Game Owner - Instant Win Games
Allwyn UK · Watford
At the heart of everything we do is our vision to change lives every day, and our mission to grow The National Lottery responsibly and champion its impact.
We are Allwyn UK, part of the Allwyn Entertainment Group – a multi-national lottery operator with a market-leading presence across the USA (Michigan and Illinois) and Europe, including Czech Republic, Austria, Greece, Cyprus and Italy.
While the main contribution of The National Lottery to society is through the funds to good causes, at Allwyn we put our purpose and values at the heart of everything we do. Join us as we embark on a once-in-a-lifetime, largescale transformation journey by creating a National Lottery that delivers more money to good causes.
We’ll talk a bit more about us further down the page, but for now – let’s talk about the role and who we’re looking for…
A bit about the role
Instant Win Games (IWG) are digital games loved by National Lottery players. With over 80 live games including Cash Bolt, Monopoly, Deal or No Deal and Cashword, and prizes ranging from 25p to £2 Million – there is something for everyone!
As a Game Owner, you’ll play a pivotal role in delivering growth ambitions for the Instant Win Games category. You will own game content and propositions on the Instant Win Games roadmap from end-to-end, ensuring game delivery to the highest standard to provide a high-quality gaming experience for our players. You will identify opportunities and solve challenges while maintaining and building strong relationships with our game studios, partners and stakeholders.
This is a great opportunity to play a key role in providing a high-quality Instant Win Games experience for new and existing players, to help raise millions for Good Causes.
What you’ll be doing
Game Ownership
- Own and be responsible for the end-to-end game lifecycle from ideation to launch for a number of games in the roadmap at any one time, ensuring the game vision is executed to a high quality in line with game design and regulatory principles and delivered to agreed timelines including: game concepts and wireframing, writing game briefs, creating prize structures, reviewing creative and game builds, and writing rules for new game development and existing game optimisation.
- Ensure all game concepts, mechanics, themes and trademarks are suitable for The National Lottery, working with Legal to ensure all game names are approved and in line with licence requirements.
- Support the Game Executives in post-production, and resolve any queries or challenges raised from Content, QA or the platform partner.
- Own the Creative Review process to ensure all games have been reviewed throughout production, gathering feedback and working with the game studio to ensure implementation.
- Own the games Governance approval processes for the IWG Team, working with internal stakeholders including Legal, Regulatory Affairs, Participant Protection, and Corporate and Public Affairs to ensure all games are approved in line with the game approval process.
- Work with internal stakeholders including Legal, Regulatory Affairs, Participant Protection, Corporate and Public Affairs, Brand & Marketing, Commercial Assurance, Content and QA to ensure games launch in line with regulation and resolve any queries or challenges related to game production
- Work with the Portfolio Experience Manager to evaluate game performance of launched games, reporting trends and outcomes to the Head of IWG and Game Operations Lead to support future roadmap planning and insight requirements.
- Own the delivery of new initiatives to drive category innovation, including licensed properties and long-term initiatives, working with the Game Operations Lead.
- Work with internal brand teams, the Portfolio Experience Manager and game studios to ensure all licensed games are within brand guidelines and approved by the licensor prior to launch.
- Work with the Senior Marketing Manager to ensure planned marketing activity for new game launches are supported.
- Work with the Game Operations Lead on regular game retrospectives with game studios by leading on the games owned including being across all performance metrics.
Game Delivery Management
- Manage the Game Launch Plan on a daily basis, to ensure game milestones and launch timings are correct and on track with game studios, working with the Games Producer to ensure production schedule alignment.
- Lead the IWG Production stand-ups to ensure priorities, upcoming tasks and activities are completed and on track, providing production updates to the Game Operations Lead on the status of games and escalating any issues.
- Collaborate with the other Game Owner and hold regular stand ups to ensure games are delivered to a high quality, including the peer review of each game, and ensuring that game delivery is on track.
- Manage relationships with the internal and external game studios, leading weekly studio calls to ensure that games are developed in line with the game specifications and timings, including any regulatory requirements, and monitor and develop ways of working with frequent communication
- Work cross-functionally with internal teams including Participant Protection, Regulatory Affairs, Commercial Assurance and Legal to ensure compliance with all statutory duties and to gain approval for trademarks, game procedures and prize structures and improve ways of working
- Create and maintain key trackers, reports and checklists on a regular basis as part of the license requirements, as well as operational team specific requirements.
- Work with the Game Operations Lead to build efficient ways of working to ensure agility in game production, reviewing risks and mitigations to support game delivery.
