Creative Play Lead

Theinsideout; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - GBP 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A global toy manufacturer is seeking a visionary leader to join the Play Discovery Team in London. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in experiential design with 8-10+ years of creative leadership experience. Responsibilities include crafting pioneering play experiences, leading teams from concept to prototype, and engaging deeply with children's play patterns. This role offers benefits like enhanced family care leave, insurance, and wellbeing resources. Join the LEGO team to inspire joy and creativity in play.

Benefits

Family Care Leave

Life and disability insurance

Wellbeing resources

Colleague discount

Bonus scheme

Hybrid work policy

Qualifications

• 8-10+ years leading breakthrough concept development in experiential design.
• Expertise in physical prototyping and hands-on making.
• Proven ability to lead and mentor teams across various disciplines.
• Expert at translating complex concepts for diverse audiences.
• Experience creating immersive play worlds with cohesive narratives.
• Competent in identifying emerging trends that shape play experiences.
• Confident using emerging tools like 3D software and virtual environments.
• A portfolio showcasing bold experimentation and innovative play concepts.

Responsibilities

• Champion play experiences that challenge conventions.
• Direct multi-disciplinary teams through discovery development.
• Bridge strategy and creativity through engaging communication.
• Blend physical prototyping with future-forward platforms.
• Collaborate with children to represent their voice in development.
• Promote a playful culture across the Creative Play Lab.

Skills

Creative Leadership Excellence

Master Maker & Prototyper

Inspiring Team Leadership

Communication Mastery

World Builder & Storyteller

Cultural Observer

Future-Forward Pioneer

Visionary Portfolio

Job description

Job Description

Do you dream of making life more playful?

Do you explore the world with childlike curiosity—asking how things work and what sparks joy? Do you thrive on creative excellence, originality, and unconventional thinking?
Grab your ideation super pack and lead multi-disciplinary teams through exciting discovery work in strange and playful lands. Join the LEGO Group’sPlay Discovery Teamin theCreative Play Lab—where every day is about uncovering new magic and redefining enjoyment in truly immersive ways.

Responsibilities

• Envision Breakthrough Play Experiences:Champion play experiences that challenge conventions and spark new possibilities for how kids play, experience joy, and express creativity.
• Lead & Direct Multi-Disciplinary Teams:Direct and manage multi-disciplinary teams through the discovery development of projects from observation to physical concept creation. Thrive in dynamic inventor spaces where rapid experimentation turns raw curiosity into breakthrough discoveries. Act as a catalyst for creative excellence, holdinghigh standardsand driving visionary, playful leadership.
• Master Communication & Storytelling:Bridge strategy and creativity by articulating advanced thinking and ideas in simple, captivating, and relatable ways that unite inventors,prototypers, play model builders, designers, business, and project leads in the same direction.
• Pioneer Hybrid Ideation & Innovation:Blend physical prototyping with future-forward platforms to rapidly transform abstract concepts into tangible experiences. Create experiential prototypes as a communication language, using physical builds, multi-sensory experiences, and future-forward tools to bring play stories to life.
• Collaborate with Kids & Champion Their Voice:Stay deeply connected to children’s curiosity and play patterns, collaborating with kids andrepresentingthem throughout development. Create environments for teams to be brave, to challenge, reinvent, and build to find a new dimension of play.
• Drive Playful Culture & Strategic Partnerships:Champion playful culture across the Creative Play Lab through PLAY-enhanced initiatives and workshops. Build strategic external partnerships with cultural innovators and creative communities to expand ideation capabilities.

Requirements

• Creative Leadership Excellence:8-10+ years leading breakthrough concept development in experiential design, toy/play innovation, or related creative fields—with a proventrack recordof delivering visionary ideas that challenge conventions.
• Master Maker &Prototyper:Demonstratedexpertisein physical prototyping and hands‑on making. You rapidly build tangible prototypes, models, and experiential installations that bring complex ideas to life.
• Inspiring Team Leadership:Proven ability to lead and mentor multi-disciplinary teams across design, technology, research, and making. You act as a catalyst for creative excellence and foster collaborative, experimental environments.
• Communication Mastery:Expert at translating complex creative concepts for diverse audiences—from hands‑on makers to C‑suite executives—through compelling visual storytelling, presentations, and experiential demonstrations that inspire action.
• World Builder & Storyteller:Experience creating cohesive, immersive play worlds with rich narratives, characters, and interconnected experiences that captivate children’s imaginations.
• Cultural Observer:Always on the pulse of culture—identifyingemerging trends, movements, and shifts that shape how kids play, connect, and experience joy.
• Future-Forward Pioneer:Confident working with emerging tools and platforms—including 3D software, virtual environments, and intelligent systems—to accelerate ideation and transform abstract concepts into tangible prototypes.
• Visionary Portfolio:A portfolio thatdemonstratesbreakthrough creative concepts, bold experimentation, innovative approaches to play, and the ability to push boundaries in experience design.

Nice to have

• Concept art or visual development skills to create compelling illustrations and visual narratives
• Track recordinfluencing product development frominitialidea to tangible prototype or market implementation
• Deep knowledge of children’s play and culture, with evidence of staying connected to kids’ worlds through direct observation
• Experience in toy, entertainment, or children’s media industries
• Experience in fast‑paced innovation labs or R&D environments where experimentation and rapid iteration thrive
  

Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis. However, please note we do amend or withdraw our jobs and reserve the right to do so at any time, including prior to any advertised closing date. So, if you’re interested in this role we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

What’s in it for you?

Here is what you can expect:

Family Care Leave– We offer enhanced paid leave options for those important times.

Insurances– All colleagues are covered by our life and disability insurance which provides protection and peace of mind.

Wellbeing– We want our people to feel well and thrive. We offer resources and benefits to nurture physical and mental wellbeing along with opportunities to build community and inspire creativity.

Colleague Discount– We know you’ll love to build, so from day 1 you will qualify for our generous colleague discount.

Bonus– We do our best work to succeed together. When goals are reached and if eligible, you’ll be rewarded through our bonus scheme.

Workplace– When you join the team you’ll be assigned a primary workplace location i.e. one of our Offices, stores or factories. Our hybrid work policy means an average of 3 days per week in the office. The hiring team will discuss the policy and role eligibility with you during the recruitment process.

Children are our role models. Their curiosity, creativity and imagination inspire everything we do. We strive to create a diverse, dynamic and inclusive culture of play at the LEGO Group, where everyone feels safe, valued and they belong.

The LEGO Group is highly committed to equal employment opportunity and equal pay and seeksto encourage applicants from all backgrounds (eg. sex, gender identity or expression, race/ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, age and religion) to apply for roles in our team.

The LEGO Group is fully committed to Children’s Rights and Child Wellbeing across the globe. Candidates offered positions with high engagement with children are required to take part in Child Safeguarding Background Screening, as a condition of the offer.

Thank you for sharing our global commitment to Children’s Rights.

Just imagine building your dream career.

Then make it real.

Join the LEGO® team today.