Python EM at Canonical: Data Governance Leadership Role in Columbus
Career & Market Insight
Engineering Manager at Canonical is a genuinely technical leadership role — not just people management. You'll own product accountability for internal platforms powering Canonical's commercial operations, which means high visibility and direct business impact.
Compensation: Canonical does not publish salary bands but states it adjusts by geography and performance, with an annual review cycle and performance bonus. For an EM role in the EMEA region, market benchmarks typically range from €80,000–€130,000+ depending on country. The lack of transparency here is a minor flag for candidates who prioritize upfront clarity.
Skills you'll build:
- Data mesh architecture, governance tooling (Trino, Apache Ranger) — high-demand skills in the data engineering market
- Python-centric engineering leadership with exposure to ETL, SaaS integrations, and internal platform development
- Distributed team management across multiple time zones — increasingly valued as remote-first becomes standard
Green flags: Canonical is profitable and founder-led — no VC pressure for sudden pivots or layoffs. The USD 2,000 annual L&D budget is real and meaningful. The company has 20+ years of remote-first culture, so the infrastructure and norms are mature.
Watch out for: Canonical's hiring bar is explicitly very high ("exceptional academic track record" is listed), and the culture is performance-driven. The role spans both Data Governance and Integrations teams, so candidates should clarify scope — managing one or both teams — before accepting.
Overall, this is a strong mid-to-senior EM opportunity for someone who wants to combine Python engineering depth with people leadership at a well-established open-source company.
Canonical is a leading provider of open-source software and operating systems for global enterprise and technology markets. Our platform, Ubuntu, is very 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 is a pioneer of global distributed collaboration, with 1200+ 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 a Python Engineering Manager, who strives for accountability for the development of an internal product, who has high engineering quality standards, continuously develops their skills as well as skills of their direct reports, and who has the drive to deliver. This is an exciting opportunity to work with great people and exciting open-source solutions on innovative engineering solutions supporting Canonical's growth.
The Commercial Systems unit is conceived as six engineering teams that closely collaborate with other engineering and business teams at Canonical. Services designed, developed, and operated by the Commercial Systems unit are at the heart of Canonical business and Python plays an integral role in it. We are looking for software engineering managers for these teams:
The Data Governance team has a mission to enable secure and well-governed access to comprehensive data sets originating at many internal and external data sources formed in a data mesh. The team works with well-known open-source data governance tools such as Trino and Ranger, defines and executes data governance processes, and democratizes the data at Canonical.
The Integrations team is responsible for the automation of SaaS user management and onboarding of new data sources to the data mesh. The team designs, develops, and operates a Python-based solution to automate SaaS seat management and track spend across the application portfolio. Furthermore the team integrates internal and external data sources into the data mesh using open-source ETL solutions, enabling more data-driven decisions in the organization.
Location: This role will be based remotely in the EMEA region.
The Role Entails
- Accountability for the design and development of an internal product
- Leading a team of software engineers working in Python
- Developing the skills and capabilities of direct reports
- Seeking improvements to established processes, designs, and solutions
- Building an understanding of business needs to deliver the most impact
What We Are Looking For in You
- Exceptional academic track record from both high school and university
- Undergraduate degree in a technical subject or a compelling narrative about your alternative chosen path
- Track record of going above-and-beyond expectations to achieve outstanding results
- Experience with software development in a high-level language (Golang, Python, Java, etc.)
- Professional written and spoken English with excellent presentation skills
- Result-oriented, with a personal drive to meet commitments
- Ability to travel internationally twice a year, for company events up to two weeks long
Nice-to-Have Skills
- Performance engineering and SRE experience
- Experience with data governance, data engineering, or data science
What We Offer Colleagues
We consider geographical location, experience, and performance in shaping compensation worldwide. We revisit compensation annually (and more often for graduates and associates) to ensure we recognize outstanding performance. In addition to base pay, we offer a performance-driven annual bonus or commission. We provide all team members with additional benefits, which reflect our values and ideals. We balance our programs to meet local needs and ensure fairness globally.
- Distributed work environment with twice-yearly 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
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