SVP, Franchise & Title Strategy

Crunchyroll, LLC
Tokyo, Japan
On-siteCareer-pivot friendly

Who this role is best for

Geared toward candidates with deep entertainment franchise experience and comfortable with cross-functional coordination across global markets.

Best fit for

  • Candidates with 15+ years of entertainment franchise-building experience and global coordination skills
    — “15+ years of progressively senior experience in entertainment, media, streaming, film/television, games, consumer products, franchise management, or another IP-driven business.”
  • Individuals who have demonstrated success in multi-year franchise growth and portfolio management
    — “Demonstrated success in recognizing growth opportunities within an existing portfolio and mobilizing organizational focus and investment behind them.”
  • Professionals with native-level Japanese and English language skills and deep knowledge of Japanese entertainment ecosystems
    — “Native to Business level bilingual Japanese and English language skills.”

Things to consider

  • This role is likely not a stepping stone, given the emphasis on long-term franchise strategy and leadership responsibilities.
    — “Build franchises that live far beyond the screen”
  • The role demands significant coordination with regional and global teams, which may require high travel or time flexibility.
    — “Strong international experience connecting franchise ambition, partner priorities, and audience needs across markets.”

How to stand out

  • Highlight experience in building multi-year franchise strategies and portfolio management in your resume and interview.
    — “Establish long-term ambitions and multi-year plans for priority franchises”
  • Emphasize your track record in aligning global and regional teams around shared goals.
    — “Establish clear marketing priorities and strategies for key releases, aligning global and regional teams around shared goals.”
  • Showcase your ability to create compelling narratives and case studies for partners.
    — “Create compelling partner narratives, insights, case studies, and tentpole moments”
  • Demonstrate fluency in Japanese entertainment ecosystems, especially with creators and rights-holders.
    — “Deep experience partnering with creators, studios, publishers, licensors, and rights-holders, ideally including Japanese partners.”
  • Include examples of integrated strategies across streaming, theatrical, games, and consumer products.
    — “Experience developing integrated franchise strategies across streaming, theatrical, games, commerce, consumer products, events, publishing, and other extensions.”
Pace · SteadyCollaboration · HighAutonomy · HighDecision Impact · Company

Derived from job-description analysis by Serendipath's career intelligence engine.

What success looks like

  • Building successful global franchises
  • Maximizing title value across platforms
  • Strengthening brand relationships
Typical background
Product managerMarketing directorBrand strategist

Skills & requirements

Required

Strategic PlanningMarketingCommercial StrategyFranchise Development

Preferred

Anime Industry KnowledgeGlobal Brand Management

Stack & domain

AnimeFranchise Strategy

About the role

Original posting from Crunchyroll, LLC via Greenhouse

About Crunchyroll

Founded by fans, Crunchyroll delivers the art and culture of anime to a passionate community. We super-serve over 100 million anime and manga fans across 200+ countries and territories, and help them connect with the stories and characters they crave. Whether that experience is online or in-person, streaming video, theatrical, games, merchandise, events and more, it’s powered by the anime content we all love.

Join our team, and help us shape the future of anime!

The Role

 Crunchyroll is seeking an SVP/VP Franchise & Title Strategy to transform great anime titles into enduring global franchises that deepen fandom over a lifetime.

 Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, this leader takes the baton after content has been acquired, shaping how titles are nurtured, prioritized, and activated across the Crunchyroll ecosystem. This role does not acquire or license content; it partners closely with the Chief Content Officer once titles enter the Crunchyroll portfolio to maximize their long-term potential.

 The SVP/VP, Franchise & Title Strategy will bring together Strategy, Marketing, Commercial lines of business, and Regional teams around a unified view of the portfolio—ensuring priority titles have clear franchise ambitions, the right level of investment, and coordinated activation across markets and fan touchpoints. 

 The goal is to turn exceptional stories into lasting relationships with fans and build franchises that can grow far beyond a single season or release.

Responsibilities 

 Build franchises that live far beyond the screen

Own Crunchyroll’s global Franchise and Title Strategy, defining how acquired titles are prioritized, nurtured, and grown across their lifecycle.

Establish long-term ambitions and multi-year plans for priority franchises, informed by fan insights, market dynamics, and performance.

Connect streaming with theatrical, games, manga, eCommerce, consumer products, events, and other fan experiences to deepen fandom and extend franchise value.

Turn priority releases into global fan moments

Lead the Title Marketing Strategy function, setting the strategy and ambition for how titles are launched and sustained across the Crunchyroll ecosystem and then partnering closely with regional marketing teams and general managers to execute on ambitions.

