Design Director, Social Studio 10 month FTC

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

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Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney, with additional spaces in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide. You have the flexibility to work from the office, home, or a mix of both—it’s your choice.

About the role:

We are seeking a dynamic, social-first Design Director to help lead our Social Studio team. You’ll partner with our Social Creative Director to lead the team in elevating Canva’s social creative content. You’ll have a proven track record of building global brands through standout content tailored for social channels like TikTok, Meta, YouTube, and beyond.

A conceptual thinker with strong graphic design and art direction skills, you can bring ideas to life in innovative and compelling ways. From brainstorming to launch, you have the skills and vision to oversee every stage of the creative process. You’re also an exceptional leader who thrives in fast-paced, ever-evolving environments and knows how to inspire a team to deliver exceptional work.

As a key player in Canva’s Creative Team, you’ll bring our brand values, vision, and identity to life through entertaining, educational, and culturally resonant social content. You’ll collaborate closely with a multidisciplinary team of creators to develop and execute ideas that captivate and engage our global audience.
 

What you'll be doing:

• Champion Social-First Creative Ideas: Lead the creation of social-first content that aligns with Canva’s brand purpose, engages our audience, and resonates with the broader cultural conversation.
• Leverage High-Profile Brand Experience: Use your proven expertise working with leading global brands to elevate Canva’s presence and maintain its reputation as a world-class creative leader.
• Oversee End-to-End Creative Development: From brainstorming and storyboarding to design, motion, and production, ensure all creative outputs meet the highest standards and align with Canva’s mission.
• Emphasize Diverse Creative Expertise: Showcase versatility across design, filmmaking, motion graphics, and storytelling to deliver comprehensive, impactful social content.
• Collaborate Across Teams: Partner with designers, copywriters, videographers, photographers, and other specialists to create and publish content at speed and scale.
• Lead and Inspire: Provide mentorship and direction to your creative team, fostering an environment that encourages innovation, collaboration, and professional growth.
• Drive Alignment: Work with leadership and cross-functional stakeholders to align on goals, prioritize initiatives, and manage resources effectively.
• Elevate Creative Quality: Balance speed with craftsmanship, ensuring every piece of content is not just timely but also impactful and beautifully executed.

You're probably a match if:

• Proven Experience: 10+ years in brand design and leadership roles, preferably in a high-growth environment. A standout portfolio showcasing diverse social-first brand campaigns is a must.
• Empathetic Leadership: A natural collaborator who builds trust and empowers teams to achieve their best work.
• Strategic Mindset: A sharp thinker who can align creative strategies with business objectives and adapt plans to changing priorities.
• Creative Excellence: Exceptional design and storytelling skills, with the ability to inspire and guide teams to deliver innovative and culturally relevant work.
• Bias for Action: You’re hands-on and proactive, ready to jump in and tackle challenges big and small.
• Comfort with Ambiguity: You thrive in fast-paced environments and can navigate change and uncertainty with ease.
• Commitment to Excellence: You’re always pushing yourself and your team to deliver work that exceeds expectations.
• Exceptional Visual Communicator: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas and concepts clearly to diverse audiences.
• Always striving for your best. You’re a talented creative with amazing design chops, yet you never stop learning and pursuing excellence in everything you do – “Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best.”

About the Group:

Canva’s in-house creative team is on a mission to make Canva one of the most loved brands in the world. From concept to creation, we deliver world-class creative across brand communications, marketing campaigns, editorial content, and production.

As part of the Social Studio team, you’ll play a pivotal role in shaping Canva’s voice on social media by creating social-first content that moves at the speed of culture. This content will embody our brand purpose of empowerment, showcase our product, and highlight our vibrant community.

We move fast here at Canva, and this role will keep you on your toes. If you’re someone who thrives on action, loves a good creative challenge, and can balance your imaginative streak with sharp prioritization, we’d love to work with you.

We’re committed to attracting and nurturing world-class talent to do the best work of our lives – and have fun doing it.

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 stack 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.