Operations Program Manager - Technology

Job 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

This role is based at our flagship Sydney campus, 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.

About the Tech (Engineering) Specialty

The Technology Specialty is our largest and most diverse Specialty, bringing together all our technical disciplines under one room—from Tech Support to Machine Learning, Platform Infrastructure to Backend Engineering. It’s the home base for our technologists and engineers.

This specialty plays a central role in guiding Canva’s technical evolution. It helps define our long-term technical vision, shape engineering standards, and nurture a strong, inclusive culture of collaboration and innovation. If you love solving complex problems and making a real impact at scale, you’ll feel right at home here.

About the role

In this newly created role, you’ll be the operational right hand to our Technology leadership team. You’ll drive clarity and momentum across programs, processes, and priorities that don’t have a natural home, but have enormous impact.

You’ll coordinate key initiatives, wrangle comms and cadences, and ensure our teams have the clarity and context to execute. This is a highly cross-functional role, partnering closely with engineering leadership, technical program managers, and business partners to design, deliver, and scale initiatives that span teams, subspecialties, and even the broader company.

You’ll bring your experience in program management, communications, organisational change, and operational design to build the muscle that makes high-impact work feel smooth, efficient, and aligned.

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:

• Strategic Program Ownership: You’ll take full ownership of complex, cross-functional programs that have high visibility and impact. You’ll define the problem space, align stakeholders, drive execution, and ensure outcomes are delivered, especially in areas without clear existing ownership.

• Specialty Operational Excellence: You’ll lead the coordination of Specialty-wide cadences, communications, and processes, ensuring the right people have the right information at the right time. You’ll continuously improve the systems, workflows, and channels that keep the Technology Specialty aligned, engaged, and effective.

• Cross-organisational Coordination: You’ll work on cross-company programs that require thoughtful integration of Technology’s unique needs and context. You’ll partner with business, program, and people teams to ensure shared frameworks and rituals scale effectively within the Technology Specialty.

• Strategic Forecasting & Innovation: You’ll proactively identify emerging operational needs and friction points, and design solutions before they become blockers. You’ll develop lightweight, scalable systems and experiments that improve how the Specialty operates and collaborates at scale.

You're probably a match if

• You have 7+ years in Business Operations, Program, or Project Management, leading strategic initiatives and managing multiple projects within medium-to-large, fast-paced organisations.

• You have a proven track record of driving large, cross-functional programs with diverse teams (e.g., Technical Program Managers) from concept to completion.

• You excel at turning strategy into action – breaking down big-picture goals into clear milestones, deliverables, and accountabilities, while ensuring high standards and continuous improvement.

• You’re a scrappy, adaptable operator who thrives in ambiguity, can wrangle complex or backlog-heavy work, and bring order without overcomplicating things.

• You have exceptional stakeholder management skills, building trusted relationships across technical and non-technical teams, and influencing without authority.

• You bring expertise in change management and organisational communications, tailoring the right message, cadence, and channels for each audience.

• You’re adept at fostering trust, alignment, and seamless collaboration with senior leaders and teams across the organisation.

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.