Establish clear marketing priorities and strategies for key releases, aligning global and regional teams around shared goals.

Build title plans that maximize audience, engagement, and fandom before, during, and beyond launch.

Build a world-class B2B marketing engine for our partners

Build the strategy and capabilities that demonstrate Crunchyroll’s value to licensors, studios, and rights holders.

Showcase how Crunchyroll grows audiences, builds fandom, and creates lasting value for titles and franchises around the world.

Create compelling partner narratives, insights, case studies, and tentpole moments that deepen relationships and reinforce Crunchyroll as a valued global partner.

Create the operating system that turns strategy into action

Serve as the connective tissue across Content, Marketing, Regional teams, and adjacent businesses to align execution around priority titles.

Establish an integrated planning cadence across title marketing, localization, regional activation, commercial businesses, and franchise development.

Partner with Regional GMs to bring local fan and market insights into franchise plans while maintaining a coherent global strategy.

Build the management system and team

Build the operating model, governance, and decision frameworks for managing the title portfolio as an enterprise asset.

Foster a culture of high standards, collaboration, and continuous improvement focused on fans, creators, and Crunchyroll outcomes.

Experience 

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience required.

Deep industry expertise, judgment, and demonstrated results will be valued more heavily than a particular academic pathway.

Experience 

15+ years of progressively senior experience in entertainment, media, streaming, film/television, games, consumer products, franchise management, or another IP-driven business.

Significant experience building and growing entertainment franchises over multiple years, beyond individual releases or marketing windows.

Demonstrated success in recognizing growth opportunities within an existing portfolio and mobilizing organizational focus and investment behind them.

Experience developing integrated franchise strategies across streaming, theatrical, games, commerce, consumer products, events, publishing, and other extensions.

Deep experience partnering with creators, studios, publishers, licensors, and rights-holders, ideally including Japanese partners.

Experience setting global title and franchise strategy, priorities, and investment frameworks that regional and functional teams translate into execution.

Demonstrated ability to orchestrate complex initiatives across Content, Marketing, Commercial businesses, Product, and Regional teams through influence rather than direct ownership.

Strong international experience connecting franchise ambition, partner priorities, and audience needs across markets.

Experience improving partner-facing workflows and establishing measures for franchise health, growth, and long-term value.

Native to Business level bilingual Japanese and English language skills

Direct anime and Japanese entertainment experience is highly desirable; candidates from adjacent fandom-driven businesses should demonstrate fluency in creator/rightsholder ecosystems and global franchise building.

Why you will love working at Crunchyroll

In addition to getting to work with fun, passionate and inspired colleagues, you will also enjoy the following benefits and perks:

Competitive Salary

Health Insurance through Sony Kenko Hoken Kumiai

401(k) Retirement Plan

Allowances for Gym & Wellness, Cellphone, Meals, Commuting

Crunchyroll Premium account

Professional Development

Company's Paid Parental Leave

up to 22 weeks for birthing parents

up to 12 weeks for non-birthing parents

Hybrid Work Schedule

Paid Time Off

Flex Time Off

5 Yasumi Days

Half-Day Fridays during the summer

3 Obon Summer Yasumi Days

Winter Break

#LifeAtCrunchyroll #LI-Hybrid 

About our Values

We want to be everything for someone rather than something for everyone and we do this by living and modeling our values in all that we do. We value

Courage. We believe that when we overcome fear, we enable our best selves.

Curiosity. We are curious, which is the gateway to empathy, inclusion, and understanding.

Kaizen. We have a growth mindset committed to constant forward progress.

Service. We serve our community with humility, enabling joy and belonging for others.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion

Our mission of helping people belong reflects our commitment to diversity & inclusion. It's just the way we do business.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at Crunchyroll. Pursuant to applicable law, we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Crunchyroll, LLC is an independently operated joint venture between US-based Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Japan's Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., both subsidiaries of Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation.

Questions about Crunchyroll’s hiring process? Please check out our Hiring FAQs: https://help.crunchyroll.com/hc/en-us/articles/360040471712-Crunchyroll-Hiring-FAQs

Please refer to our Candidate Privacy Policy for more information about how we process your personal information, and your data protection rights: https://tbcdn.talentbrew.com/company/22978/v1_0/docs/spe-jobs-privacy-policy-update-for-crpa-dec-21-22.pdf

Please beware of recent scams to online job seekers. Those applying to our job openings will only be contacted directly from @crunchyroll.com email account.

Source: Crunchyroll, LLC careers (Greenhouse)

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