Impact Will Be: AI Strategy & Governance Define and evolve Mattel's enterprise AI adoption strategy in alignment with GTO and business priorities. Establish and operate the Office of AI governance model including AI use case intake, prioritization, risk review, and portfolio tracking. Work with the appropriate teams and develop and communicate AI policies, standards, and guardrails in partnership with Legal, Security, Privacy, and Compliance. Lead responsible AI frameworks covering ethics, bias mitigation, explainability, and regulatory compliance. Business Enablement & Value Creation Identify AI enablement opportunities across Mattel's business domains, including DTC, marketing, supply chain, product development, and enterprise functions. Build and maintain relationships with business stakeholders to understand pain points and translate them into high-value AI use cases. Define and track value realization metrics, ensuring AI investments deliver measurable business outcomes. Act as an internal AI thought leader: educating business partners, debunking hype, and driving informed decision-making. Engineering Prototyping & Execution Handoff Lead or directly contribute to engineering prototypes and proof-of-concept builds that validate AI approaches and establish ROI before committing to production investment. Partner with Engineering and Platform teams to ensure smooth transition from PoC to production, with clear documentation, architecture alignment, and success criteria. Evaluate and recommend AI tooling, platforms, and frameworks in alignment with enterprise architecture standards. Leverage agentic AI, LLMs, and emerging automation paradigms to accelerate solution velocity. Partner & Vendor Management Manage strategic AI vendor and partner relationships including co-development engagements, platform assessments, and contract reviews. Coordinate with Legal, Security, and Privacy teams to establish compliance frameworks for AI tools and third-party solutions entering the enterprise. Evaluate AI partner capabilities against Mattel's technology standards and risk tolerance. Team & Stakeholder Leadership Lead and develop a team of AI practitioners, engineers, and program managers both in the US as well as in our India offices. Report and present AI portfolio progress, governance posture, and strategic recommendations to senior leadership. Foster a culture of responsible experimentation, rapid learning, and cross-functional collaboration qualifications What We’re Looking For: Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, AI, Data Science, Information Systems, or a related field. 15+ years of progressive experience spanning AI/ML strategy, enterprise technology, and business enablement. Proven track record of driving enterprise AI adoption from opportunity identification through governance, prototyping, and production handoff. Strong command of the AI landscape including generative AI, LLMs, agentic systems, ML platforms, and emerging frameworks and the ability to quickly contextualize them within a consumer products enterprise. Experience partnering with Legal, Security, and Privacy functions to establish AI governance frameworks and vendor risk assessments. Hands-on prototyping capability comfortable moving between strategic design and technical execution. Excellent executive communication skills able to translate complex AI concepts into business value for senior non-technical stakeholders. Demonstrated ability to manage vendor relationships, evaluate third-party AI platforms, and lead structured procurement processes. Background in consumer products, retail, entertainment, or adjacent industries where AI is applied to physical goods, consumer experience, or global operations. Exposure to AI use cases across one or more of: supply chain & demand forecasting, quality & manufacturing intelligence, DTC & e-commerce personalization, MarTech & campaign optimization, product development & innovation, or consumer insights & first-party data activation. AI or Cloud certifications (e.g., Google ML Engineer, AWS ML Specialty, Azure AI Engineer). Experience with cloud-native AI infrastructure on GCP, AWS, or Azure. Background in responsible AI, AI ethics, or model governance frameworks. Prior experience standing up or scaling an Office of AI, Center of Excellence, or AI governance function. *The pay range is indicative of projected hiring range, however base pay will be determined based on a candidate’s work location, skills and experience. Mattel offers competitive total pay programs, comprehensive benefits, and resources to help empower a culture where every employee can reach their full potential. additionalInformation Don’t meet every single requirement? At Mattel, we are dedicated to an inclusive workplace and a culture of belonging. If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we still encourage you to apply. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles. Join Mattel's Talent Community and start receiving exciting updates about our company, our employees, and our culture. Also, interested in signing up for job alerts? Do so here! How We Work: We are a purpose driven company aiming to empower generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. We live up to our purpose employing the following behaviors: We collaborate: Being a part of Mattel means being part of one team with shared values and common goals. Every person counts and working closely together always brings better results. Partnership is our process and our collective capabilities is our superpower. We innovate: At Mattel we always aim to find new and better ways to create innovative products and experiences. No matter where you work in the organization, you can always make a difference and have real impact. We welcome new ideas and value new initiatives that challenge conventional thinking. We execute: We are a performance-driven company. We strive for excellence and are focused on pursuing best-in-class outcomes. We believe in accountability and ownership and know that our people are at their best when they are empowered to create and deliver results. Who We Are: Mattel is a leading global toy and family entertainment company and owner of one of the most iconic brand portfolios in the world. We engage consumers and fans through our franchise brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, American Girl, Thomas & Friends, UNO, Masters of the Universe, Matchbox, Monster High, MEGA and Polly Pocket, as well as other popular properties that we own or license in partnership with global entertainment companies. Our offerings include toys, content, consumer products, digital and live experiences. Our products are sold in collaboration with the world’s leading retail and ecommerce companies. Since its founding in 1945, Mattel is proud to be a trusted partner in empowering generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. Mattel’s award-winning workplace culture has been recognized by Forbes, Fast Company, Newsweek, Great Place to Work, TIME, and more. Visit us at https://jobs.mattel.com/ and www.instagram.com/MattelCareers. Mattel is an Equal Opportunity Employer where we want you to bring your authentic self to work every day. We welcome all job seekers, and all applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, veteran and protected veteran status, disability status, and or any other basis protected by applicable federal, state or local law. Pursuant to the Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance and the California Fair Chance Act, qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment. Videos to watch: The Culture at Mattel Corporate Philanthropy