Principal Engineer, Android Platform

JOB SUMMARY: 

Join Our Android Platform Team as a Mobile Principal Engineer – Shape the Future of the Marriott Bonvoy App!

Are you ready to make a real impact with your code? Define and build the next evolution of mobile solutions that elevate the Marriott experience. You’ll oversee various mini-projects, ensuring they’re delivered on time and within scope while leveraging the latest technologies in innovative and meaningful ways.

As a key technical subject matter expert on our Android Platform Team, you’ll play a pivotal role in advancing the Marriott Bonvoy app, providing strategic technical advisory, helping define the Target Architecture for the Platform and advising on the Mobile Platform Roadmap, while driving innovation and excellence across our feature teams.

You’ll collaborate with top-tier talen including other Principal Engineers, Engineering Directors, Solution Architects, Feature Team Tech Leads, Product Leads, UX Designers, QA Engineers and more to deliver high-impact solutions that matter. You’ll be the go-to expert for tackling the toughest problems and delivering high-quality, scalable solutions. Your work will directly support our strategic goals, blending hands-on development with technical advisory responsibilities, leading architecture and framework initiatives.

In this role, you’ll partner with Product Owners and lead technical workgroups, acting as a go-to expert for complex, non-routine challenges. You’ll dive into research, design, and implementation of cutting-edge capabilities that meet both current and future developer and user needs while ensuring alignment with our highest standards in design, technology and security.

You’ll lead by example conducting code reviews, mentoring developers, and recommending improvements to workflows, tools, and standards that elevate the entire mobile engineering discipline.

As a thought leader, you’ll stay on the cutting edge of the mobile ecosystem, exploring OS and device capabilities, researching emerging tools and libraries, and assessing new technologies through hands-on proofs of concept. You’ll also play a key role in educating and inspiring the broader mobile engineering community both inside and outside the organization.

If you're passionate about crafting elegant code, solving real-world problems, and working in a dynamic, collaborative environment, we’d love to meet you.

CANDIDATE PROFILE 

Education and Experience 

Required:

• 10+ years of application development leadership experience that includes:
  • Enterprise-scale native mobile application development across multiple platforms with a strong capability in Android
  • Expert-level Android architecture and coding abilities in Kotlin (and knowledge of Java)
  • Extensive experience in development of a variety of large apps supporting millions of users at scale in Android
  • Management of multiple Omni-Channel development efforts integrating with multiple back-end systems
  • Experience with Automation, CI/CD, Release Management processes and Application Deployments to app stores
  • Familiarity with Enterprise-level SDKs for Analytics, Networking, Customer Engagement, Application Performance Monitoring
  • Strong understanding of API platforms, backend services, database and networking components of full-stack infrastructure
• Undergraduate/graduate degree or equivalent education + experience

Preferred:

• Demonstrated success leading medium- to large-scale initiatives/transformations 
• Proven knowledge of Agile methodology; preferably SAFe Agile
• Experience with mixed and offshore delivery models
• Good process management, negotiating, influencing and problem resolution skills 
• Proven ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment
• Knowledge of business environment, service requirements and hospitality culture
• Knowledge of / familiarity with the other platform (iOS) as well
• Demonstrated ability to assess customer/client needs, creatively approach solutions, decide and influence appropriate courses of action
• Ability to understand and communicate the lifecycle of technologies and applications and to translate into business strategies for the client organizations.
• Solid understanding of IT financial structures and ability to manage to corporate financial processes and standards - including drivers of process costs
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to articulate complex technical ideas in easy to understand business terms
• Ability to accomplish results through others, particularly by establishing relationships, effective controls and leading in a managed service environment

CORE WORK ACTIVITIES                                                                                          

Managing Application Development Standards, Processes, and Tools

• Works with direct reports to facilitate consistency of service delivery across client groups
• Facilitates compliance with the standard set of application development tools and processes that will drive consistency and predictability throughout the SDLC for all client groups including:
  • SDLC standard tools and processes for both waterfall and agile development
  • Estimating standard tools and processes, incorporating flexibility for small and large projects
  • Deployment standard tools and processes
• Monitors projects for adherence to defined application development processes
• Communicates to Application Development leaders opportunities to create broader IT related and corporate standards and policies where necessary
• Communicates important application development policy changes that affect service provider and/or Marriott operations

Managing Day-To-Day Relationships with Teams 

• Manages application development projects in partnership with IT teams, business partners and providers
  • Provides project management of business projects 
  • Oversees effective reporting within application development team
  • Leads project reviews with team on application development projects
  • Manages day-to day relationships with all IT teams to promote the delivery of services that meet or exceed the client expectations
  • Monitors projects for alignment with defined business case process 
  • Drives timely resolution of escalated service delivery problems and minimizes the impact of any client service delivery issues 
  • Manages, and improves service level reporting for application development
  • Provides early warning to the appropriate Business Partnership & Planning leaders and team regarding degraded or missed service levels
  • Assists with application development and maintenance of service provider project management standards and tools
  • Participates in client portfolio and demand management processes, and engages service providers to ensure client satisfaction 
• Works with application development service providers
  • Validates the service provider(s) performs the services agreed to by the master services agreement in a manner that is consistent with both the spirit and the letter of the agreement
  • Works with team to progress the service providers services to match client needs
  • Facilitates team and service provider compliance with the agreement
  • Validates service levels meet business needs
  • Facilitates the definition and enforcement of good service provider contracts
• Supports the IT organization
  • Provides input to IT’s business strategy and planning as needed
  • Supports and follows defined IT Governance decision rights, standards and practices
  • Emphasizes accuracy and effectiveness of estimating and planning management with team
  • Provides input to business/discipline and continent IT budgets

Implementing and Managing Continuous Improvement Program 

• Drives adoption of CMMi or similar metrics to demonstrate continuous improvement and alignment with the industry
• Demonstrates continuous improvement through metrics of quality consistency and client satisfaction
• Works with application development service providers, IT teams, and business partners to implement continuous improvement activities
• Responds to issues identified in project surveys or other feedback processes, to continually improve client satisfaction

MANAGEMENT COMPETENCIES

• Communication - Conveys information and ideas to others in a convincing and engaging manner through a variety of methods.

