The role of the Global Lead OEM Alliances at Canonical

Large OEM or Independent Hardware Vendor (IHV) brands - Dell, HPE, IBM, Lenovo, Ericsson, Cisco, Fujitsu and many more - are major partners for Canonical. These companies often build software-defined solutions which they take to market, and Ubuntu is a key ingredient in cloud-native and edge or IoT solutions. More and more of those solutions depend on open source. Canonical Ubuntu is the best platform for rapid open source innovation.

The Global Lead OEM Alliances is responsible for IHV partner success - we want them to thrive and grow their business with Canonical software, solutions and services. This is a leadership role, responsible for strategic IHV Alliances worldwide.

Reporting to the VP Global Alliances, our IHV Alliance Sales Director will work closely with strategic partners across their complex organizations to engage with their innovation teams and ensure that they consider and integrate Ubuntu stacks and solutions. For example, private clouds, container solutions, and vertical solutions for industries like telco and automotive, are increasingly built on open source and Ubuntu. We are the challenger platform, but we are growing quickly in the industry.

The OEM Director is responsible to build trusted relationships with IHV partners, increase Canonical market share and attach rate, evangelize the partnership and lead all business interactions from engineer to CxO. He/she will often run customer workshops focused on particular initiatives at that customer, attend sales events, give public presentations and lead executive engagements.

Location: This role can be based remotely in the EMEA or Americas region

What your day will look like

Build strategic relationships with IHV partners at levels
Grow their awareness of open source capabilities on Canonical Ubuntu
Demonstrate a deep understanding of the Linux and cloud software ecosystem
Negotiate contracts and commercial business terms
Demonstrate a deep understanding of large and complex organizations
Lead partnerships with global accounts such as IBM, Samsung, DellEMC, HPE, Nokia etc.
Work closely with marketing, sales engineering and product management
Deliver on targets, objectives and provide a voice of the partner
Lead executive interlocks between IHV and Canonical leadership
Travel regularly - sometimes internationally - to drive partnerships in person

What we are looking for in you

Experience in alliance or indirect sales management roles
Autonomous, disciplined, hands-on, get-it-done mentality
Ability to capture customer requirements, evaluate gaps, identify and create opportunities
Passionate about Ubuntu products and mission
Comfortable in fast-paced and high pressure environments with measurable goals
Experience with Linux, virtualization, containers, and other cloud technologies.
Excellent communication and presentation skills

What we offer you

Your base pay will depend on various factors including your geographical location, level of experience, knowledge and skills. In addition to the benefits above, certain roles are also eligible for additional benefits and rewards including annual bonuses and sales incentives based on revenue or utilisation. Our compensation philosophy is to ensure equity right across our global workforce.

In addition to a competitive base pay, we provide all team members with additional benefits, which reflect our values and ideals. Please note that additional benefits may apply depending on the work location and, for more information on these, please ask your Talent Partner.

Remote work with regular team-wide in-person sprints - we’ve been working remotely since 2004!
Personal learning and development budget of 2,000USD per annum
Annual compensation review
Recognition rewards
Annual holiday leave
Parental Leave
Employee Assistance Programme
Priority Pass for travel and travel upgrades for long haul company events

About Canonical

Canonical is a pioneering tech firm that is 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 on a daily basis. 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.

Canonical has been a remote-first company since its inception in 2004. Work at Canonical is a step into the future, and will challenge you to think differently, work smarter, learn new skills, and raise your game. Canonical provides a unique window into the world of 21st-century digital business.

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.

#LI-remote

Apply for this Job

* Required

First Name *

Last Name *

Email *

Phone

Resume/CV *

Dropbox Google Drive

(File types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf)

When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review

+ Add another education

Describe your experience working with IHVs in the enterprise server, PC, and IoT device markets *

During this application process I agree to use only my own words. I understand that plagiarism, the use of AI or other generated content will disqualify my application. *

Describe your experience in technology alliances and alliance-based business development *

Describe your experience driving strategy, planning and execution *

How did you perform in mathematics at high school? *

How did you perform in your native language at high school? *

Please share your rationale or evidence for the high school performance selections above. Make reference to provincial, state or nation-wide scoring systems, rankings, or recognition awards, or to competitive or selective college entrance results such as SAT or ACT scores, JAMB, matriculation results, IB results etc. We recognise every system is different but we will ask you to justify your selections above. *

What was your bachelor's university degree result, or expected result if you have not yet graduated? Please include the grading system to help us understand your result e.g. ‘85 out of 100’, ‘2:1 (Grading system: first class, 2:1, 2:2, third class)’ or ‘GPA score of 3.8/4.0 (predicted)’. We have hired outstanding individuals who did not attend or complete university. If this describes you, please continue with your application and enter ‘no degree’. *

Universities around the world score degrees in different ways. Please indicate your result, or expected result if you are close to graduation, along with information about the grading system.

We expect all colleagues to meet in person 2-4 times a year, at internal company events lasting between 1-2 weeks. We try to pick new and interesting locations that will likely require international travel and entry requirement visas and vaccinations. Are you willing and able to commit to this? *

Please note that if you require any accommodation for travel that relates to a physical disability please do let us know during your hiring process and we will be happy to discuss your requirements further.

Website

LinkedIn Profile *

Please confirm that you have read and agree to Canonical's Recruitment Privacy Notice and Privacy Policy. *

Recruitment Privacy Notice

In which country do you currently work? *

Please select your current location from the dropdown.

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Canonical’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Gender

Are you Hispanic/Latino?

Please identify your race

Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Veteran Status

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305

Page 1 of 1

OMB Control Number 1250-0005

Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
Blind or low vision
Cancer (past or present)
Cardiovascular or heart disease
Celiac disease
Cerebral palsy
Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
Diabetes
Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
Intellectual or developmental disability
Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
Short stature (dwarfism)
Traumatic brain injury

Disability Status

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.

Our system has flagged this application as potentially being associated with bot traffic. Please turn off any VPNs, clear your browser cache and cookies, or try submitting your application in a different browser. If this issue persists, please reach out to our support team via our help center.

Please complete the reCAPTCHA above.

Head of OEM Alliances