--- title: 'Growth and Demand Gen Lead at Playground' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/growth-and-demand-gen-lead-playground-new-york-v4ew3byvb9pq' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-09-06' --- # Growth and Demand Gen Lead at Playground - **Company:** Playground - **Location:** New York, NY - **Compensation:** $160k–$200k - **Employment:** full-time - **Work type:** onsite - **Posted:** 2026-08-17 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-06 - **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/playground/724c5da3-f884-48f8-8af4-3decc8ad6467 ## Job description ## ABOUT PLAYGROUND Playground is working to make excellent child care accessible to all. Playground has built best-in-class software to manage all aspects of running a child care business. We believe providers should focus on providing incredible child care — the kind of work that only people can do — and that software should manage the rest. We’re building the child care management platform that eliminates the administrative work of running a center. Playground is at an inflection point — and poised to grow extremely fast. We recently raised millions of dollars, have several statewide contracts, and are working with thousands of schools across the country. Additionally, our founders were recently honored as Forbes 30 Under 30. We are a team of owners who are not afraid to dive into large, complex problems. If you're excited by the opportunity to shape how one of the fastest-growing companies in child care reaches its customers — and want meaningful ownership over growth and demand generation — please apply! ## ABOUT THE ROLE Join Playground's Marketing team as our Growth & Demand Gen Lead and own where and when we reach our buyers. This is a highly strategic, hands-on role focused on identifying, testing, and scaling new ways to generate demand and pipeline. You'll evaluate where we should invest across events, partnerships, outbound and inbound programs, while building a rigorous framework for testing channels we haven't proven yet. The ideal candidate is someone who doesn't just execute an existing playbook — they build the playbook. You'll bring strong revenue judgment, turn ambiguous opportunities into measurable experiments, and know when to kill, iterate, or double down on a program. This role will also help influence the day-to-day priorities of a Senior Paid Media Specialist and two marketing coordinators, while remaining an individual contributor for at least the first six months. ## WHAT YOU'LL DO Own Outreach Investment Strategy: Decide where we should invest time and budget across events, partnerships, and other demand generation programs. Evaluate what's working, identify what's stagnating, and determine where we should double down or change course. Build & Test New Channels: Develop a structured framework for testing unfamiliar acquisition channels, from online community development to ABM dinners and other emerging opportunities. Establish clear criteria for when to kill, iterate, or scale a program. Drive Revenue & Pipeline: Connect marketing activity directly to business outcomes. Build programs that generate meaningful pipeline and develop a clear understanding of what is driving demand, conversion, and revenue. Own Events & Field Marketing: Lead Playground's conference and speaking calendar, from identifying high-value opportunities through execution and post-event analysis. Partner closely with Sales to maximize pipeline generated from every event. Build Lifecycle & Reactivation Programs: Develop systems that turn existing leads and prospects back into active opportunities through email, marketing automation, nurture, and other lifecycle programs. Influence the Marketing Team: Help guide priorities and day-to-day execution for the Senior Paid Media Specialist and two marketing coordinators, providing strategic direction without relying on formal management authority. Seize the Opportunity: Playground is a place where doers thrive. If you see a promising channel, test it. If something isn't working, figure out why. If you see an opportunity to create a new growth lever, run with it. ## WHAT YOU NEED - 5+ years of experience in growth marketing, demand generation, or a related function. - Proven experience testing and scaling multiple acquisition channels from scratch. - Track record of generating $15M–$30M+ in incremental annual pipeline within a fiscal year. - Strong understanding of how marketing programs translate into pipeline and revenue. - Experience building lifecycle, nurture, or reactivation programs tied to measurable KPIs. - Strong analytical and strategic judgment — you're comfortable making decisions with imperfect information. - Experience developing experimentation frameworks and determining when to kill, iterate, or scale a program. - Ability to influence cross-functional partners and direct the priorities of others without formal management authority. - Excellent communication and ability to operate independently in a fast-paced startup environment. - A builder's mindset: you enjoy creating systems and programs that don't already exist. ## COMPENSATION Salary for this position is $160,000–$200,000 base + equity, subject to standard withholding and applicable taxes. Actual compensation will be determined based on factors including individual qualifications, relevant experience, expected impact, scope of the role, market demands, and specific work location. ## WHY JOIN PLAYGROUND - Competitive salary + equity - 3 weeks of PTO - Health, vision, and dental benefits - $1,200/year education stipend - Free lunch daily - High level of autonomy and ownership - Collaborative, ambitious team - Opportunity to directly shape Playground's growth engine - Fast-growing company with significant market opportunity ## HOW TO APPLY If you're a growth-minded operator who loves turning ambiguous opportunities into measurable revenue programs — and you're excited to help build the demand generation engine for a category-defining company in child care — apply now. The Playground Team is fully in-office in our Union Square, NYC office. Please make sure you are open to a fully in-person role before applying. Check out Playground