• Leading Through Vision and Values - Keeps the organization's vision and values at the forefront of employee decision making and action.

• Managing Change - Initiates and/or manages the change process and energizes it on an ongoing basis, taking steps to remove barriers or accelerate its pace; serves as role model for how to handle change by maintaining composure and performance level under pressure or when experiencing challenges.

• Problem Solving and Decision Making - Identifies and understands issues, problems, and opportunities; obtains and compares information from different sources to draw conclusions, develops and evaluates alternatives and solutions, solves problems, and chooses a course of action.

• Professional Demeanor - Exhibits behavioral styles that convey confidence and command respect from others; makes a good first impression and represents the company in alignment with its values. 

• Strategy Development - Develops business plans by exploring and systematically evaluating opportunities with the greatest potential for producing positive results; ensures successful preparation and execution of business plans through effective planning, organizing, and on-going evaluation processes.

• Building a Successful Team - Uses an effective interpersonal style to build a cohesive team; inspires and sustains team cohesion and engagement by focusing the team on its mission and importance to the organization.

• Strategy Execution – Ensures successful execution across of business plans designed to maximize customer satisfaction, profitability, and market share through effective planning, organizing, and on-going evaluation processes.

• Driving for Results - Sets high standards of performance for self and/or others; assumes responsibility for work objectives; initiates, focuses, and monitors the efforts of self and/or others toward the accomplishment goals; proactively takes action and goes beyond what is required.

• Customer Relationships - Develops and sustains relationships based on an understanding of customer/stakeholder needs and actions consistent with the company’s service standards.

• Global Mindset - Supports employees and business partners with diverse styles, abilities, motivations, and/or cultural perspectives; utilizes differences to drive innovation, engagement and enhance business results; and ensures employees are given the opportunity to contribute to their full potential.

• Strategic Partnerships - Develops collaborative relationships with fellow employees and business partners by making them feel valued, appreciated, and included; explores partnership opportunities with other people in and outside the organization; influences and leverages corporate and continental shared services and/or discipline leaders (e.g., HR, Sales & Marketing, Finance, Revenue Management) to achieve objectives; maintains effective external relations with government, business and industry in respective countries; performs effectively as a liaison between locations, disciplines, and corporate to ensure needed resources are received and corporate strategies are understood and executed.

• Developing Others - Plans and supports the development of others’ skills and capabilities so that they can fulfill current or future job/role responsibilities more effectively; provides high visibility to individuals with potential; offers challenging assignments that build confidence and credibility and provides such individuals with a personal vision for their future.

• Organizational Capability - Evaluates and adapts the structure of assignments and work processes to best fit the needs and/or support the goals of an organizational unit.

• Business Acumen - Understands and utilizes business information to manage everyday operations and generate innovative solutions to approach business and administrative challenges.

• Technical Acumen - Understands and utilizes professional skills and knowledge in a specific functional area to conduct and manage everyday business operations and generate innovative solutions to approach function-specific work challenges.

• Technical Intelligence: knowledge and ability to identify technological opportunities and threats that could affect the future growth and survival of the business. 
  • Technology Life Cycle:  knowledge of the Life Cycle of technologies and how applications, infrastructure, and processes relate to these timelines.
  • IT Systems:  Knowledge of IT systems supporting the business including benefits, requirements, costs, justification, and operations. 
  • IT Resources:  The ability to secure and manage IT resources to achieve business objectives (e.g., contracts, vendor relationships, financial accountability, portfolio management, information and resource planning) and measure project impact.

• Continuous Learning - Actively identifies new areas for learning; regularly creates and takes advantage of learning opportunities; uses newly gained knowledge and skill on the job and learns through their application.

• Strategy Knowledge - Understanding and utilizing professional skills and knowledge in a specific functional area to conduct and manage business operations and generate innovative solutions to approach function-specific strategic work challenges.

• Basic Competencies - Fundamental competencies required for accomplishing basic work activities. 

• Basic Computer Skills - Uses basic computer hardware and software (e.g., personal computers, word processing software, Internet browsers, etc.).

• Mathematical Reasoning - Adds, subtracts, multiplies, or divides quickly, correctly, and in a way that allows one to solve work-related issues.

• Oral Comprehension - Listens to and understands information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

• Reading Comprehension - Understands written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

• Writing - Communicates effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

At Marriott International, we are dedicated to being an equal opportunity employer, welcoming all and providing access to opportunity. We actively foster an environment where the unique backgrounds of our associates are valued and celebrated. Our greatest strength lies in the rich blend of culture, talent, and experiences of our associates.  We are committed to non-discrimination on any protected basis, including disability, veteran status, or other basis protected by applicable law.