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About the Role

The External Development (ExDev) Producer is the primary operational engine for Zynga's ExDev team, managing outsourcing pipelines, vendor relationships, contracts, and budgets to ensure studios receive timely and budget-conscious external support. This role operates at the intersection of production, finance, legal, and creative, partnering with game studios and a global network of service providers.

Responsibilities

• Support multiple game studios with varying needs, geographic locations, and vendor rosters simultaneously (typically 5–8 active projects)
• Manage and contribute to outsourcing schedules, ensuring alignment between studios and service providers
• Break down project phases and communicate time/cost estimates; track progress and identify roadblocks to determine schedule risk
• Analyze situations to identify risks and roadblocks and mitigate / problem-solve around them at the project level
• Ensure alignment within projects; send project status reports, run meetings, and maintain meeting agendas
• Evaluate new vendor candidates against Zynga business standards
• Work collaboratively with central departments: Legal, Finance, Procurement, Accounts Payable, and IT
• Troubleshoot any studio-vendor misalignments at the project level
• Resolve conflicts at the project level
• Knowledgeably negotiate with vendors at the project level on pricing, rates, and terms
• Maintain ongoing vendor relationships; explore and research new vendors
• Ensure alignment between studios and vendors throughout engagement lifecycle
• Understand different vendor pricing structures and methodologies
• Evaluate acceptable rates per project status and make recommendations
• Evaluate acceptable payment terms and make recommendations
• Work with studios to forecast a budget and provide a detailed breakdown/justification as well as analysis on rightsizing based on historical actuals and context
• Draft contracts, manage purchase orders (POs), and approve invoices for ongoing projects
• Track and report budget spend; provide budget analysis and forecasting support to the Executive Producer and team
• Draft and review vendor contracts and statements of work (SOWs)
• Recognize legal and business risks in individual contract terms and communicate those risks clearly to Legal, studios, and vendors
• Understand the different types of contingent workers and constraints around each engagement type
• Raise employment risks to studios and employment counsel based on analysis of the engagement structure
• Send timely, accurate project reports
• Run meetings effectively; own the communication flow outward to studios and vendors
• Identify dependencies and create project plans
• Understands and articulates the rationale behind outsourcing roadmap items relevant to each studio engagement
• Support and provide learning opportunities for Associate Producers
• Facilitate team communication and connections across a distributed team
• Identify risks to team culture and morale and propose solutions; actively seek input on team health
• Actively build and demonstrate core leadership soft skills: trust, advocacy, empathy, high EQ, and transparent communication

Requirements

• 3–5 years of production or project management experience in the game industry or a related creative/tech field
• Outsourcing or external development experience strongly preferred
• Demonstrated ability to work independently to manage project plans, schedules, and key deliverables at high quality
• Familiarity with the full game development lifecycle is a plus
• Proven ability to support multiple studios with different needs, geographies, and vendor portfolios simultaneously
• Experience building and managing production schedules; comfortable identifying and mitigating schedule risk
• Able to negotiate systems and administrative processes for working with external service providers
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional central teams: Legal, Finance, Procurement, AP, IT
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate new vendor candidates and maintain ongoing vendor relationships
• Comfortable knowledgeably negotiating vendor rates, pricing structures, and contract terms at the project level
• Experience troubleshooting studio-vendor misalignments and resolving conflicts constructively
• Solid understanding of vendor pricing structures and methodologies (fixed fee, T&M, milestone-based, etc.)
• Able to evaluate acceptable rates and payment terms; experience building and justifying budget forecasts
• Proficient in MS Excel or Google Sheets for tracking spend, variance analysis, and budget reporting
• Experience drafting POs and approving invoices in a timely manner
• Able to draft and review vendor contracts and SOWs
• Can recognize legal/business risks in contract terms and communicate clearly to Legal, studios, and vendors
• Understanding of contingent worker classifications and associated engagement constraints
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to adapt style for creative, technical, and business audiences
• Experienced working with highly distributed, cross-functional teams across time zones
• Strong relationship-builder with both internal studio partners and external vendors
• Confident running meetings, managing agendas, and owning follow-through on action items
• Highly self-motivated and organized; able to operate with autonomy on pre-defined workflows and project processes
• Forward-looking and proactive: anticipates challenges before they become blockers
• Detail-oriented with a solutions-first mindset
• Positive influence on team culture; adaptable and resilient in a fast-paced environment
• High emotional intelligence; builds trust through transparent and empathetic communication

Skills

• Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides)
• MS Office, especially Excel
• Project tracking tools (Jira, Smartsheet, Asana, or similar)
• Contract management systems
• Procurement systems
• AP systems (e.g., iProc, Ironclad, Coupa, or similar)

Location

• Ontario
• Chicago

Work Type

• Full-time

Experience Level

• 3-5 years

Salary/Compensations

• Ontario: $71,400 - $105,660 per Year
• Chicago: $77,100 - $108,00 per Year

Benefits

• Bonus
• Equity awards
• 401(K) plan
• Employee Stock Purchase Program
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Basic life insurance
• 14 paid holidays per calendar year
• Paid vacation time (ranging from 15 to 25 days) or eligibility to participate in the Company’s discretionary time off program
• Up to 10 paid sick days per calendar year
• Paid parental leave
• Paid compassionate leave
• Wellbeing programs for mental health and other wellness support
• Family planning support through Maven
• Commuter benefits
• Reimbursements for fitness-related expenses

About the Company

• Zynga brings people together through the power of play.
• A global leader in interactive entertainment and a proud label of Take-Two Interactive.
• Games have been downloaded over 6 billion times, connecting players in 175+ countries.
• Diverse game portfolio includes FarmVille™, Words With Friends™, Zynga Poker™, Game of Thrones Slots Casino™, Wizard of Oz Slots™, Hit it Rich! Slots™, Wonka Slots™, Top Eleven™, Toon Blast™, Empires & Puzzles™, Merge Dragons!™, CSR Racing™, Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells™, Match Factory™, and Color Block Jam™.
• Founded in 2007 and headquartered in California, with teams spanning North America, Europe, and Asia.
• Zynga is where fun meets innovation.

Equal Opportunity

• Zynga is committed to creating and celebrating diverse thoughts, cultures, and backgrounds.
• Employment is based on substantive ability, objective qualifications, and work ethic – not an individual’s race, creed, color, religion, sex or gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, alienage or citizenship status, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, status as a victim of domestic violence or sex offenses, reproductive health decision, or any other characteristics protected by applicable law.
• Zynga is committed to providing necessary support and accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities, health conditions, or impairments to ensure their full participation in the job application or interview process.
• Contact accommodationrequest@zynga.com to request accommodations or for support related to your application.