Senior Backend Software Engineer

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:

• Design and implement core components of the edge platform, including worker frameworks, infrastructure automation, and observability tooling.
• Lead initiatives to improve the system’s reliability, performance, and security, with significant ownership of services or components.
• Collaborate across multiple teams and stakeholders to define high-impact solutions, balancing thoroughness and timely delivery.
• Write technical proposals and documentation, and present solutions clearly to the engineering community.
• Investigate and resolve complex operational incidents, and contribute to post-incident learning and prevention.
• Drive improvements to engineering processes and platform health metrics.
• Contribute to the team’s technical strategy and roadmap in alignment with long-term goals.
• Mentor other engineers, provide actionable feedback, and help build a learning-focused culture.

You're probably a match if you have

• Proficient in JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Java, Terraform, CI/CD, observability, and security.
• Strong understanding of DNS, Firewall, Security, Load Balancing, CDN, and Edge Computing.
• Hands-on experience with at least one major edge provider such as Cloudflare, Fastly, or Akamai is essential.
• Experience building and managing Cloudflare Workers or similar edge runtime environments.
• Experience improving operational health, reducing tech debt, and advocating for engineering needs with non-technical stakeholders.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a track record of delivering impactful projects independently or across teams.
• Effective communicator who can adjust for various audiences, collaborate across disciplines, and rally others in times of ambiguity.
• Strong architectural thinking and ability to evaluate trade-offs in technical decisions.

About the Team

You will be joining the Edge team, a specialised unit within the larger Product Platform Group. We serve as the frontline for our web services, managing Canva's Cloudflare layer - every request that reaches Canva passes through it. Our team plays a vital role in ensuring Canva remains secure and dependable for all users, while also enabling engineers working on the Edge platform to operate efficiently and productively.

About the Role

As a Senior Backend Software Engineer, you will independently lead technical initiatives, improve the developer experience at the edge, and influence platform direction. You'll bring technical depth, a collaborative mindset, and a bias for action. Your work will span system architecture, performance optimisation, operational health, and knowledge sharing, all while mentoring teammates and contributing to cross-team initiatives.

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.