Why Canonical?

Canonical is seeking an exceptional candidate to help us build a new definition for the 21st century digital workplace.  We’re building a team of researchers and engineers to figure out what *really* drives productivity, effectiveness and happiness in a remote-first globally distributed company.

As a company that exists to support Ubuntu, one of today’s most important open source projects, we are changing the world on a daily basis. Canonical provides a unique window into the world of 21st-century digital business. We work with smart individuals from a wide range of professional backgrounds in more than 40 countries worldwide, bringing together distinct and diverse perspectives to contribute to the advancement of state-of-the-art technical infrastructure. 

Our team is united by a passion for open engineering and a commitment to crisp, reliable execution which enables us to exceed our customers’ expectations when it comes to next-generation open source technology.

Role Summary

We aim to set the global pace of modern workplace development. As an experienced research engineer you will drive the investigation and development activities that seek to leverage Canonical’s unfair advantage of a globally distributed workforce.

You will conduct research that helps inform each aspect of our digital workspace and our teams to drive developmental decision-making with mountains of evidence. You will design and execute programs to find new ways to use technological innovation for efficient collaboration. 

Informed by a deep understanding of our current teams and future potential, you will be responsible for development of a workplace that manifests our culture and brand: Accessible, Adroit, Precise and Reliable.

What you’ll do:

• Design and conduct research that deepens the understanding of our workplace and teams, probing for unmet needs and also identifying opportunities to improve
• Provide insights into healthy company culture and how to motivate and engage team members
• Work with engineers/developers to improve the data and tool ecosystem supporting our digital workplace
• Understand the trends shaping the ways employees work and what can be done to increase productivity.
• Understand the challenges and opportunities presented by being a large-scale remote and digital workplace. Offer insight into how to mitigate and capitalize.
• Tell the story of Canonical’s workplace and help differentiate our employment brand.
• Lead the growth of the workplace engineering discipline across Canonical, while building strong relationships with all of our teams: Product, Engineering, Support. Sales, Marketing, Operations

Who you are:

• PhD or MA degree OR BA/BS degree in research, psychology, social sciences, human factors, HCI, business, or a related field plus two years of academic or professional research experience required.
• Consistent track record of providing strategic business recommendations that substantially influence an organization’s productivity and effectiveness
• Passionate about solving tough problems and proposing elegant solutions.
• Ability to translate business questions to key research objectives, identify the best methodology to execute research, synthesize and analyze findings
• Excellent writing and communication skills, a storyteller with a knack for taking technical language and making it understandable.
• An ability to learn and adapt so that you can help teach others.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision making capabilities; this includes the ability to multi-task and prioritize activities.

Nice to have

• Experience with data visualization software and techniques preferred.

#LI-Remote 

Canonical is an equal opportunity employer

Canonical believes a diverse workforce enhances our ability to deliver world class software and services which meet the world’s computing needs. We are committed to ensuring equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.