Information Systems - Open Source Technical Architect
Join to apply for the Information Systems - Open Source Technical Architect role at Canonical
Canonical is a leading provider of open source software and operating systems to the global enterprise and technology markets. Our platform, Ubuntu, is widely used in breakthrough enterprise initiatives such as public cloud, data science, AI, engineering innovation and IoT. Our customers include the world's leading public cloud and silicon providers and industry leaders in many sectors. The company pioneers global distributed collaboration, with 1,200 colleagues in more than 80 countries and very few office‑based roles. Teams meet two to four times yearly in person, in interesting locations around the world, to align on strategy and execution.
The company is founder‑led, profitable and growing.
We are hiring an Information Systems Architect to define the best practice in infrastructure‑as‑code at a global scale. Join us to advance the state of the art and shape the infrastructure behind tens of millions of devices running Ubuntu.
The Information Systems (IS) team is responsible for all IT operations at Canonical, including the infrastructure for building, packaging and distributing Ubuntu globally. As the IS architect, you will own the design of hardware and software implementation from PCI lanes to CDN and everything in between. Our goal is to be a reference operation, using the latest capabilities in Ubuntu and open source more generally, with the most modern operating principles. Your choices will impact the Ubuntu user experience for millions of users and drive how Canonical's engineers engage with compute and network resources in a devops setting.
As the IS Architect, you'll be in a unique position to improve Canonical products and the open‑source technologies they're based on. You will lead System Reliability Engineers (SRE) and Data Center Engineers (DCE) to embrace best practices, make informed decisions on technology choices in all aspects of cloud infrastructure and services, and coach the IS team on automation, reliability, operational/technical scalability, network infrastructure and security.
This is a home‑based position with twice‑annual travel to company events totaling around four weeks per year.
Location: Remote in the EMEA region.
Responsibilities
* Define, gain buy‑in and implement a holistic vision of a world‑class internal cloud.
* Set up, maintain and update the technical design roadmap and guidelines for the SREs within IS, with the aim of improving reliability, resilience, operational scalability and technical scalability.
* Collaborate with cloud‑ops software development teams to provide input for roadmap, requirements and prioritization to build a highly standardised and automated operation.
* Provide the IS management with input and advice regarding technology, reliability, resilience and business cases.
* Lead technical choices to implement solutions as self‑service products, ensuring scalable operation.
* Collaborate with product security and operations security to set best practice and mitigate new threats in a timely manner.
* Automate operations for reuse across the world's largest companies, taking into account the complexities of distributed systems.
* Collaborate with development teams to design service architecture, documentation, playbooks, policies and operational procedures.
* Analyse incidents and events, determine root causes and recommend structural improvements to minimise recurrence.
Qualifications
* Exceptional academic track record from both high school and university.
* Undergraduate degree in a technical subject or a compelling narrative about an alternative path.
* Confidence to respectfully speak up, exchange feedback and share ideas without hesitation.
* Track record of going above and beyond expectations to achieve outstanding results.
* Extensive knowledge of cloud computing concepts, technologies and operations.
* Practical knowledge of Linux networking, routing, firewalls, internet transit and large‑scale/bandwidth networking.
* Experience dealing with significant production outages, incident response and post‑mortems.
* A passion for writing, sharing and maintaining enterprise open‑source software solutions.
* Ability to communicate clearly and effectively in English over email, chat, video or voice calls and in person.
* Familiarity and passion for open source, especially Ubuntu or Debian.
Nice‑to‑have skills
* Modern software engineering background (peer review, unit testing, SCM, CI/CD, Agile).
* Hands‑on experience of automatic administration of enterprise Linux servers at scale.
Benefits
* Distributed work environment with twice‑annual 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 Program.
* 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 of software. 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. Most colleagues at Canonical have worked from home 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.
Seniority level
Mid‑Senior level
Employment type
Full‑time
Job function
Engineering and Information Technology; Software Development.
#J-18808-Ljbffr