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Software Engineering Director - Canonical - Worldwide

Posted: April 11, 2026
Posted 88 days ago
Last seen in crawl: July 7, 2026 (1d ago)
Estimated Expiry: May 16, 2026
Location
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Role & Management
Role Level:Mid-Level
Job Type
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Job Description

This is the general track for Engineering Director at Canonical, apply here if you are confident to run a project which spans teams and time zones, hiring and managing engineering managers and staff engineers. Canonical’s largest software products are built by multiple teams working together under a single director of engineering. Once you have passed the first round of interviews we will discuss specific software products which would be a good fit for your interests. We believe that open source is just starting to transform the tech sector and enterprise compute. Our goal is to make open source easier, more reliable and more secure for deployment and development. We strive to be the provider of ‘most software to most companies’. To deliver on that ambition, our engineers are carefully selected from the applicants across the globe. We select for brilliance and motivation to take open source to the next level. Our engineering directors set the pace and the direction to help teams achieve more than they realised they could, and feel proud of the result. Even though this is a senior management position, managing managers, we expect Engineering Directors to be outstanding developers with the confidence to lead by example across the full range of activities in their teams. You need to understand what great code looks like in the language and genre of your product - whether that is a web service, or a system daemon, or a desktop application, or a distributed system. You’ll need to know how to drive testing and benchmarking to improve the clarity in your teams around quality and performance. You’ll also need to be confident to set and defend high expectations of work ethic, consistency, focus and learning. We have director level roles across a wide range of engineering domains, including: Python and Golang, C / C++ / Rust, Data infrastructure, HTML / CSS / JavaScript / Typescript / React, Flutter, Distro packaging and systems, SAAS and web microservices, Kernel, Servers, Graphics, Browser and Desktop, Silicon enablement and embedded devices, Product Security. If your domain of expertise isn’t listed above, yet you feel it’s relevant to Canonical, then feel free to apply anyway. We will route you to the most suitable team. Location: The role is remote, with positions available in all time zones. It includes a requirement for global travel for twice per year, for trips up to two weeks long. What you’ll do Lead multiple teams of engineers, ranging from graduate to senior Develop your engineering managers and maintain Canonical culture Hire staff level engineers for specific roles like performance and quality Coach, mentor, and offer career development feedback Identify and measure indicators of team health and productivity Ensure rounded delivery including community participation and docs Implement disciplined engineering processes and defend them Set and measure progress against benchmark goals for speed and efficiency Represent your product to stakeholders, partners, and customers Develop and evangelise great engineering and organisational practices Plan and manage progress on agreed goals and projects Be an active part of the leadership team, collaborating with other leaders Collaborate with leads for related or dependent products. What we’re looking for in you An exceptional academic track record from both high school and university. Undergraduate degree in Computer Science or STEM, or a compelling narrative about your alternative path. Extensive management experience and confidence to set high expectations. Outstanding Linux based software engineering track record. Drive and a track record of going above-and-beyond expectations. Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English. Public speaking and presentation skills. A love of developing and growing people and a track record of it. Experience in leading, coaching and mentoring software developers. Organised and able to ensure your team delivers timely, high quality results. Well-organised, self-starting and able to deliver to schedule. Professional manner interacting with colleagues, partners, and community. You have advanced expertise in your own domain. You are knowledgeable and passionate about software development. You have solid experience working in an agile development environment. You have a demonstrated drive for continual learning. Builds trust, relationships and confidence. Result-oriented, with a personal drive to meet commitments. Ability to travel twice a year, for company events up to two weeks each. Additional skills we value Experience in a developer advocacy or community role. Open source community engagement and leadership. Ops and system administration experience. Performance engineering and security experience. What we offer you We consider geographical location, experience, and performance in shaping compensation worldwide. We revisit compensation annually (and more often for graduates and associates) to ensure we recognise outstanding performance. In addition to base pay, we offer a performance-driven annual bonus. We provide all team members with additional benefits, which reflect our values and ideals. We balance our programs to meet local needs and ensure fairness globally. Distributed work environment with twice-yearly team sprints in person. Personal learning and development budget of USD 2,000 per year. Annual compensation review. Recognition rewards. Annual holiday leave. Maternity and paternity leave. Employee Assistance Programme. Opportunity to travel to new locations to meet colleagues. Priority Pass, and travel upgrades for long haul company events. About Canonical Canonical is a pioneering tech firm at the forefront of the global move to open source. As the company that publishes Ubuntu, one of the most important open source projects and the platform for AI, IoT and the cloud, we are changing the world on a daily basis. We recruit on a global basis and set a very high standard for people joining the company. We expect excellence - in order to succeed, we need to be the best at what we do. Canonical has been a remote-first company since its inception in 2004.​ Working here is a step into the future, and will challenge you to think differently, work smarter, learn new skills, and raise your game. Canonical is an equal opportunity employer. We are proud to foster a workplace free from discrimination. Diversity of experience, perspectives, and background create a better work environment and better products. Whatever your identity, we will give your application fair consideration.

