Job Description

Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney and have a strong preference for the role to be in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

About the Technology Specialty

The Technology Specialty is Canva’s largest and most diverse specialty, with approximately 2,500 engineers representing nearly half of Canva’s workforce. It brings together all of our technical disciplines, from Tech Support to Machine Learning, Platform Infrastructure to Backend Engineering. It is the craft home base for our technologists and engineers.

The Specialty plays a central role in Canva’s technical evolution, helping shape long-term technical direction, engineering standards, and a strong, inclusive culture of collaboration and innovation. As the Specialty continues to scale, thoughtful operational leadership is essential to ensure clarity, momentum, and sustainable ways of working.

About the role

This role is for an experienced operational executer in Canva’s Technology Specialty during a 12-month parental leave cover.

In this role, you will act as a trusted operational partner to Technology Specialty leadership and business partners, helping run the business of the Specialty. You will bring structure to ambiguity, drive momentum on complex initiatives, and strengthen operating systems that enable the Specialty to function effectively at scale. You will translate strategic intent into clear execution, design systems that reduce friction, and create the conditions for technologists to stay focused on building Canva’s future.

This role goes beyond coordination. You will execute on high-impact initiatives and help shape how the Specialty operates at scale. This is a hands-on, high-impact opportunity for someone looking to operate with a high degree of autonomy, deepen their craft, and gain exposure to complex, Specialty-wide challenges.

What you’d be doing in this role

As Canva scales, change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that’s all part of the fun. This will give you a flavour of the type of work you’ll focus on when you start, though it will naturally evolve over time.

At the moment, this role is focused on:

Specialty-Level Program Delivery

• Partner with the Ops BP Lead and Technology leaders to deliver complex, high-visibility initiatives that span the Technology Specialty, particularly where ownership is shared or still emerging.

• Help define problem spaces, shape operating approaches, align senior stakeholders, and drive execution from concept through to sustained outcomes.

• Bring clarity to ambiguous or undefined challenges — turning complex problems into simple, structured, actionable plans.

• Support initiatives that require sound judgment, discretion, and thoughtful narrative management.

Technology Specialty Operating Excellence

• Identify where processes, tools, or ways of working create friction for leaders and individual contributors, and redesign them to be simpler, clearer, and more scalable.

• Ensure the right people across the Specialty have the right information, at the right time, in the right format to enable effective decision-making.

• Build and refine dashboards, reporting, and mechanisms that improve visibility, alignment, and execution.

Strategic Foresight & Continuous Improvement

• Anticipate emerging operational needs and risks within the Technology Specialty, proactively designing solutions before they become blockers.

• Use data, feedback, and lived experience to continuously refine how the Specialty operates.

• Experiment with lightweight, scalable approaches — including AI and automation — to reduce manual effort and unlock efficiency.

• Bring a systems mindset to improve clarity and alignment without introducing unnecessary process overhead.

Strategic Partnership & Cross-Functional Influence

• Partner closely with Technology Specialty leadership, Technical Program Managers, People Partners, Finance, and other business partners to translate strategy into coordinated execution.

• Represent the Technology Specialty context in cross-functional forums, ensuring shared frameworks and initiatives reflect the realities of technical teams at scale.

• Act as connective tissue across functions within Technology and Canva — brokering alignment, unblocking progress, and maintaining momentum across complex initiatives.

Championing Exceptional Communication & Vibes

• Act as the communication conduit across teams, ensuring the right people have the right context at the right time.

• Distill complexity into simple, engaging updates for audiences across all levels — from group-wide messages to leadership briefings.

• Help shape the cultural heartbeat of Technology Specialty through consistent positive energy, strong relationships, and exceptional interpersonal leadership.

You're probably a match if

• You have several years of experience in operations, program/project management, or an equivalent team-enabling role within a complex, fast-moving organisation.

• You’ve played a key role in delivering large, cross-functional initiatives with senior stakeholders, often in ambiguous or undefined problem spaces.

• You’re passionate about team culture and connection, and enjoy creating experiences (onsites, events, rituals) that make distributed teams feel engaged and included.

• You’re a systems thinker who loves turning complexity into clarity — whether that’s mapping dependencies, simplifying processes, or helping others see the big picture.

• You thrive in ambiguity — when priorities shift or problems don’t have a clear owner, you lean in, figure it out, and bring people with you.

• You’re an excellent communicator, able to influence, craft clear updates, rally teams, and ensure no one misses critical context.

• You’re curious about smarter ways of working, including AI and automation, and enjoy identifying opportunities to improve scale and efficiency.

• You operate with strong judgment and urgency, knowing when to dive into the details and when to zoom out to see the bigger picture.

What's in it for you?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but you'll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

Other stuff to know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you don’t feel like your skills quite match what’s listed above - we still want to hear from you!