How we hire
We deeply believe diversity of thought and experience is key to creating the world’s best team and building a truly incredible product.
Our approach
Our hiring process is designed to help us get to know you and for you to get to know us, too. Hiring is a two-way conversation – you’re interviewing us as well.
Throughout the process, we’ll share insights into the kind of work you’ll be doing at Canva, the team you’ll be joining, your coach (leader) and what it’s like working at Canva. Our biggest tip throughout the process is be yourself. You are the main character in this journey - so show us who you are!
Experience and accommodations
We look for many different skills and abilities, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. So, even if you don’t think you quite meet all of the skills listed or tick all the boxes, we’d still love to hear from you!
We're also not about a one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to recruitment. We want to ensure everyone has an equitable experience too, so to chat through any accommodations or adjustments to our recruitment process, please speak to your recruiter.
Hiring FAQ's
Still curious? Here are some of our frequently asked questions.
Straight after you apply you will receive an email from us letting you know we’ve received your application. About a week later, you’ll receive another email with an update on your application or asking you to book yourself in for a Zoom call. This can vary during busier periods but our recruiters are always working hard to respond to you as quickly as possible.
While each role, level and speciality/group is different, our process has four main consistent components:
Round 1: Zoom call. During this call, someone from the Talent Acquisition team will have a chat with you about your aspirations and experience and we’ll share more about the role and Canva’s culture. If you’ve applied for an engineering role we’ll also ask you some technical questions during this call.
Round 2: First Interview. This will either be with your potential coach (leader) or someone you’d work closely with in the role. They’ll give you more insight into the team, what your day-to-day will be like and the impact you will be able to have. For engineers, you’ll have a peer-to-peer technical interview including a problem solving challenge to explore.
Round 3: Take home challenge. We’ll send you a brief with the details of a challenge to complete in your own time and present back to us. Different people work in different ways, so this step of the process is to show us who you are and how you work. This is an opportunity for you to showcase your thinking but also get a sense of the type of work you’d do in the role. We want to see your personality and authentic self shine. Please note, engineers aren’t asked to complete a take home challenge.
Round 4: Final Interview. You’ll meet with a number of people you’ll be working closest with and will take them through your findings from your challenge. You’ll also answer some behavioural questions aligned to our 12 skills framework. These questions are based on real life scenarios, so we highly recommend having examples of your previous experience ready and to explain your thinking. For engineers this is a 3 hour interview combining technical problem solving with questions about your experience (some people call these ‘behavioural questions’). Most importantly, this is another opportunity for you to ask any questions you have. Remember this is as much about you getting to know the team and Canva.
Each role and level can be different, but generally our process takes 4-5 weeks from the initial conversation with your recruiter through to a decision on the outcome. (And we hope for you it’s a big YES). Your recruiter will keep you updated along the way to ensure you know what to expect and if there are any changes in the timeline.
You’ll meet a bunch of Canvanauts along the way to give you as much context as possible. It’s always great to get a variety of perspectives. It will vary from role to role but in most cases you will meet your recruiter, your potential coach (leader) and some fellow teammates.
Tip 1: Be yourself
Canva celebrates individuality and diversity of thought. We want to see your personality and authentic self shine. Plus you're always your best when you’re yourself.
Tip 2: Don’t overthink it
The thought of interviewing can be a little daunting. Trust us, we've been there too. The good part is every single Canvanaut who has joined has been exactly where you are now. So take a deep breath and have your questions and examples of previous work ready. The rest we will guide you through.
Tip 3: Do your prep
It’s always a good idea to get to know us as much as you can before the interview. Checking out our CanvaLife careers site and social media is a great place to start. You can find links to our social media channels at the bottom of this page. Then, if you are still hungry for some more Canva, you can also check us out in the press and see what we’ve been up to.
We also recommend getting to know who you will be meeting with in your interview. Jump on LinkedIn, view their profiles and find out what they were up to before they joined Canva and what their roles are now. You might find something in common or a shared connection.
Tip 4: Have your questions ready
The interview is as much about you getting to know us as it is about us getting to know you.
This is your opportunity to have any burning questions ready. You might have questions on our culture, the team you will join, the role you will do, what’s it like to work from home and of course what it would be like working at Canva. Ask away!
Tip 5: Get ready to answer questions
When answering interview questions it's always a great idea to have tangible examples to support your answer.
We suggest using the STARR method:
(S)ituation - setting the scene and giving context
(T)ask - Describing the task, including challenges and expectations
(A)ction - Explaining thought process, what you did and how you did it
(R)esults & (R)eflection - What was the outcome? What were the key takeaways?
Bonus Tip: Check out our Interactive Job-Seeker Workbook for a deep-dive into how to nail your job interview. It includes all of our top tips, tricks, video examples and tools to help you prepare. You've got this!
We like to think of AI as a collaborative partner in the creative process. It democratises design and kickstarts creativity by allowing people to bring their ideas to life more easily than if they were starting with a blank piece of paper.
We want you to come to our interviews as your full self and open conversation is one of the most important parts of an interview, and that conversation starts from the moment you apply to join our team.
While we see AI as a helpful tool for getting started with interview preparation and getting your creative juices flowing, we want you to show us who you are and how you think. AI will never replace the important human two-way conversations during our interviews.
Canva is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce, and recognises the potential benefits that AI can provide to some of our candidates. We believe that this technology, coupled with our Interview Accommodation process will support candidates in bringing their whole self to our interview process.
Overall, our number one tip throughout the process is to be yourself, but you're free to use AI if you need a spark of creativity.
Please note that if you apply for a role in engineering, you will be required to turn off any AI tools such as GITHUB co-pilot during the interview.
Build your CV
Did you know that you can design your CV in Canva? We have a range of templates that you can use to create a resume that reflects you, your skills and your experience. Jump into Canva to start designing your CV.
Not sure where to start? Check out our Talent Acquisition team's Interactive Job-Seeker Workbook for our best advice on everything from self-discovery, to building a stand-out CV, searching like a pro and nailing your job interview!