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Lead Content Designer - Design Systems

Canva

Canva

Design
Melbourne VIC, Australia
Posted on Wednesday, February 1, 2023
Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.
Hey, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora,你好, hallo, vítejte!
Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.
Where and how you can work
Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work. That means if you want to do your thing in the office (if you're near one), at home or a bit of both, it's up to you.
What you’d be doing in this role
As Canva scales change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that's all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavour of the type of things you'll be working on when you start, but this will likely evolve.
About the group you’ll be a part of
Part of the Product Platform supergroup, the UX Platform’s group mission is ‘to ensure a delightful experience for every user on every device’. The group is made up of teams that focus on systems, tooling and guidance for Canva’s Design System, Accessibility and Internationalisation teams, to name a few.
About the teams you’ll work with
Our Design System teams focus on two streams: the development and maintenance of foundational components, and increasing adoption of the design system across the org.
Collectively, the team’s mission is to build a world-class design system that empowers Canva staff to craft consistent and excellent experiences at scale.
About Content Design at Canva
We're on a mission to help our users fulfill their goals with clarity and joy.
We’re looking to achieve this by building an amazing team with a culture of clear and crisp writing. Our focus is on systems, not just sentences. We create and improve flows, not just the words. We seek to have a deep impact on key areas, not just shallow impact everywhere.
Content Design is a small and growing part of our Design specialty. Canva sees content as a crucial part of its ongoing success – and we’re really focused on improving our content experience. We have a fun, human voice that we want to do a better job of getting across to our users, instead of, you know, “generic UX writing” voice.
We’re passionate about working together to create the future of Content Design at Canva; it’s not a top-down approach. Your opinion matters! You’ll also get lots of support from the diverse content team across the business. As soon as you arrive, we’ll be saying “Thank goodness you’re here!”
The content design specialty collaborates closely with PMs, Designers, Engineers and Design Researchers to identify solutions that prioritize our users’ needs.

Goals you’ll achieve

  • Goal #1: Audit the existing design system site’s structure and its content and make recommendations for improvements.
  • Goal #2: Develop cross-functional rituals and processes for improving the way documentation is drafted, developed and published.
  • Goal #3: Introduce existing Content Writing guidelines into our design system — developing, integrating and evolving UX writing guidance into individual component documents.
  • Goal #4: Explore and define a clear strategy for evolving the IA and navigation of our design systems documentation website.
  • Goal #5: Explore and establish a framework that supports and accurately promotes the health and status of the Design System’s suite of documentation and guidelines for consumers.

What you’ll do

  • Content Design: You’ll be a Lead Individual Contributor, using your writing skills and User Experience principles to craft UX copy that will help our design system scale and be used across the whole of Canva. You’ll also work with the rest of the Content Design team to solve problems we’re all facing, so we can continue to build a robust, thriving specialty.
  • Drive improvements to how we document components and then make sure we keep the quality bar high.
  • Lead the creation and implementation of accessible and inclusive content design guidelines, including naming conventions and microcopy guidelines, within Canva’s design system.
  • Partner with Product Designers and Engineers to shape and refine new and existing documentation guidelines for Easel’s suite of components and patterns.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams, shaping rituals and processes that support the development of Design System content at all stages of the process, from planning and writing to editing, iterating and publishing.
  • Provide coaching and educational support for IC product designers on best practices for drafting and developing documentation.
  • Collaborate on shaping and executing improvements to our design system's information architecture and navigation systems and create supporting artefacts such as content audits, glossaries, and FAQs.
  • Help facilitate design critiques and workshops to promote collaboration and improve design outcomes.
  • Utilise qualitative and quantitative research to inform content decisions and support decisions with documented rationale, data, and user research.
  • Results: Your frictionless and friendly copy isn’t just for show – it’ll move the needle on the metrics that matter at Canva.
  • Completeness and comms in internal user satisfaction
  • Improved adoption through standardisation of component naming
  • Collaboration: You’ll bring design, PMs, engineers and researchers together to find the best solutions for our users as we grow our component library.

What we’re looking for

  • You’re a Lead Content Designer who’s got a proven track record of solving complex problems, ideally in the tech/SaaS industry. This means you have multiple years of content design or UX writing experience.
  • You have incredible UX writing skills and an impressive content design portfolio and are a stickler for brand voice, consistency and style.
  • You know how to work independently, but you also love collaborating with people from different disciplines and sharing the power of content design.
  • You’ve got a good balance of big-picture thinking and nailing the details.
  • You’re not afraid of complex problems; that’s where you thrive.
  • You know how to get buy-in from key stakeholders. You’ve got a track record of bringing people on the journey with you – they know what’s changing and why.
  • You like to move quickly and aren’t afraid of fast growth and rapid change. Canva is growing faster than you can imagine – which means solutions that worked 6 months ago might break; you’re up for that challenge.
  • You know how to prioritize ruthlessly and handle responsibilities for a vast number of projects – focusing your attention on the areas that matter most.
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.
Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.