Life at Canonical: Akshara Pathak shares her experience as a new joiner in Customer Success

As Canonical continues to grow, we have developed a unique onboarding process that enables our new hires to quickly settle and establish themselves in our globally distributed environment. 

During your first few weeks, your manager will create an onboarding plan to introduce you to the business, your closest stakeholders and colleagues. You will also learn about our business tools and processes that allow us to work asynchronously across the globe. You can expect to develop a good understanding of the open source technologies that we develop such as our distributions for Openstack, Kubernetes,

Kubeflow and Opensearch, in addition to Ubuntu, the world’s favorite Linux.

Regardless of your level or role, you will be invited to attend a 3 day induction sprint during your first few months. These are held in exciting locations around the world, with travel and accommodation fully covered by Canonical. You will attend a series of presentation style talks delivered by senior leaders on their functions and vision to help you understand how everything at Canonical fits together. It is a great way to gain a holistic understanding of the whole business. You will also get to engage in some fun team building activities whilst getting to know other new joiners from across the business. 

In this series, we will be interviewing team members who joined the company within the last year to ask them about their experience so far. For this edition, we will be hearing from Akshara Pathak. 

Meet Akshara

In February 2024, Akshara joined Canonical as part of the Customer Success team. Based in London, Akshara engages customers across the EMEA region to guide them to a deeper understanding of Canonical’s products and services, as well as best practices. As a Customer Success Manager (CSM), Akshara collaborates closely with Sales, Support, Product and other teams to improve the customer experience and drive retention and growth. CSMs also serve as the voice of the customer within Canonical, by sharing customer feedback and including suggestions or pain points with the relevant stakeholders to drive positive change. Let’s now hear from Akshara about her Canonical journey so far.

How would you describe your first few months at Canonical?

In my early days at Canonical, I was thrilled to see the strong sense of collaboration within the team. This motivated me to quickly adapt to my new role so I could contribute to the team’s success and deepen my understanding. The buddy program was incredibly helpful, and having Alyson (an experienced team member) as my go-to contact for any questions made the transition much smoother. The well-structured onboarding process gave me the confidence to handle tasks independently by the end. 

The entire team was welcoming and supportive, making me feel instantly included, despite being new to the role and organisation. Three months into my journey, I had the chance to meet my colleagues in Madrid during the Induction Sprint, which offered fantastic exposure and learning opportunities. From day one, I found myself excited about the work ahead, which kept me productive and engaged.

What was the induction sprint like? 

The Induction Sprint was an incredible experience for me. It provided a fantastic opportunity to meet and connect with my colleagues shortly after joining. The event was thoughtfully organised, allowing us to learn, network, and enjoy ourselves simultaneously, which gave me a true sense of the positive work environment within the organisation. Beyond just learning and networking, the sprint offered a perfect balance of professional growth and memorable team dinners outside of work.

What aspect of your role excites you the most? 

I believe the role of a CSM is about being creative and engaging with customers in a genuine, natural way. While there’s a structure to follow, the role offers the freedom to explore different approaches to building strong customer relationships and keeping them engaged. The variety that comes with the job keeps me motivated and excited to work. Additionally, it provides the opportunity to go above and beyond by contributing to other initiatives within the organisation. 

Is this your first remote job? How do you feel about remote work?

In my previous role, I worked remotely for quite a while. Although I got comfortable with the setup, there were definitely times when I wished I could work from the office and interact with colleagues face-to-face. Being based in London, I’m lucky that the company headquarters are here too, giving me the flexibility to work in a hybrid setting. Plus, with two sprints every year, the remote experience feels easier since we get to meet up with colleagues from all over the world at least twice a year.

What is your advice for readers considering a career at Canonical?

If you believe there’s a role at Canonical that aligns with your skills and passions, don’t miss the opportunity. Canonical is more than a workplace, it’s a community where you can grow, collaborate with brilliant minds, and contribute to shaping the future of technology. Whether you’re starting your career or bringing years of experience, you’ll work on impactful projects, solve exciting challenges, and thrive in a culture that values innovation and continuous learning. If you’re passionate about open-source technology and making a difference, Canonical is the perfect place to do it.

Join the team

Canonical puts a great effort on employee onboarding to ensure new joiners like Akshara feel welcome and engaged. In the next article of this series, we’ll explore another story of a new joiner. In the meantime, we encourage you to browse current openings, find the most interesting role for you and apply. Canonical’s team will make sure you receive all that you need to excel at your new role!