https://www.tryplayground.com/about?utm_source=chatgpt.com to learn more about our journey and co-founders Dan, Josh, and Sasha. ## About Playground ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Playground provides an all-in-one child care management platform that streamlines operations—including billing, attendance, registration, communication, payroll, and AI-powered assistance—for early education providers. - **Entity Type**: Private (early-stage startup; funding details not fully disclosed) - **Headquarters**: New York City, New York, USA (with a second office in Denver, Colorado) - **Founded**: 2021 - **Founders**: Daniel Andrews, Josh Andrews, and Sasha Reiss ## Core Business - **Primary industry**: Child care management software / Early education technology - **Target customers**: B2B – child care programs of all sizes (home-based, centers, multi-site, and government) - **Mission/purpose**: To make excellent child care accessible to all by giving providers the tools to focus on teaching and caring, not administration. ## Products & Services - **Playground Platform (Core)**: SaaS platform handling attendance tracking, billing, registration, communication, paperwork, payroll, and expense management. Includes predictive enrollment forecasting and free data migration. - **Camber (AI Employee)**: An AI agent that answers phone calls, qualifies leads, handles admin tasks, drafts messages, processes refunds, reconciles subsidies, and answers staff/family questions using the program’s handbook and state licensing rules. - **Payroll (Built-in)**: Full-service payroll with tax filing and time tracking tailored for child care. - **Learning Module**: Tools for activity planning, milestone tracking, and family sharing. ## Market Standing - **Valuation**: Not publicly available - **Key Metric**: Estimated annual revenue between $5 M and $25 M (LinkedIn estimate). Serves 5,000+ child care programs and 500,000+ families across all 50 U.S. states. - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Not disclosed publicly (careers page mentions “amazing investors” but no names listed) - **Growth Signals**: LinkedIn follower base grew 98.9% year over year; strong brand presence with 300,000+ users on the platform; continuously expanding AI capabilities (Camber launch); hiring across engineering, sales, customer success, and marketing for both NYC and Denver offices. ## Competitive Advantages - **AI-first solution** – Camber acts as a virtual part-time hire, handling inquiries and admin tasks that previously required separate tools or staff. - **All-in-one integration** – Replaces multiple legacy tools (separate billing, attendance, payroll, communication) with a single platform designed specifically for child care. - **Predictive analytics** – Forecasting tools help centers anticipate enrollment openings and optimize capacity. - **Free data migration** – Low switching friction for new customers. - **Deeply rooted in the industry** – Founders grew up in a child care family and built the product to solve real pain points they experienced firsthand. ## Strategic Focus - **AI expansion** – Deepening the Camber assistant’s capabilities (inquiry handling, staff support, reporting) and integrating it more tightly with core operations. - **Scaling across segments** – Serving programs of all sizes, from home-based daycares to large multi-site and government-run centers. - **Product unification** – Continuing to consolidate previously fragmented workflows (payroll, billing, learning) into a single, intuitive platform. - **Geographic coverage** – Already active in all 50 states; likely targeting deeper penetration and perhaps eventual international expansion. ## Why Work Here - **Transparent culture** – Leadership holds twice-monthly founder-led all‑hands, sends weekly CEO updates, and runs open “Ask Me Anything” office hours. Biannual anonymous employee surveys are shared with action plans. - **Ownership and autonomy** – The company values “high agency people” who act like owners; employees are encouraged to act independently and intelligently. - **Hybrid/in‑office model** – Teams work from offices in New York City (downtown) and Denver (downtown). On‑site days are the norm, and the interview process includes a paid half‑day onsite. - **Perks & benefits**: - Equity for all full-time employees - Comprehensive health, dental, and vision plans - Free daily lunch ($4,800/year value) - $1,200 annual education stipend - Generous paid time off - MacBook + desk setup stipend - Discounts on child care supplies (diapers, wipes, etc.) - **Meaningful mission** – Employees build tools that directly free up child care providers’ time, enabling them to focus on children and families. ## Sources 1. [tryplayground.com – Homepage](https://www.tryplayground.com/) 2. [Playground Careers page](https://www.tryplayground.com/careers) 3. [Playground About page](https://www.tryplayground.com/about) 4. [LinkedIn Company Profile](https://www.linkedin.com/company/tryplayground) 5. [Built In Colorado – Workplace Perception](https://www.builtincolorado.com/company/playground-tryplaygroundcom/faq/workplace-perception) ## Other roles at Playground - [Staff/Senior Product Manager, Payments](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-senior-product-manager-payments-playground-new-york-7crt08t1wdz0) — New York, NY - [Senior/Staff Full Stack Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-full-stack-engineer-playground-new-york-ape7ak3safrs) — New York, NY - [Staff Product Designer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-product-designer-playground-new-york-syhzwxzegg85) — New York, NY - [Senior Product Designer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-product-designer-playground-new-york-8f7w0tfn6krx) — New York, NY - [Staff Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-software-engineer-playground-new-york-csp4swxec1v7) — New York, NY - [SaaS Account Executive](https://feeny.ai/job/saas-account-executive-playground-denver-0tqpmc8x7wr7) — Denver, CO - [VP of SMB Sales](https://feeny.ai/job/vp-of-smb-sales-playground-denver-ma7v9atzgr0d) — Denver, CO - [Growth and Demand Gen Lead](https://feeny.ai/job/growth-and-demand-gen-lead-nivoda-remote-1j2mjh7r1qwf)