Staff Software Engineer (Developer Experience)

TL;DR

Staff Software Engineer (Developer Experience): Architecting and scaling internal developer platforms and infrastructure with an accent on developer productivity, CI/CD efficiency, and observability. Focus on setting technical direction for large-scale engineering systems, mentoring teams, and solving complex platform challenges using Python, Go, and Kubernetes.

Location: Must be based in Sydney, Australia. This is a hybrid role requiring regular on-campus collaboration.

Company

Canva is a global visual communication platform redefining how the world experiences design.

What you will do

• Set technical direction and strategy for developer platforms, including build systems, CI/CD, and observability.
• Architect high-leverage infrastructure to eliminate systemic friction for over 1,000 engineers.
• Define self-service platforms and CLI tools to reduce dependency on platform teams.
• Partner with engineering teams to identify pain points and advocate for technical needs to stakeholders.
• Mentor engineers through code reviews and design feedback while maintaining hands-on involvement in the codebase.
• Participate in on-call rotations for critical platform services.

Requirements

• Must be based in Sydney, Australia.
• Staff-level background in Platform Engineering with strong proficiency in Python and Go.
• Experience supporting large engineering organizations (1,000+ engineers).
• Deep expertise in AWS, Kubernetes (workload depth), and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform/Pulumi).
• Proven track record of leading complex, cross-team platform initiatives end-to-end.
• Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines and monorepo build tools like Bazel or Gradle.

Nice to have

• Experience integrating AI/LLM capabilities into developer workflows.
• Contributions to open-source infrastructure or developer tools.
• Background in release automation and deployment safety mechanisms.
• Prior work on build performance or capacity and cost optimization.

Culture & Benefits

• Equity packages for all employees.
• Inclusive parental leave policy.
• Annual Vibe & Thrive allowance for wellbeing and office setup.
• Flexible leave options to support personal recharge and social impact.
• Collaborative, design-focused environment with a strong emphasis on team connectivity.