Are you a product-focused engineering leader passionate about building teams and software technology? Do you consider yourself a skilled and empathetic manager? Do you enjoy leading people, collaborating with cross-functional teams, and improving software development practices? Have you mentored, coached and provided a clear framework for growth for your team members? We might have the perfect opportunity for you.

About the Position

ChowNow’s Engineering Team has built a modern platform enabling restaurant owners to accept pickup and delivery orders online. Our “quality product first” approach to engineering contributes to our success and brand recognition. We’ve reached the time when we need to grow and scale our engineering team to meet the demand of the many exciting new products and features on our roadmap.

We’re looking for an experienced front end engineer and leader to help us lead and grow our engineering team. The Front End team plays a key part in developing ChowNow’s product line - including our website, core online ordering platform, internal applications and our customer dashboard.

As the Front End Engineering Lead, you will help us launch reliable and stable products, and support new initiatives to continuously improve the experience of our users. You will shape the product, the software architecture, the development process, and the culture. Most importantly, you will motivate, encourage and lead your team to success, by finding growth opportunities, providing constructive feedback, and combining challenge and support to get the best out of your colleagues.

This is a 50/50 management and hands-on role. You will be reporting to the VP of Engineering.

About the Team: 

ChowNow is unique among tech startups in the restaurant space. We power branded online ordering systems for independent restaurants across North America – via websites, Facebook, Google, and through branded iOS and Android apps – and we do it all for a reasonable monthly fee regardless of order volume. We operate this way because of our belief in being fair, sustainable, and equitable with our restaurant partners. And the same goes for our workplace. 

Diversity, teamwork, and mutual respect are among our core company values. And we pride ourselves on giving our teams plenty of opportunities to make their mark. To date we’ve created over 11,000 apps for our restaurant partners – something that’s never been done before in our category. And as we expand to new markets, further spreading the word about the ChowNow difference, those opportunities to create, build, and grow will only increase. If this sounds like the kind of workplace, and the kind of mission, that appeals to you, we’d love to talk. 

Learn more by checking out our reviews on Glassdoor (they’re excellent). Together we can preserve neighborhood flavor, one restaurant at a time.

As a Front End Engineering Lead, you will work from our Los Angeles Headquarters.

What Success Looks Like:

Within 1 month, you’ll…

• Complete our ChowNow onboarding (Ramp Camp) where you’ll learn the ins and outs about ChowNow and our products.
• Get to know people, the FE team as well as the rest of the Engineering organization, Product, and Design. 
• Join team stand-ups, sprint planning, grooming, and more in order to get familiar with the overall product and team processes.
• Take on a coding task to familiarize yourself with the end to end development process.

Within 3 months, you’ll…

• Spend deep dive time with the team to learn more about the core products and how they all fit together.
• Review product requirements and design documents, perform code reviews and weigh in on implementation choices.
• Understand how business goals, PCI compliance, and other aspects affect our internal processes.
• Understand the current hiring roadmap, and think about future team needs.
• Understand and own the FE technology roadmap, and begin to collaborate with others on interweaving this with the product roadmap.

Within 6 months, you’ll…

• Lead development of current front end projects.
• Provide guidance for new product development and front end architecture evolution.
• Support and collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure consistent application of engineering practices.
• Lead evolution of software development process and practices supporting growth of the team and new product initiatives.
• Partner with the People & Culture Team on recruiting and mentoring your first hire.
• Establish team and individual OKRs and KPIs based upon company goals.

Within 12 months, you’ll…

• Develop career growth paths for all team members.
• Level up a member of your team.
• Craft, document, and communicate our Front End team growth strategy.
• Contribute to building engineering culture based on collaboration, inclusion, support, measuring and tracking results, and constant improvement.
• Engage in local and virtual engineering and start-up communities to contribute to building a strong ChowNow engineering brand.

You should apply if:

• You have at least 5 years of software engineering experience, including at least 3 years experience as a technical leader.
• You have hands-on experience building responsive web applications using modern technologies like React, Angular or Ember and want to keep an active hand in development.
• You have developed, launched and supported large scale products (B2B and B2C SaaS is a plus).
• You have experience with website development using Wordpress or similar content management systems.
• You have a passion for team building and a track record of recruiting, onboarding and fostering high-performing engineering teams.
• You know how to partner with Product, Design, QA and other Engineering Leaders to build compelling products in an Agile environment.
• You care about the quality of work your team produces.
• You can define metrics, instrument their measurement, and lead a team to hit them.
• You are a fan of rapid iteration and experimentation. You think about failures as a learning opportunity. 
• You know how to capitalize on the diverse strengths of the people around you.
• You are a thoughtful mentor and leader who loves supporting your team and collaborating with others to achieve great things.
• You have a point of view but encourage and welcome critiques.
• You thrive in environments supporting your growth, and where you can support others.
• You are passionate with a contagious energy, encouraging those around you to peruse their goals

About Our Benefits:

• Competitive salary
• Ongoing training and growth opportunities
• A "best place to work" winner multiple times where we focus on creating a great employee experience
• Rock solid medical, dental, and vision plans
• 3 weeks paid vacation; paid holidays; we expect you to work hard, but still enjoy your personal life
• 6 weeks of baby bonding time for all new parents (within the first year of birth or adoption), 6 Weeks of Paid Pregnancy Leave
• Employer-contributing student loan assistance program
• Commuter benefits (including Uber Pool)
• Employee Stock Incentive Plan
• Quarterly Industry Speakers Series
• Quarterly Tech Events (Women, LGBTQ, Diversity, Inclusion)
• Consistent & fair leadership: we’ll share info, set clear goals, show you respect, and treat everyone fairly
• Enough freedom to spread your wings while still holding you accountable
• Fully stocked kitchen and cold brew on tap

We are committed to an inclusive and diverse work environment. ChowNow is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, marital status or any legally protected status.