Senior Business Planner, Gaming
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Nov 6, 2026. First seen by Alion on Oct 12, 2026. Microsoft scores B on the Alion truth index.
Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset, inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us to achieve our mission.
Microsoft Advertising is at the forefront of the digital advertising industry and empowers advertisers around the world to reach and expand their potential through our full-funnel digital marketing solutions.
Gaming is one of the largest and fastest-changing audiences in that portfolio, spanning Xbox, King, Activision Blizzard, and our broader gaming supply across console, PC, mobile, and streaming. We are looking for an initiative-taking Senior Business Planner to drive business planning for our gaming ads business. In this role you will take work from idea to reality: sizing the opportunity, building the business case, bringing customer and market evidence into product planning, and driving initiatives through to delivery.
Responsibilities
1. Program / Project Management
Develops detailed project plans, timelines, and deliverables for their assigned workstream, consolidating milestones and dependencies across projects
Identifies and manages interdependence across workstreams to avoid bottlenecks and ensure timely delivery
Leads governance rhythms, enforcement, and execution excellence including regular updates to stakeholders, maintaining clarity on status and risks
2. End-to-End Planning
Develops strategic plans to drive and transform the gaming business across demand, supply, products, and platforms, and influences prioritization of initiatives within these areas
Leads workstreams across opportunity identification and sizing, demand strategy, and business requirements documentation, so gaming enters planning cycles with a quantified position rather than a directional ask
Works with cross-functional teams to ensure business and demand plans are comprehensive and rationalized across publishers, surfaces, and sales motions
Supports publisher planning with sizing and business cases, including monetization and ad policy considerations
3. Problem Solving and Insights
Structures ambiguous situations into a defined plan, including root cause identification, hypothesis testing, and implementation of the proposal
Leverages insights across voice of the customer, voice of the field, market research, and stakeholder input to develop recommendations and provide thought leadership around potential growth opportunities
Leverages AI and automation to synthesize data and identify patterns, owning the integrity, relevance, and limitations of AI-generated insights used in business decision making
Contributes to the Gaming Ads competitive intelligence rhythm and market benchmarking, and represents that evidence in product planning and prioritization forums
4. Communication and Stakeholder Management
Communicates and advocates plans to business leaders and conveys viewpoints through written documents such as memos, perspectives, and business requirements docs, and through influence models such as meetings and presentations
Builds end-to-end storylines, leveraging data to demonstrate measurable outcomes of work
Delivers recommendations and implications to stakeholders to facilitate discussions and decision making
Partners across Product, Engineering, Operations, Finance and Sales to ensure alignment
Your role involves strategic planning, collaboration, and staying ahead in the dynamic digital advertising landscape. By connecting gaming supply, advertiser demand, and Microsoft’s broader advertising portfolio, you will contribute to Microsoft’s success in the ever-evolving industry.
Qualifications
Required/minimum qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development
- OR equivalent experience.
- 3+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.
Additional or preferred qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree AND 12+ years experience engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development
- OR equivalent experience.
- 8+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.
- 1+ year(s) of experience reading and/or writing code (e.g., sample documentation, product demos).
- Experience in gaming, entertainment, or media, or working with publishers and advertisers to create and sell media products.
- Strong familiarity with the digital environment and a clear understanding of the media planning and buying process.
- A proven track record of working across diverse stakeholders, including sales, to define and execute strategic initiatives with passion, precision, and excellence.
- Ability to navigate, build trust, and influence through hands-on engagement with leadership across business and engineering teams.
- Solid business judgement and ability to make decisions leveraging strategic thinking complemented with a bias for action and operational excellence.
- Ability to communicate at an executive level through visual, written, and verbal communication within a global context, technical and non-technical.
- Ability to thrive in a fast-moving and exciting, but oftentimes ambiguous environment.
Technical Program Management IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.