Sr. Forward-Deployed Engineer
Role Overview
This senior role involves leading a team of forward-deployed engineers within a customer delivery pod, providing technical direction and oversight for AI-driven enterprise projects. Day-to-day responsibilities include hands-on coding, designing multi-agent AI systems, integrating with platforms like SAP and Salesforce, and acting as the primary technical authority during customer engagements. The hire will impact enterprise AI modernization by ensuring technical correctness and execution excellence in complex, high-stakes environments.
Perks & Benefits
The job offers remote work with consideration for travel to customer sites, implying flexibility in location but requiring occasional on-site presence. It provides opportunities for career growth through mentoring roles, exposure to cutting-edge AI technologies, and collaboration with a world-class team in a fast-paced, ownership-driven culture. Benefits likely include typical tech perks such as competitive compensation, professional development support, and a focus on work-life balance with structured feedback mechanisms.
Full Job Description
Location: San Jose, CA or New York City
Remote: Considered; travel required (as per customer requirements)
About Tessera Labs
Tessera Labs is redefining how enterprises adopt and operationalize Artificial Intelligence. Backed by Foundation Capital and led by a world-class founding team, we build governed, multi-agent AI systems that automate complex business workflows across enterprise platforms such as SAP, Salesforce, Workday, Snowflake, MuleSoft, and more. Our mission is to bring real AI automation to the enterprise — with speed, precision, and measurable impact. We move fast, operate with extreme ownership, and build at the frontier of applied AI for large-scale enterprise transformation.
Role Summary
The Senior Forward-Deployed Engineer (Senior FDE) is a hands-on technical leader embedded in customer delivery engagements. This role combines deep technical expertise with customer-facing execution, overseeing design, implementation, and deployment of AI-driven workflows and multi-agent systems across complex enterprise environments. Senior FDEs lead small teams of FDEs, provide technical guidance, ensure architectural integrity, and drive execution excellence. This role is ideal for engineers with extensive experience in AI/ML systems, enterprise integrations, and customer-facing delivery, who thrive in high-ownership, ambiguous environments.
Why This Role Matters
Senior FDEs operate at the forefront of enterprise AI adoption, translating complex business challenges into production-grade AI solutions. They ensure technical correctness, maintain high-quality delivery standards, and mentor FDEs in forward-deployed execution. This role offers exposure to executive stakeholders, influence on product and platform decisions, and the opportunity to see work deployed at scale in major enterprises.
Key Responsibilities
Client-Facing Architecture & Solution Design
Lead discovery sessions to map customer systems, requirements, and constraints
Translate complex business processes into clear technical architectures using multi-agent AI, LLMs, and orchestration frameworks
Communicate technical solutions effectively to technical and non-technical stakeholders
Review and validate FDE team designs in real-time during customer discussions
Applied AI Engineering & Technical Implementation
Lead the development, review, and deployment of AI-driven workflows, integrations, and agent orchestration
Integrate AI components with enterprise systems, ensuring scalability, performance, observability, and governance
Troubleshoot and resolve complex production issues
Maintain hands-on involvement in coding, debugging, and deployment for critical components
Team Leadership & Mentorship
Provide day-to-day technical guidance and task direction for FDEs within the delivery pod
Mentor FDEs on architecture, coding standards, and enterprise delivery best practices
Conduct code and design reviews to ensure quality and maintainability
Foster knowledge sharing and reinforce operational readiness practices
Deployment, Integration & Customer Success
Lead deployment and configuration of AI agents in complex enterprise environments
Act as the senior technical point of contact during onboarding, implementation, and early adoption
Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Architecture teams to ensure delivery success and inform roadmap priorities
Startup Mindset & Ownership
Operate effectively in a fast-paced environment with shifting priorities
Take initiative to drive solutions and decisions forward with minimal guidance
Travel to customer sites as needed to support deployments and relationship building
Technical Skills
Software Development
Advanced proficiency in Python; familiarity with TypeScript/JavaScript a plus
Ability to write production-quality, maintainable code and debug complex systems
Experienced in designing modular, scalable, and reusable software components
Enterprise System Integration
Hands-on experience with RESTful APIs, event-driven architectures, and backend integrations
Exposure to enterprise platforms such as SAP, Salesforce, Workday, Snowflake, or similar
Skilled at connecting AI workflows to enterprise systems for automation
Applied AI & Agent-Based Systems
Experience designing, implementing, and operating AI/ML-enabled systems in production
Deep understanding of LLMs, agent orchestration, and AI operational constraints
Ability to design AI-driven systems that operate autonomously within enterprise workflows
Cloud & Infrastructure
Experience deploying and managing systems in cloud environments (AWS, GCP, Azure)
Familiarity with observability, monitoring, and logging frameworks for production systems
Required Qualifications
8+ years of experience in software engineering or technical consulting, including at least 5 years in customer-facing technical roles
Proven experience leading at least two end-to-end, customer-facing technical implementations, including at least one AI/ML-driven project
Experience mentoring or guiding engineers in a customer-facing delivery environment
Strong communication skills, with the ability to engage directly with customer technical teams
Comfortable operating under ambiguity and managing multiple, competing priorities
Experience with enterprise workflow automation, systems integration, or backend integrations
Experience designing, reviewing, or contributing to technical architectures
Willingness to travel to customer sites, primarily within the U.S.
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