Senior Staff Software Engineer – STCE

You should apply if:

• You want to impact the industries that run our world: The software, firmware, and hardware you build will result in real-world impact—helping to keep the lights on, get food into grocery stores, and most importantly, ensure workers return home safely.
• Join the “Innovation Machine”: STCE (Smart Trailers and Connected Equipment) is the entrepreneurial engine of Samsara. We are currently in a “Renaissance” phase—operating with the grit and autonomy of a 0-to-1 startup while leveraging the power of a global leader with 25+ trillion annual data points.
• 0-to-1 Innovation: We are the “innovation machine” within Samsara. We operate like a startup, scaling products from “nights and weekends” prototypes (like the Asset Tag) to flagship revenue drivers.
• Full-Stack Leverage: You’ll work in a fully vertically integrated BU. You’ll have the magic of making trade-offs across every layer—from battery chemistry and firmware protocols.
• The “Startup Mode” Paycheck: You get the independence of a founder with the ability to test features on a massive, real-time network that is on 99% of US roads every single day.
• You want to build for scale: With millions of IoT devices deployed, you will drive scalable innovation for customers across industries driving the world’s physical operations.
• You are a life-long learner: We have ambitious goals. Every Samsarian has a growth mindset as we work with a wide range of technologies, challenges, and customers that push us to learn on the go.
• You believe customers are more than a number: You will have a rare closeness to the end user. You will participate in customer interviews, spend time in the field, and use metrics to ensure our work translates into better outcomes.
• You are a team player: Motivated by our mission, we’re all racing toward our connected operations vision, and we intend to win—together.

In this role, you will: 

• Lead “Big Rock” projects: moving between Smart Trailers and Connected Equipment teams based on the most pressing business needs.
• Drive “Step Functions”: As a Senior Staff Engineer, you aren’t just shipping features; you are driving major leaps in architecture and product capability that make the team better around you.
• Think like a Product Manager: We don’t do heavy PRDs. You are expected to be in the field with customers, understanding their pain points and “willing” solutions into existence.
• Ship at the “Speed of Thought” with AI: We are refactoring our engineering culture to be AI-first. You will lead the charge in using LLMs and AI to automate the “boring stuff” and focus on high-level problem solving.
• Optimize across the Stack: You’ll collaborate with firmware and hardware teams to solve cross-cutting problems, like balancing real-time visibility against energy consumption.
• Lead without Ego: You will mentor engineers in a high-ownership environment where the best idea wins, regardless of title.
• Advocate for Technical Health: Partner with Engineering Management to balance long-term technical health with iterative customer wins.
• Be a Cultural Force Multiplier: Champion Samsara’s principles (Focus on Customer Success, Build for the Long Term, Adopt a Growth Mindset) as we scale globally.

Minimum requirements for the role:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science/Engineering or equivalent practical experience.
• 12+ years of experience in software design and development, with at least 4 years in an architect or leadership role.
• Technical Independence: You don’t wait to be told what to do; you have the backbone and conviction to define what should be done and push through hurdles to complete it.
• Modern Engineering Workflow: Expert in writing high-quality, maintainable code in a modern language, with a demonstrated ability to use AI tools (Cursor, LLMs, etc.) to multiply your output.
• Cloud Scale Expertise: Proven experience working with web services at massive scale deployed on Cloud providers such as AWS or Azure.
• Communication: Excellent collaboration and problem-solving skills, with a demonstrated ability to manage complex technical discussions with stakeholders across Legal, Hardware, and Product.
• A “Founder-Engineer” mindset: You’ve built and shipped a 0-1 product from scratch and successfully navigated the “morass” of scaling it into a mature business driver.
• Applied AI Power-User: You have fully transitioned to an AI-native workflow to “code at the speed of thought.

An ideal candidate also has:

• Has 15+ years of relevant industry experience in software development.
• Strategic Influence: Experience influencing a company’s product and infrastructure strategy at the corporate level.
• Systems Mentorship: You enjoy leading engineers to think about systems—their life cycles, edge cases, and failure modes—from the edge to the cloud.