Lapel→
Backend Engineer at Lapel in San Francisco, CA
Skills
Job Description
At Lapel, we believe the most hospitable companies win. We're building the data, infrastructure, and tools that help customer-facing teams understand every customer and act on that insight at scale throughout the entire customer lifecycle.
Most internet businesses want to treat customers well, but their tools work against them. We’re building the layer that makes every interaction feel personal again: unifying context, coordinating action, and closing the gap between intent and experience.
It’s a technically ambitious challenge spanning data infrastructure, AI, and systems design—with a deeply human outcome: helping software companies serve people better. We call it hospitality at scale.
We’re well-funded, backed by top-tier investors, and already working with incredible companies, from fast-growing startups to large enterprises. We’ll share more details when we talk.
What You’ll Do
Build, operate, and scale the core backend systems that power the Lapel platform
Design and develop robust APIs and services that support product features end-to-end
Work closely with founders, product, and design to translate ideas into scalable backend solutions
Help define and shape backend architecture, infrastructure, and tooling decisions
Own key backend projects end-to-end, from scoping to deployment to post-launch iteration
Design and manage database schemas, data models, and data flows across systems
Optimize system performance, reliability, and scalability
Implement best practices around security, authentication, and data protection
Contribute to infrastructure and deployment pipelines
Debug and resolve production issues, ensuring high uptime and system stability
Our Stack
Lapel is built end-to-end in TypeScript in a single monorepo.
React, Vite, and Tailwind on the frontend;
Node.js and Postgres on the backend;
Temporal and Pulsar to power orchestration.
We ship quickly, and care about creating a developer experience where anyone can prototype, experiment, and get ideas into production fast.
You’ll Thrive in This Role If You
Have 3+ years of backend or software engineering experience, with a track record of building and scaling systems
Are comfortable designing APIs, working with databases, and owning backend architecture decisions
Have experience with backend technologies (Node.js, Python, Go, or similar) and databases like PostgreSQL or MySQL
Understand system design, scalability, and performance optimization at a practical level
Are customer-focused and able to translate product needs into reliable backend systems
Enjoy working in fast-paced environments with high ownership and autonomy
Are proactive, detail-oriented, and take pride in building high-quality systems
This role is fully in-person at our San Francisco HQ. We work together in-office most days of the week.
The Process
We aim to hire with intention, respect your time, and offer feedback along the way.
Initial conversation (20 minutes) We’ll explore your motivations, share what we’re building, and answer your questions.
In-depth interview (45 minutes) We’ll go deeper into your craft and experience. No live coding. No prep work necessary.
Take-home project (2–4 hours) You’ll complete a short, well-scoped exercise that mirrors the kind of work you’d do here.
On-site visit (1–2 days) Join us in the office to review your take-home, grab lunch, and work on something real.
Compensation and Benefits
We believe great people build great companies—and we invest accordingly.
Competitive salary + meaningful early-stage equity
Full benefits: including medical, dental, vision, and 401(k)
Generous time off: including many company holidays and coordinated team-wide breaks throughout the year to focus and recharge
Office perks: lunch and dinner provided daily, health & wellness benefits
Team culture: regular off-sites, tight feedback loops, and a bias toward action
Other notices
We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.
Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.