Senior Backend Engineer - Platform - Dev Experience (Java, Golang)

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 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.

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:

• Significantly enhancing the backend testing experience (Java, Golang) for all engineers at Canva. We aim to empower engineers by improving developer experience (DX) and testing ergonomics, drastically reducing test flakiness, and ultimately boosting confidence across the organisation, allowing all Engineers to safely and continuously deliver changes to production
• Designing, building and evolving core components of our Quality Platform to empower thousands of engineers to test effectively and confidently
• Partnering with engineers across Canva to co-design platform solutions that enhance developer velocity
• Driving initiatives to reduce test flakiness, improve test health visibility and implement smarter diagnostics
• Improving CI/CD test feedback loops, ensuring fast, actionable test results
• Proactively maintaining the health, scalability, and performance of our testing infrastructure

You're probably a match if:

• Strong Software Engineering Craft: You have demonstrated experience building and maintaining robust software systems, applying strong knowledge of system design, data structures, and operational best practices. The coding interview will be run in Java/Golang. 
• Passion for Developer Empowerment: You have a genuine interest in, or experience with, building developer tools, testing infrastructure, CI/CD systems, or other platform-level solutions that improve the lives of engineers.
• Understanding of Quality & Testing: You possess a solid grasp of test automation principles across different levels (unit, integration, E2E) and understand the challenges involved in building reliable, maintainable test suites and frameworks.
• Developer-Centric Mindset: You naturally put yourself in the shoes of your users (other engineers), demonstrating empathy and a drive to create intuitive and frictionless developer experiences
• Pragmatic Problem-Solving: You excel at breaking down complex technical challenges, identifying root causes, and delivering practical, effective solutions that provide real value
• Collaborative Communicator: You can articulate technical concepts clearly and work effectively within a team environment, readily sharing knowledge and engaging with stakeholders across the engineering organization.
• Drive and Adaptability: You are proactive, results-oriented, and comfortable navigating ambiguity, thriving in a fast-paced environment where you can take initiative and drive outcomes

About the team

The Quality Platform Team sits within the Developer Experience group, which is part of our Infrastructure supergroup. Our mission is to help every Canva engineer build high-quality, reliable software faster. We create internal tools and systems that empower teams to shift-left on quality, including testing infrastructure, dashboards, and UI integrations. 

The Quality Platform team is Canva’s central pillar for quality engineering, owning the automated testing ecosystem and defining the Canva Testing Strategy. Our mission is to empower every Canva engineer to ship high-quality features with exceptional speed and confidence. We design and maintain scalable, developer-centric frameworks and tools that remove friction and provide clear, actionable insights – directly accelerating innovation across Canva's entire product suite. Our work underpins Canva’s ability to move fast while delivering a delightful and reliable experience to millions of users around the world.

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 support you personally

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

Other stuff to know

We see AI as a powerful amplifier of creativity and technology at Canva. We’re evolving how we assess AI skills in our Technology hiring experience - you’ll tackle interactive, real-time challenges that reflect the kind of work we do. In some interviews, you may also be asked to solve a problem using an AI tool to show how you approach challenges with tech by your side. Your recruitment partner will walk you through what to expect. 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.