Sector VP, K-12

At Instructure, we believe in the power of people to grow and succeed throughout their lives. Our goal is to amplify that power by creating intuitive products that simplify learning and personal development, facilitate meaningful relationships, and inspire people to go further in their education and careers.
We do this by giving smart, creative, passionate people opportunities to create awesome. And that's where you come in:

Instructure is approaching $1B in ARR, and Canvas K12 is one of the foundational businesses that got us here. The next chapter of K12 at Instructure isn’t about defending a mature LMS — it’s about turning Canvas K12 into a platform. MasteryConnect and our assessment portfolio, Studio, Parchment K12, and Canvas Credentials and Pathways are the adjacencies that compound the value of Canvas K12 for districts and states. We’re looking for the leader who will own that next chapter.

This is not a sales leadership role. It is not a product role. It is a commercial leadership position for an operator who has run a portfolio business before — who knows what it takes to hold a mature, scaled core steady while building real businesses in the adjacencies that surround it.

You will report to the President, GCO and sit alongside Instructure’s other Sector VPs and functional commercial leadership. You will own the multi-year strategy and top-line performance for K12 — bookings, renewals, revenue, and ARR — across Canvas K12 and the K12 adjacency portfolio. You will direct a cross-functional Operational Leadership Team drawn from Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, Product, Finance, and others. And you will be the face of K12 inside Instructure and out — with district leaders, state DOEs, partners, analysts, and the broader K12 industry.

Role & Responsibilities

The VP, K12 is accountable for the strategy, team, and results that drive growth in Instructure’s K12 sector. You will propose and drive the K12 strategy in close partnership with the President, GCO, and execute that strategy through the cross-functional leaders who make it real.

Own the K12 strategy

• Set the multi-year direction for how Instructure wins in K12. Hold the Canvas K12 installed base — its renewals, expansion, and competitive defense — as the foundation.

• Build MasteryConnect and assessments, Studio, Parchment K12, and Parchment Digital Brands and Pathways into the adjacency portfolio that turns Canvas K12 into a platform.

• Develop the strategy with your Operational Leadership Team. Make the named bets. Make the named no’s. Author the K12 Strategy Contract — the annual artifact that locks in targets, bets, resourcing, and the functional commitments needed to deliver.

Own top-line performance

• Accountable for K12 non-renewal bookings, renewal bookings, revenue, and ARR — across Canvas K12 and the adjacency portfolio.

• Hit the number within an approved budget. Read the metrics, see what’s off track early, and drive the mitigation.

• Canvas K12 renewals at or above plan are the foundation. Adjacency growth — both as attach into the Canvas K12 base and as standalone wins outside it — is the headline.

• When the sector contribution margin P&L lands, lead reallocations across functions within that envelope, in conjunction with the functional leaders.

Orchestrate the cross-functional team

• K12 execution runs through senior leaders in Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, Product, Finance, and others — the Operational Leadership Team.

• They report up through their functions for craft and career. They work for you on what gets done in the sector. You set sector priorities with their heavy input, direct the work day to day, and hold the team to outcomes.

• Make this cross-functional team operate like a sector P&L team, not a side project for everyone involved.

Partner with functional leaders

• The VP, K12 and Instructure’s EC functional leaders are co-accountable to K12 results.

• Partner closely with the Chief Growth Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Product Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and others — aligning on what each function owes the sector, holding each other to those commitments, and resolving disagreements at the right level.

• The Strategy Contract is the artifact that makes this work. The relationships are what makes it stick.

Shape the product roadmap

• Bring the K12 signal — competitive losses, potential ARR, customer evidence, attach economics — to the Chief Product Officer and the broader Product organization.

• Work especially closely with the Product leaders for Canvas K12, MasteryConnect, Studio, Parchment K12, and Canvas Credentials.

• The CPO owns the roadmap call. Once roadmap commitments are made, the CPO and the VP, K12 are co-accountable for delivering on time.

Be the external face of K12

• Represent K12 with district leaders, state DOEs, partners, analysts, and the press.

• Spend meaningful time with district superintendents, CTOs, and chief academic officers; with state DOE leadership, state procurement teams, and state-level assessment programs; and at the industry events and associations where K12 decisions get shaped — ISTE, ASU+GSV, state associations, and others.

• Build strategic partnerships that accelerate growth — including with the SIS vendors, content providers, and assessment partners that define the K12 ecosystem.

• The K12 story — how Instructure is different, why Canvas K12 plus the adjacency portfolio wins, where it’s going — comes through you.

Be a credible voice at the executive level

• Represent K12 at the executive level, including periodic EC and board engagements.

• Translate sector performance and bets into the commercial language that matters — pipeline, bookings, renewals, ARR, attach rates, margin.