Company Information

Current open roles at Canonical on JobCrawls
LocationActive listings
Remote - Global114
Remote - EMEA54
Remote - Worldwide14
Remote - Europe13
Remote - Americas8
Anywhere in EMEA1
Remote - AMER1
London, UK1
Remote - Africa1
Remote - Middle East1
Remote - APAC1
Current role mix at Canonical on JobCrawls
Role typeActive listings
Software Engineer25
Engineering Manager11
Product Manager8
Sales Development Representative7
Customer Success Manager5
Human Resources Specialist4
Product Marketing Manager4
Partner Sales Manager3
UX Designer3
Sales Director2
Talent Scientist2
Data Infrastructure Engineer2
Site Reliability Engineer2
Design Manager2
System Software Engineer2
Linux Enablement2
Linux Kernel Engineer2
Software Developer2
Partner Sales Director2
Golang Software Engineer2
HR Generalist2
Marketing Manager2
Distributed Systems Testing1
Global Alliance Director1
Developer Relations Engineer1
Tax Senior Associate1
Accountant1
Rust Engineering Lead1
Web Developer1
Cloud Solutions Manager1
Security Risk Management1
Linux Cryptography and Security Engineer1
Senior HR Generalist1
Linux Software Engineer1
Linux Systems Engineer1
Software Architect1
Linux Devices Software Engineer1
Telecom Account Executive1
Treasury Analyst1
Web Frontend Engineer1
Site Reliability Engineering Manager1
Software Alliances Director1
Sustaining Operations Engineer1
Salesforce Engineer1
Security Operations1
Regional HR Manager1
IoT Data Engineer1
Financial Analyst1
Security Operations Engineer1
Containerization & Virtualisation Engineer1
Talent Science1
Embedded Linux Consultant1
Python Engineering Manager1
Graduate HR Generalist1
Graphics and Windowing System Software Engineer1
Ubuntu Engineering Lead1
Junior Data Engineer1
Partner Marketing Manager1
Growth Engineer1
Enterprise Account Executive1
Security Engineer1
User Science1
Engineer1
Enterprise Sales / Alliances1
Cloud Alliances1
Ecosystem Development Manager1
Software Platform Engineering Manager1
Product Manager - Cloud1
Embedded Linux Engineer1
Cloud Engineering Manager1
Linux Platform Integration1
Enterprise Open Source Sales Manager1
Information Systems Architect1
Cloud Support Engineer1
Data Governance Engineer1
IBM Global Alliance Director1
Marketing Specialist1
Senior Communications Specialist1
Project Manager - Ubuntu Embedded Systems1
Data Platform Engineer1
Junior Ads Specialist1
NetSuite Engineer1
Senior Search Lead1
Embedded IoT System Engineer1
Salesforce/NetSuite Engineering Manager1
Golang Engineering Manager1
GitOps Engineer1
Threat Intelligence Lead1
Networking Software Engineer1
Technical Alliance Manager1
Accounts Receivable Clerk1
Partner Sales Executive1
Python Engineer1
Performance Engineer1
IoT Solutions Architecture1
Software Engineering Manager1
Content Marketing Team Manager1
Business Services Team Manager1
Lead Python Software Engineer1
OpenStack Engineering Manager1
Current role-level mix at Canonical on JobCrawls
Role levelActive listings
Mid-Level167
Senior15
Manager7
Intern1
Junior1
Mid-level1

Canonical appears in 209 indexed job postings in JobCrawls' Finland dataset since October 2023. In that historical index, the strongest location signals for this employer are Remote - Global, Remote - EMEA, and Remote - Worldwide.

Data shown is based on historical job postings from our database.

Job Details

Requirements

  • Exceptional academic record from high school and university
  • Undergraduate degree in Computer Science or STEM or equivalent experience
  • Extensive management experience
  • Outstanding Linux software engineering track record
  • Drive and motivation to exceed expectations
  • Excellent English communication skills
  • Public speaking and presentation skills
  • Experience in leading, coaching, and mentoring developers
  • Organized and results-oriented
  • Self-starting and reliable
  • Professional interaction skills
  • Advanced domain expertise
  • Passion for software development
  • Experience in agile environments
  • Continuous learner
  • Trust-building and relationship skills
  • Result-driven with commitment focus
  • Ability to travel twice a year for up to two weeks
1 day agoPartial Schema

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