Design Lead

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!

About the Role
We are seeking a Design Lead to join a team of dedicated product designers and elevate our product suite to the next level. This role offers the opportunity to shape the design direction of a high-impact, fast-scaling product used by millions of guests and hotel customers around the world.

As a design leader, you will drive the full lifecycle of product design, from user research and data analysis to crafting high-fidelity prototypes and implementing scalable design systems. We’re looking for a design professional who combines strategic thinking with executional excellence. You’ll lead design initiatives that shape the future of our product suite and help to establish a culture of design excellence across the company.

This is a unique opportunity to make a significant impact in the hospitality technology space, improving the way hotels operate and enhancing the guest experience globally. Come join us and build products that users love, with a company that values your expertise and creativity.

Responsibilities:
• Lead Design Execution: Manage the full design lifecycle, including research, UX flows, interaction design, visual design, and prototyping, delivering intuitive and visually compelling experiences.
• Mentor and Develop: Work with a team of designers, fostering their growth and ensuring the delivery of high-quality work. Promote a strong design-first culture.
• Establish Standards: Build and maintain scalable design systems and style guides that ensure consistency and enable innovation across products.
• Conduct Research: Leverage user research and data analysis to inform design decisions, creating user journeys, personas, and actionable insights aligned with product hypotheses.
• Collaborate Cross-Functionally: Partner closely with Product, Engineering, and other teams to deliver solutions that balance user needs, technical feasibility, and business objectives.
• Embrace Iteration: Work in an agile, iterative environment, delivering incremental improvements while progressing toward the ideal design vision.
• Communicate Effectively: Clearly articulate design concepts and strategies to align teams and stakeholders, fostering understanding and enthusiasm.

Qualifications:
• 8+ years of experience in product design, with a focus on developing software solutions across mobile and web surfaces.
• Proven experience leading impactful design projects, including expertise in user research, UX/UI design, and building scalable design systems.
• Proficiency in design tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, and Miro. A portfolio showcasing high-quality, user-centered design work across the product lifecycle is essential.
• Experience mentoring designers and fostering team growth, with the ability to provide constructive feedback and drive high standards.
• Strong communication skills to articulate design decisions and collaborate with cross-functional teams.
• BA/BS in a relevant field or equivalent professional experience.

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.