Lead Physical Access Engineer
About Us Canary Technologies is changing the game for hotels with modern software powered by Canary's hospitality-specific AI platform.
Canary is utilized by 20,000+ hoteliers in 100+ countries to equip hoteliers with the technology they need to work smarter and wow their guests. Major hotel brands such as Wyndham, Marriott, IHG, Four Seasons, Rosewood, and Best Western trust Canary to deliver results.
Canary was named a 2024 Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ company, a Most Innovative Company by Fast Company and a HotelTechReport Best Place to Work — and is backed by top Silicon Valley investors like Y Combinator, F-Prime, Brighton Park Capital and Insight Partners.
Join us in shaping the future of hospitality!
Responsibilities Directly manage a pod of engineers responsible for Canary's Physical Access product, including Mobile Key and lock-vendor integrations
Set an example as an IC in terms of both the quality and velocity of code that you ship
Own the architecture and its evolution across mobile-key issuance, lock-vendor integrations, and the encoder/BLE paths that unlock doors
Drive measurable improvements in unlock reliability, latency, and vendor coverage by deeply understanding how hotels and guests use the product
Partner closely with Product Managers to inform roadmap and prioritization for the Physical Access surface area
Independently mentor and advise engineers in the pod, build engineering execution plans, break down work, and assign it across the team
Directly manage the people on your pod — conduct 1:1s, performance reviews, and team ceremonies to maintain the health of the pod and its members
Run pod processes autonomously and escalate appropriately when required
Participate in hiring and interviewing for the Physical Access team and broader engineering org
Qualifications 8+ years of a strong engineering background
2+ years of proven experience managing successful engineering teams
Solid knowledge of developing backend applications
Hands-on experience integrating with third-party hardware or vendor APIs — IoT, access control, payments, telephony, or similar
Strong demonstrated ability to ship high-quality products that operate reliably at scale
Self-motivated, collaborative, and diligent work ethic
Excellent communication skills. You love being part of a diverse team, building consensus, and establishing credibility
Comfort with ambiguity and eager to embrace ownership and accountability
Bonus: experience with mobile (iOS/Android), BLE/NFC, or hardware/lock-vendor integrations
We also work hard to ensure Canary is a fun and exciting place to work! Here are some of the additional benefits:
Canary Days: As a company we want to ensure that the team has time to recharge. Each month we provide company wide days off to ensure there is at least one extended weekend or day off.
Self Improvement Club: We meet each month and share our personal goals for the month. Each individual is provided a budget towards any purchases that help us achieve these goals.
Professional Development Chats: We provide budget to help drive cross functional professional development conversations across the organization.
Travel Reimbursement: Team members are able to visit our offices across New York, San Francisco or Dallas when they choose, and are provided a travel stipend for doing so. Spend time working with the team in their office, and use the rest of your time exploring a new city!
Personal Travel Reimbursement: If you stay at a hotel that Canary works with, we provide a credit towards your stay.
Canary Technologies is an equal opportunity employer. We recruit, employ, train, compensate and promote talent regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information or any other protected characteristic.