- Manage and maintain relationships and workflows with alternative prize payment suppliers.
- Mentor and support Game Executives to own games over time.
Innovation and Planning
- Ensure knowledge of Instant Win Games and wider National Lottery insight and regulatory requirements to ensure game propositions are suitable for The National Lottery and players and discuss insight and regulatory requirements with internal and external stakeholders resolving any queries or challenges.
- Support the Head of IWG and Game Operations Lead on the roadmap and product strategy to ensure innovative and appealing games are always available to National Lottery players
- Work with the retail Scratchcards team to build synergies in the retail and digital products.
- Keep up to date with wider National Lottery product knowledge and commercial performance, as well as the market trends in the lottery and iGaming space, to help identify new opportunities in line with regulatory and legal requirements and have the ability to discuss those requirements with stakeholders.
- Support on new category initiatives and ways of working processes, when required.
What experience we’re looking for…
- Games industry experience with a studio or operator background, with a keen interest and passion for iGaming.
- Demonstrable knowledge and understanding of Instant Win Games.
- Proven experience of managing and delivering high performing game content.
- Strong understanding of UK iGaming and lottery regulations.
- Ability to write game briefs and game design documentation to a high standard
- Good understanding of what makes a game engaging, appealing and fun to play and is comfortable discussing requirements and feedback with game studios.
- A technical and mathematical background with experience of designing and discussing game rules and prize structures with studios.
- Comfortable owning and maintaining launch plans and coordinating priorities.
- Agile product management experience, with the ability to manage multiple projects and hit deadlines.
- Understanding of consumer behaviour, sufficient to brief and interpret research.
- A great team player, who is ambitious, naturally organised, collaborative and enthusiastic.
- Comfortable working with cross-functional teams, internal stakeholders and external partners.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills.
- Extremely high attention to detail.
Key Measures of Success:
- Consistently launch games on time, to quality standards and with all governance, regulatory and stakeholder approvals completed without issue
- Deliver games that achieve or exceed commercial and player engagement expectations, using launch performance and retrospectives to improve future roadmap decisions.
- Build strong relationships with game studios and internal teams, ensuring smooth production, fast issue resolution and an efficient end-to-end game development process.
About us
At Allwyn, we are dedicated to changing lives and growing the National Lottery responsibly, championing its positive impact on people, places, and the planet.
- Innovation - We pride ourselves on it! We’re constantly looking for new ways to excite our customers, bringing new products to market to enjoy which is all supported by our responsible play values and making them accessible to all.
- Giving back – Did you know that playing the lottery generates around £30m a week for charities and good causes in the UK? Our aim is to have doubled this number by the end of the first 10-year license.
- Sustainability – Our aim is to become a net zero national lottery. We have 2030 targets to decarbonise our operations and energy. We’ve already transitioned to renewable energy providers, made our London and Watford offices zero gas, and ensured our fleet consists of low-emission vehicles. In addition, we’re working with our value chain partners to develop a net zero target date.
- Empowering every voice – We believe in creating a culture where everyone feels they belong, can be themselves, has access to opportunities and can thrive for the benefit of good causes. Our diverse teams are working hard to make all parts of The National Lottery inclusive – whether people play a game in a store or online, because when everyone can play, everyone wins..
An inclusive reward offering with wellbeing at the centre
At Allwyn, inclusion is built into how we care for our people. Our benefits and policies support colleagues and their families at every stage of life and career. By prioritising wellbeing and belonging, we create a workplace where everyone feels valued, rewarded, and empowered to succeed. Our people are more than colleagues - they’re winners, driving positive change and making a real difference in communities.
Benefits
- Company Bonus Scheme
- Matched pension contributions up to 8.5%
- 26 days annual leave + 2 Life Days (and bank holidays)
- Single Private Health Cover
- Complimentary Private Medical
- Income Protection
- Flexible Benefits – EV Scheme, Money Coach, Will Writing, Mortgage Advice, Dental and Eye Care Schemes.
- Enhanced Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity, Adoption)
- Wellness Allowance £500
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Discounted Health Assessments
- Volunteering Days
- Matched Funding
We are a Disability Confident Leader which means we’ve taken proactive steps to ensure our workplace is accessible and inclusive for disabled and neurodivergent colleagues and candidates. As part of this we offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential requirements of the job.
If you need any assistance or adjustments to this job description or in the application process, please contact a member of the talent team at careers@allwyn.co.uk and we’ll be happy to help.