Engineering Manager, Ubuntu Server - cloud-init

Canonical; London; Remote; GBP 125,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading open-source software company is looking for an Engineering Manager to lead the Ubuntu Server cloud-init team. This role involves building a distributed team, driving product evolution, and engaging with the open-source community. The successful candidate will have a passion for management and software development, along with experience in agile environments. The role offers competitive compensation, remote work, and global travel opportunities.

Benefits

Annual compensation review

Personal learning and development budget

Maternity and paternity leave

Employee Assistance Programme

Priority Pass for travel upgrades

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience leading and coaching software developers.
• Experience working in an agile development environment.
• Practical experience with GNU/Linux distributions.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead a globally distributed team of engineers.
• Define the vision and strategy for Ubuntu.
• Oversee the quality of the Ubuntu Server image family.

Skills

Passionate about software development

Leadership in engineering teams

Agile development practices

Strong communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or similar

Tools

Microsoft Azure

Google Cloud

Amazon Web Services

Job description

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Engineering Manager, Ubuntu Server - cloud-init, London

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Client:

Canonical

Location:

London, United Kingdom

Job Category:

Other

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EU work permit required:

Yes

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Job Reference:

e2586671e5b2

Job Views:

7

Posted:

12.08.2025

Expiry Date:

26.09.2025

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Job Description:

Canonical is a leading provider of open source software and operating systems to the global enterprise and technology markets. Our platform, Ubuntu, is very widely used in breakthrough enterprise initiatives such as public cloud, data science, AI, engineering innovation, and IoT. Our customers include the world's leading public cloud and silicon providers, and industry leaders in many sectors. The company is a pioneer of global distributed collaboration, with + colleagues in 75+ countries and very few office-based roles. Teams meet two to four times yearly in person, in interesting locations around the world, to align on strategy and execution.

The company is founder-led, profitable, and growing.

Ubuntu Server is the world's most popular Linux - on cloud and bare metal. In this role, you will manage the team delivering cloud-init - the standard for customizing cloud instances - to the world.

Driving early system config is so much broader than just Ubuntu on a server. Cloud-init supports various distributions and underlying underlying platforms. That provides a great opportunity to work with:

• Cloud providers to add features/integration and improve efficiency.
• The whole cloud-init community from individual users and developers to major contributing companies.
• Distributions to update their builds and coordinate their needs.

You’ll be fully owning the product allowing you to influence its evolution and interact with many teams and partners to coordinate new features, enhancements and integration into various platforms.

The successful applicant will be passionate about the future of cloud-init, mindful of the dynamics of the open source ecosystem, and aware of the needs of large, innovative customers.

This is an exciting opportunity for a leader passionate about strong teams, open source software and Ubuntu. Build a rewarding, meaningful career working with the best and brightest people in technology at Canonical, a growing international software company.

What you’ll do

• Build and lead a globally distributed team of engineers
• Develop talent through coaching, mentoring, feedback and hands-on career development
• Work with Product Management to define the vision and strategy for Ubuntu and your team
• Effectively set and manage expectations with other engineering teams, senior management, and external stakeholders
• Advocate and advance modern, agile software development practices
• Develop and evangelize great engineering and organizational practices
• Grow a healthy, collaborative engineering culture in line with the company values
• Be an active part of the leadership team and collaborate with other leaders in the organisation
• Participate in strong engineering process through code and architectural review
• Engage with teams at Canonical, the open source community and commercial partners
• Oversee the quality of the Ubuntu Server image family
• Plan and deliver Ubuntu Server features
• Work from home with global travel for up to 6 weeks per year for internal and external events

Who you are

• You love developing and growing people and have a strong track record of doing it
• You are knowledgeable and passionate about software development
• You have 3+ years of experience in leading, managing, coaching and mentoring software developers. Experience managing distributed teams is a plus.
• You are focused on success and the delivery of timely, high quality software
• You have experience working in an agile development environment
• You have a Bachelor’s or equivalent in Computer Science, STEM or similar degree
• You have strong written and verbal technical communication skills in english
• you have experience with a modern GNU/Linux distribution, Debian or Ubuntu preferred
• Practical experience with at least 1 of Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, or Amazon Web Services

What we offer you

We consider geographical location, experience, and performance in shaping compensation worldwide. We revisit compensation annually (and more often for graduates and associates) to ensure we recognise outstanding performance. In addition to base pay, we offer a performance-driven annual bonus. We provide all team members with additional benefits, which reflect our values and ideals. We balance our programs to meet local needs and ensure fairness globally.

• Distributed work environment with twice-yearly team sprints in person
• Personal learning and development budget of USD 2, per year
• Annual compensation review
• Recognition rewards
• Annual holiday leave
• Maternity and paternity leave
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Opportunity to travel to new locations to meet colleagues
• Priority Pass, and travel upgrades for long haul company events