Senior Engineering Manager – User Platform

Company Description

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hey, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte

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, Adelaide and Auckland. 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.

This role will see you:

• Leading and growing the User Platform group – 4 teams and ~40 engineers – as a senior leader in the Product Platform supergroup
• Setting the strategic direction for backend identity systems, including authentication, user access, and account services
• Driving technical strategy and architecture across distributed systems and APIs
• Championing security, scalability, and performance across user platform services
• Supporting your teams with coaching, mentorship, and inclusive leadership practices
• Building cross-functional relationships to align engineering direction with Canva's product and platform goals
• Hiring and scaling teams in line with our company's growth and mission

You're probably a match if

• You have a strong technical background in distributed backend systems, ideally within authentication or platform infrastructure
• You've led high-performing engineering teams at scale, influencing outcomes across multiple squads
• You're experienced in large-scale relational databases and API design
• You balance technical quality, delivery focus, and team wellbeing with ease
• You bring a coaching mindset, and thrive on growing others through feedback and support
• You know how to influence technical direction across boundaries and partner with cross-functional stakeholders
• You're passionate about creating safe, inclusive environments where everyone can do their best work

About the team

The User Platform group sits within the Product Platform supergroup, which builds the foundational platforms that help Canva teams ship amazing experiences, fast and safely. Our identity and access services underpin everything from onboarding and login to secure, scalable user management. Every Canva user touches our systems, every day.

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 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.