Licensing careers · Executive
Head of Licensing
A head of licensing builds and runs a brand's licensing program. They decide which brands go to market and where, and they own the licensing revenue. Building the team and the partner portfolio is part of the job too.
At a smaller licensor, the head of licensing often negotiates the biggest deals personally. At a larger one, they lead a layer of managers instead.
- Track
- Executive
- Level
- Head
- Typical experience
- 7+ years in licensing or consumer products, including people management
- Also called
- Head of Brand Licensing, Head of Consumer Products, Head of Licensing & Business Development, Director of Trademarks and Licensing (collegiate), Executive Director, IP and Licensing, Brand Director (brand management)
- Reports to
- Chief Commercial Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, Managing Director or CEO
- Next step
- VP of Consumer Products, Commercial Director, General Manager
Key responsibilities
What does a head of licensing do?
- Set the licensing strategy and roadmap by brand, category, territory and channel
- Own the licensing P&L, budget and forecast
- Design, hire and lead the licensing team
- Lead or approve major deals, including royalty rates, minimum guarantees and advances
- Appoint and manage licensing agents in markets the team does not cover
- Set the workflows and systems the team and partners use
- Protect the brand through clear guidelines and approval standards
- Report pipeline, performance and plans to leadership and the board
- Represent the brand at trade shows and in the industry
- Review pipeline, approvals and royalty performance with the team
- Join key negotiations or partner business reviews
- Unblock decisions between commercial, creative, legal and finance
- Update leadership on revenue against plan
- Plan the next category or territory launch
In smaller teams
When the team is small, the role stretches.
In a small program the head of licensing is often the only senior commercial person. They sign the biggest deals themselves, give final sign off on hero products and own the royalty forecast with finance.
- Signs key deals
- Final product sign off
- Royalty forecast
- Trademark and enforcement calls
- Agent management
Where the role sits
The head of licensing owns program strategy and operations.
Program strategy decides which IP, categories, territories and targets. Operations management monitors the program, audits outliers, renews what works and ends what does not. The head of licensing works across every other lane through their team.
Performance data on royalties, approvals and partners.
Which IP, categories, territories and targets, and how the program is monitored and renewed.
THIS ROLEThe strategy and target partner profile.
Strategy shared as a static document. If nothing downstream can check itself against it, the team drifts and agents work from an old snapshot.
How success is measured
Seven KPIs for a head of licensing.
Few job ads define success for this role. Those that do tie it to licensing revenue against plan and forecast accuracy. These are the measures Flowhaven recommends.
| KPI | How to calculate it |
|---|---|
| Licensing revenue growth | Royalties and guarantees this year against last year, and against budget |
| Program cost to revenue | Cost of running the licensing team and tools as a share of licensing revenue |
| Partner retention | Share of licensees renewing or expanding at term end |
| New partner value | Number and guaranteed value of new agreements signed |
| On time launch rate | Share of planned licensed products on shelf by their target date |
| Royalty forecast accuracy | Gap between forecast and actual royalties each quarter |
| Category and territory coverage | Target categories and markets with an active licensee |
Best practices
What great heads of licensing do.
Set a clear strategy
Across categories, territories and partner types, tied to business goals.
Build the right partner portfolio
A handful of strong licensees usually earns more than a long list of small ones.
Track performance beyond royalties
Sell through, retail placement and consumer impact.
Connect your teams
When commercial and finance look at the same partner record, renewal talks start from facts.
Automate routine work before you sign more brands
Then growth adds revenue without adding admin hours.
Use data for renewals and expansion
Review program health regularly
Against where the business is heading.
AI and this role
Where AI changes the work.
Fewer than 1 in 25 licensing job ads mention AI yet. These are the tasks where it already helps this role most.
Program health digest
A weekly brief on revenue, renewals and risks, with every figure linked to its record.
Ask your portfolio
Open categories and territories ranked by brand fit and guarantee potential, in plain language.
Team sizing
Headcount needs estimated from your agreements, licensees and yearly submissions.
Works through an integration with AI tools such as Claude, connected to your licensing records. A person confirms every change. See how Flowhaven works with AI.
Skills and tools
What the role asks for.
- Licensing strategy and portfolio planning
- Deal structuring and senior negotiation
- P&L ownership, budgeting and forecasting
- Team leadership and hiring
- Brand and IP protection
- Board and leadership reporting
- BI dashboards
Flowhaven and Salesforce experience is a strong plus.
Flowhaven is built on Salesforce, which IDC has ranked the number one CRM for 13 years in a row, with a 20% share of the CRM market in 2025. Licensing platform skills carry across the whole team.
Career path
Where people come from, and where they go.
- Director of Licensing
- Category Director
- Senior Licensing Manager
- Senior roles at a licensing agency
- VP of Consumer Products
- Commercial Director
- General Manager
Hiring?
Head of Licensing job description template.
Copy it, fill in the brackets and post it.
Head of Licensing
We are looking for a Head of Licensing to build and lead our licensing program across [brands / categories / territories]. You will own the strategy, the team and the licensing revenue.
What you will do
- Set the licensing strategy and roadmap by brand, category, territory and channel
- Own the licensing P&L, budget and forecast
- Build and lead a team across commercial, creative and finance
- Lead major negotiations and appoint licensing agents
- Put the workflows and systems in place for the team and partners
- Report performance and plans to leadership
What you will bring
- [7+] years in licensing or consumer products, including team leadership
- A track record of growing licensing revenue
- Strong commercial, negotiation and financial skills
- Experience choosing and rolling out licensing systems
- Experience with Flowhaven or Salesforce is a plus
How success is measured
Licensing revenue growth, program cost to revenue, partner retention, launch rate and forecast accuracy.
FAQ
Questions people ask about the head of licensing role
Still have a question? Talk to our team, or see Flowhaven on your own program in a 30 minute demo.
They set the licensing strategy and own the revenue it produces.
At most companies the head of licensing runs one program. A VP usually owns a region or a large portfolio, with several heads or directors reporting in.
Revenue against budget first, then the drivers behind it: partner retention, launch rate and forecast accuracy.
Free buyer's guide: from spreadsheets to licensing software
A readiness scorecard, a capability checklist, 16 vendor questions and a business case worksheet to take to your team.
See your whole licensing program in one place.
Strategy, partners, approvals and royalties in one platform, for the whole licensing team.
