Engineering Director - Core IT

Canva; City of Melbourne; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity packages

Inclusive parental Leave policy

Vibe & Thrive allowance

Flexible leave options

Job summary

Canva Core IT is seeking an experienced IT leader to shape and deliver the company’s technology roadmap. You’ll lead cross-functional teams across Australia, including Melbourne, and partner with executives to drive strategic IT initiatives that scale with Canva’s growth.

You will build a culture of ownership, focus on data-driven decision making, and create a world-class experience from onboarding to AI-powered tools, while ensuring security and reliability across global campuses.

Qualifications

• Led internal technology functions at meaningful scale and built strong IT leadership capabilities.
• Strong comfort with executive stakeholders and cross-functional collaboration.
• Curiosity about how technology improves how people work and drives efficiency.

Responsibilities

• Set and deliver Canva's IT strategy as a technology roadmap for the business.
• Lead and develop high-performing IT teams with clear direction and ownership.
• Build a world-class workforce technology experience from onboarding to tools and access, including AI and automation.
• Establish a culture of measurement to track service quality, prioritize work, and communicate progress to executives.
• Represent IT in org-wide forums to advocate for investments and strategic alignment.
• Own the highest-priority initiatives and ensure timely delivery.

Skills

IT leadership

Strategy development

Stakeholder management

Team building

Digital transformation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science

Tools

Cloud platforms

Data analytics tools

Job description

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.

Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work, we trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

Job Description

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. So this will give you the flavour of the type of things you'll be working on when you start, but this will likely evolve.

At the moment, this role is focused on:

Set and deliver Canva's IT strategy, translating business priorities into a coherent technology roadmap with goals your teams can rally behind.

Lead and develop high-performing teams, setting clear direction, building capability, and fostering a culture of ownership and continuous improvement.

Build a world-class workforce technology experience — from onboarding, to device management, to tools and access, to AI, automation, and how Canvanauts connect and work across our global campuses.

Build a culture of measurement, using data to track service quality, drive prioritisation, surface risks early, and communicate progress clearly to exec stakeholders.

Represent IT in org-level and company-wide forums, advocating for the investment and strategic alignment the function needs to scale.

Take ownership of the highest-priority in-flight initiatives and ensure they're on track for delivery

You're probably a match if:

You've led internal technology functions at meaningful scale — you know what great IT leadership looks like, and you've built it before.

You're equally comfortable with exec stakeholders as you are in a deep-dive with an engineering team, with a track record of building high-trust relationships across both.

You bring genuine curiosity about how technology can improve the way people work, and you're energised by the operational complexity of a fast-growing company.

You know how to set a vision, build the team to deliver it, and hold the line on quality without slowing things down.

You think commercially, understanding how technology decisions connect to financial and business outcomes.

You lead through others — investing in your people and creating the conditions for teams to do their best work.

About the team

Canva Core IT has 80+ people across Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Europe and the United States, responsible for the technology that powers everyday life at Canva — from campus AV, network infrastructure and physical security, to onboarding, device and access management, and the AI and automation tools that eliminate friction across our collaboration stack. We're not just keeping the lights on — we're building the future IT foundations Canva needs to reach its next chapter.

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.

Here's a taste of what's on offer:

Equity packages - we want our success to be yours too

Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers

An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing, social connection, office setup & more

Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and supports you personally

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!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.

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