Director, Production Technology

Sesame Workshop•New York, NY

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Sesame Workshop is the global nonprofit behind Sesame Street and so much more. For over 50 years, we have worked at the intersection of education, media, and research, creating joyful experiences that enrich minds and expand hearts, all in service of empowering each generation to build a better world. Our beloved characters, iconic shows, outreach in communities, and more bring playful early learning to families in more than 190 countries and advance our mission to help children everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. Learn more at www.sesame.org and follow Sesame Workshop on Instagram , TikTok , Facebook , and X . The Director, Production Technology is a member of the Technology & Engineering department and reports to the Vice President, Production Technology. This is a senior individual-contributor role with no direct reports. The Director provides technical and project leadership through deep subject-matter expertise, cross-functional influence, and ownership of complex production technology initiatives. Purpose The Director, Production Technology leads the architecture, modernization, and operational effectiveness of Sesame Workshop’s production and post-production technology ecosystem. This role translates production and creative needs into scalable technology solutions, owns major infrastructure and platform initiatives, establishes and drives adherence for technology standards, and helps shape the long-term production technology roadmap. The role is responsible for the reliability and scalability of critical hardware and software platforms used across the creative teams. The Director serves as a senior technical partner to Production, Creative, and Technology & Engineering teams, balancing creative ambition, usability, cost, reliability, security, and scalability across the content lifecycle. The role also evaluates emerging technologies, including AI-enabled tools, and provides informed recommendations on where new capabilities can meaningfully improve Sesame Workshop’s production model.

Requirements

Minimum of 8 years of experience in production or post-production technology, media engineering, or a related field.
Significant hands-on experience with production and post-production technology and complex media workflows, with a track record of owning projects from discovery through documentation and handoff.
Deep knowledge of production and post-production systems and architecture, including asset management, tracking tools, delivery pipelines, and shared edit storage.
Proven ability to evaluate vendors and technologies and make informed investment recommendations.
Skilled at translating business and creative requirements into technical workflows and training both technical and non-technical teams.
Experience collaborating across production, creative, and technology teams while managing day-to-day work independently.
Track record of managing capital budget planning and prioritizing technology investment across competing needs.
Demonstrated ability to manage significant technology implementations and shape technology strategy and roadmaps in partnership with senior leadership.
Experience translating creative and production needs into technology solutions, balancing creative ambition, usability, cost, reliability, and scalability.
Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives through expertise and influence, building alignment and driving accountability across stakeholders without relying on formal reporting authority.

Nice To Haves

Experience with virtual production and studio technology, including formalizing procedures and SOPs.
Experience evaluating emerging technologies, including AI-enabled production and post-production tools, assessing creative value, workflow impact, cost, security, rights considerations, and organizational readiness.
Experience with cloud-based media workflows, production collaboration platforms, and modern media infrastructure.
Experience supporting mission-driven, creative, media, entertainment, or content organizations.
Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in film, television, broadcasting, communications, media, or a related field.

Responsibilities

Lead the design, integration, and evolution of end-to-end production and post-production workflows, ensuring efficient and scalable handoffs across the content lifecycle.
Manage the post-production shared storage environment, editing software, and remote editing solutions, and lead technical execution of related infrastructure upgrades.
Formalize studio, virtual, and live production procedures, including control room operations, and plan infrastructure and equipment upgrades across studio, field, and post-production environments.
Evaluate emerging production and post-production technologies, including AI-driven applications, and define the department’s point of view on where they change the production and post-production operating model.
Shape the long-term strategy for media asset management, archive, and distribution systems, and build the automated QC pipelines that support them.
Own the technical administration, integration, and evolution of production collaboration, file transfer, and cloud-based media workflow platforms, currently including Frame.io, Signiant, and LucidLink.
Manage capital budget planning and spend for production technology purchases, and maintain detailed documentation of workflows, systems, and process changes.
Establish standards for reliability, security, access, lifecycle management, backup, and business continuity across production and post-production systems.
Support production and creative teams as their day-to-day technology partner, engaging directly to resolve workflow and equipment needs.
Collaborate with Technology & Engineering peers in IT, Digital Media Engineering, and Project Management on cross-team workflow integrations.
Build and maintain relationships with vendors, systems integrators, contractors, and production crews to support studio, field, and post-production needs.
Represent Production Technology in vendor evaluation and discovery discussions, advocating for solutions that fit the department's technical direction.
Partner with the VP, Production Technology to shape the department's multi-year technology roadmap.
Brief and train technical and non-technical team members on new workflows, systems, and process changes.
Provide senior technical and project leadership across complex initiatives, establishing direction, driving alignment, and coordinating work across internal teams and external partners without direct reporting authority.