Director, Business Development
Director, Business Development
Electronic Arts
Vancouver
Role Summary
Reporting to the VP, Business Development, the Director, Business Development serves as the EA SPORTS business development lead for strategic initiatives that extend our franchises beyond the core game experience. Working in close partnership with EA Ventures, the business owner of EA's Beyond Game strategy, this role identifies, evaluates, structures, and executes partnership opportunities that create new ways for fans to engage with EA SPORTS brands across digital media, emerging data and technologies, platforms, and connected experiences.
You will operate at the intersection of strategy and execution, translating enterprise-level Beyond Game priorities into commercially viable opportunities for EA SPORTS. The role collaborates closely with the broader EA SPORTS Business Development organization to leverage and evolve existing league, federation, club, athlete, and commercial partner relationships while identifying new ecosystem partners that accelerate innovation and long-term franchise growth.
Success in this role requires exceptional cross-functional leadership, business and commercial acumen, and the ability to align multiple internal and external stakeholders to deliver partnerships that support scalable, fan-centric experiences that complement EA's core gaming business. This is a hybrid role, with 3 days a week in our Vancouver office.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Partnership Development
- You will partner with EA Ventures to support EA's Beyond Game strategy within the EA SPORTS portfolio.
- You'll dentify strategic partnership opportunities that extend EA SPORTS franchises into new fan experiences, platforms, and business models.
- You will be responsible for executing partnerships that support commercial strategies and business cases for new initiatives that align with franchise, corporate, and partner objectives.
- You'll evaluate emerging opportunities across sports media, creator ecosystems, AI, digital platforms, connected experiences, and other adjacent markets.
- You will manage partnerships from opportunity identification through execution, launch, and ongoing governance.
Cross-Functional Business Development
- Work collaboratively across the EA SPORTS Business Development organization to identify opportunities within the existing partner ecosystem, including leagues, clubs, federations, athletes, data and technology partners, and commercial rights holders.
- Ensure Beyond Game initiatives complement and strengthen existing strategic partnerships while creating incremental value for EA and its partners.
- Coordinate with franchise Business Development leads to align priorities, partnership approaches, and go-to-market strategies.
Ecosystem Development
- Cultivate relationships with established and emerging partners across sports, media, technology, entertainment, and fan engagement.
- Expand EA SPORTS' external innovation ecosystem by identifying companies and capabilities that support long-term franchise growth.
- Collaborate with EA Ventures and Corporate Development to assess strategic investment, incubation, or partnership opportunities where appropriate.
Cross-Functional Leadership
Partner with:
- EA Ventures
- EA SPORTS Business Development
- Franchise Leadership
- Studios and Product Management
- Brand & Marketing
- Legal
- Finance
- Corporate Development
- External strategic partners
to align priorities, evaluate opportunities, and bring new experiences to market.
Market Intelligence & Innovation
- Monitor market trends across sports, media, entertainment, technology, and interactive experiences.
- Assess competitive activity and emerging partnership models.
- Develop strategic recommendations that position EA SPORTS at the forefront of fan engagement beyond gameplay.
Success Measures
- Strategic partnerships executed in support of Beyond Game initiatives.
- Incremental commercial value created for EA SPORTS franchises and partner ecosystem..
- Successful collaboration with EA Ventures and cross-functional Business Development teams.
- Expansion of the strategic partner ecosystem.
- Speed and effectiveness of opportunity identification through launch.
- Long-term contribution to franchise growth and innovation.
Experience
- 7–10+ years in Business Development, Strategic Partnerships and Product Development within gaming, sports, media, or technology.
- Proven experience developing and negotiating complex strategic partnerships..
- Strong understanding of the global sports product ecosystem and digital media landscape.
- Experience working across matrixed organizations and influencing senior stakeholders without direct authority.
- Build commercial partnerships and execute cross-functional initiatives.
- Excellent financial modeling.