Head of Personalisation for Content & Discovery

What youd be doing in this role

As Canva scales change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think thats all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavour of the type of things youll be working on when you start but this will likely evolve.

This is a rare opportunity to build the intelligence layer of a product used by over 260 million people working closely with senior leadership including founders and the mandate to define what algorithmic excellence looks like for the next chapter of our growth. You will define and drive the algorithmic strategy across two of Canvas most critical surfaces: how content is created and understood and how it is discovered and personalized for every user.

At the moment this role is focused on:

• Owning the end-to-end algorithmic roadmap for content intelligence and discovery tied to Canvas product and business goals.

• Work with business and engineering leaders to find and prioritize the highest-impact places to apply ML and AI across content and discovery.

• Lead and grow a multidisciplinary team spanning ML research engineering data science and product management.

• Drive next-generation algorithms including LLM-powered experiences intent inference and real-time personalization that change how people find and create with Canva.

• Turn complex algorithmic ideas into something any stakeholder can understand and get behind.

Youre probably a match if...

We are looking for a leader who combines deep ML expertise with strong product intuition and the ability to inspire and scale high-performing teams. You have led algorithmic product areas at scale ideally in consumer or creator-facing products and you know what it takes to build systems that feel magical to users while being rigorous under the hood.

• Significant experience in a senior ML data science or algorithms leadership role with a track record of shipping high-impact ML-powered features at scale.

• Deep technical fluency across recommendation systems content understanding search and retrieval and/or personalization algorithms.

• Demonstrated ability to lead and grow multidisciplinary teams spanning ML engineering data science and product management.

• Strong product sense able to move between model architecture discussions and user experience strategy without losing altitude.

• Exceptional communication skills with the ability to influence executive stakeholders and distill complex algorithmic tradeoffs into clear strategic decisions.

• A postgraduate degree (MS or PhD) in an applied quantitative field such as Machine Learning Computer Science Statistics Operations Research or a related discipline.

About the team

Youll join Canvas Algo team working directly with the Chief Algorithms Officer and a cross-functional group of ML researchers engineers data scientists and product managers. Together youll own the intelligence layer behind how 260 million people discover and create with Canva every day.
This teams work will be instrumental in building a personalization moat that strengthens Canvas competitive edge and to elevate Canvas user experience to unprecedented heights.

Whats in it for you

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but youll 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.

Heres a taste of whats 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 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 dont feel like your skills quite match whats listed above - we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.

Remote Work :

No

Employment Type :

Full-time