• Partner effectively with the Sales, CS, Marketing, Product, and Finance leaders at the table.

Optimize for ROI

• Make smart investment decisions across the sector. Hold programs to measurable standards.

• Reallocate resources without sentiment when the data warrants it.

• Demonstrate the measurable performance of K12 across bookings, renewals, pipeline, customer health, product traction, and adjacency attach.

Your Team

You will build a small dedicated team to support sector leadership — roles likely to include a sector strategy and operations lead and a business development or partnerships lead. The rest of K12’s commercial muscle — Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, Product, and others — sits inside the EC functional organizations and operates as your Operational Leadership Team.

What Success Looks Like in Year One

• Canvas K12 is performing at or above plan on renewals, expansion, and competitive defense. The installed base is healthy and durable.

• Adjacency portfolio bookings — MasteryConnect and assessments, Studio, Parchment K12, Pathways and Canvas Credentials — are tracking to or beating the LRP, in both attach to the Canvas K12 base and standalone wins outside it.

• The K12 Strategy Contract is signed, real, and operating. Functional leaders’ annual performance goals include specific, measurable commitments to K12, and those commitments are being delivered.

• The K12 Operational Leadership Team operates like a team — not a collection of dotted-line participants. Members treat the sector as Team One. The cadence is humming.

• The Instructure roadmap reflects K12 priorities where the signal warranted it — both for Canvas K12 and the adjacencies — and the agreed roadmap commitments are landing on time.

• District leaders, state DOE leadership, partners, and the K12 analyst and industry community know who the VP, K12 is and what Instructure stands for in this market.

• You’ve earned credibility with the President, GCO the EC, and the functional leaders through results and how you operate, not just your title.

What You Will Need

• 12+ years of commercial leadership experience, with meaningful time at companies of $300M ARR or greater.

• General Manager experience: You’ve led a business or major segment of one, with P&L outlook and accountability for top-line growth — not just a function inside someone else’s business. Portfolio experience — running a mature core alongside emerging adjacencies — is a strong plus.

• K12 ed-tech domain expertise strongly preferred. You’ve operated in or sold to K12. You know district leadership buyers (Superintendent, CTO, Chief Academic Officer), state DOE relationships, state procurement and RFP dynamics, the funding cycle and policy environment, and the channel and partner dynamics — SIS vendors, content providers, assessment partners — that define this space. Exceptional candidates from broader edtech or adjacent regulated markets will be considered.

• Cross-functional orchestration at scale. You’ve led without solid-line authority, run a cross-functional leadership team, and gotten Sales, CS, Marketing, Product, and Finance moving in the same direction.

• Strategy ownership: You’ve contributed to or owned a multi-year strategy, made the hard calls on what to do and what not to do, and stayed accountable to results well beyond the current quarter.

• Dual-motion fluency: You understand the difference between expansion into an installed base and standalone wins outside it — and you’ve run both.

• Commercial fluency: You read pipeline coverage, funnel health, renewal risk, attach economics, and unit economics, and engage credibly in those conversations with Sales, CS, and Finance leaders.

• Executive presence and communication skills that work at the board level and at a sales kickoff on the same day.

• A mission-driven orientation around K12 education is a plus but not required.

• Kindness, directness, and a good sense of humor. We take the work seriously and each other lightly.

Location & Logistics

This is a remote-friendly role, with a preference for candidates based in Salt Lake City, Boston, New York City, Austin, or Raleigh. Travel required for customer engagements, partner meetings, state DOE visits, industry conferences, and time with the team.

Get in on all the awesome at Instructure!

We offer competitive, meaningful benefits in every country where we operate. While they vary by location, here's a general idea of what you can expect:

• Competitive compensation, plus all full-time employees participate in our ownership program - because everyone should have a stake in our success.

• Flexible work culture. Our remote, hybrid and in-office collaboration spaces vary by role, team and location.

• Generous time off, including local holidays and our annual “Dim the Lights” period in late December, when teams are encouraged to step back and recharge based on departmental needs.

• Comprehensive wellness programs and mental health support

• Learning and development resources, including professional development tools and tuition reimbursement, to support your growth

• The technology and tools you need to do your best work

• Motivosity employee recognition program

• A culture rooted in inclusivity, support, and meaningful connection

We believe in hiring great people and treating them right. The more diverse we are, the better our ideas and outcomes.

Instructure is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We comply with applicable employment and anti-discrimination laws in every country where we operate.

All employees must pass a background check as part of the hiring process. To help protect our teams and systems, we’ve implemented identity verification measures. Candidates may be asked to verify their legal name, current physical location, and provide a valid contact number and residential address, in accordance with local data privacy laws.

Any attempt to misrepresent personal or professional information will result in disqualification.