D&D Is Hiring a New Brand Publicity Manager

Hasbro is looking for the next publicity manager for Dungeons & Dragons. Today, Hasbro posted a job listing for a "Sr Manager, Brand Publicity" to help manage PR and communications for the Dungeons & Dragons brand. While a different job title, the role assumably will replace Greg Tito, who departed Wizards of the Coast after nearly a decade for a position in public service.

Responsibilities for the job include managing the day-to-day planning of publicity programs, planning and executing product launches and consumer events, fan relations, and monitoring media about Dungeons & Dragons.

While the Dungeons & Dragons brand has seen its share of challenges in recent years, the position is likely to draw a significant degree of attention from within the TTRPG industry and outside of it. The role will likely help frame the future of D&D as it not only grapples with Hasbro's desire to grow it into a major digital gaming brand, but also as the tabletop game moves forward with its new revised 5th Edition. D&D has seen some recent changes in corporate ownership, with Jess Lanzillo taking over as the new VP of product and franchise for D&D earlier this year.

 

[borringman]

While the Dungeons & Dragons brand has seen its share of challenges in recent years

"challenges". . .

 

[Nikosandros]

IMDb still has no release date for it. Joe M seems to be doing a lot of other things that aren't this documentary.

I'm not even sure that the project is still active. As I recall, Manganiello has expressed some heavy criticism of WotC some time ago. It didn't sound to me as someone who was collaborating on a project with them.

 

[bedir than]

Can you imagine how thankless this job is? At best it’s a low level of grumbling about how bad you are at your job.

The last person to hold the position was there for ten years, is basically loved by the people he interacted with and ran some of the best promo events in D&D's history.
Attention to D&D from mainstream press has never been higher, the coordination he did to get D&D into Washington libraries helped him get a new job even.

are there upset people on the internet? Sure

Is this a thankless job? Only if you ignore all the people that have thanked Tito for his work over the past decade.

 

[Von Ether]

Eight years, I believe. I remember listening to Dragon Talk through lockdown, when he and Shelley switched from doing it at the office to talking from home.

Wow! From personal experience, the turnover in Marketing is brutal, never mind this industry. He was never getting paid enough.

 

[dave2008]

That seems pretty obvious....but they do claim 50th goes thru next spring......

In any event, they need to do something. This is pretty pathetic, IMO.

what do you feel they need to do? I'm most definitely out of touch, but the core book revision was already for than enough celebration for me and they are doing a heck of a lot more than that.

 

[doctorhook]

Yeah. Can you imagine how thankless this job is? At best it’s a low level of grumbling about how bad you are at your job.

I’d rather chew off my left arm.

Pretty much has to be someone outside the hobby, I think. The hobby will make this person very controversial, the only way to survive the pressure will be not to care too much about what the community thinks of them.

 

[DEFCON 1]

...if I'd be willing to go to 1,000,000 Scoville on Hot Ones for D&D.

Wimp. The Last Dab is 2 million plus and actually isn't that bad.

(Just teasing. My tolerance is quite high for that stuff, so I'm not one to criticize, LOL.)

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Pretty much has to be someone outside the hobby, I think. The hobby will make this person very controversial, the only way to survive the pressure will be not to care too much about what the community thinks of them.

People in these public-facing roles tend to have much thicker skin than the general public does.

In my day job, I am sometimes the focus of angry attention from the public (or astroturfed attention from the "public") and I don't really take it personally.

 

[Hussar]

Is this a thankless job? Only if you ignore all the people that have thanked Tito for his work over the past decade.

Sure. The fandom is such a welcoming place.

 

[Eyes of Nine]

this is going to be a tough job, to come in at what could arguably be a high level - already mentioned 50th anniversary, museum etc etc and then expecting it to continue to increase, but those organic tailwinds will have softened considerably.