Staff Forward Deployed Engineer
About this role
Databricks builds a unified platform for data and AI apps, analytics, and agents that powers thousands of global organizations. The engineering team creates solutions that help clients productionize data and artificial intelligence challenges using the platform.
Forward Deployed Engineers work directly with enterprise clients to design, build, and deploy end-to-end systems that span data engineering, machine learning, and application development. Practitioners in this function own technical architecture, write code, and guide strategic customers through complex big data implementations while collaborating closely with internal product and engineering groups.
Successful candidates combine strong technical foundations in distributed computing and modern programming languages with deep customer empathy and consulting capabilities. Professionals who enjoy bridging the gap between business impact and technical execution while traveling up to twenty percent of the time will find a strong fit here.
What you will do
- Lead customer technical projects by delivering production-grade systems, reference architectures, and custom applications.
- Guide strategic accounts through transformational big data implementations from initial design to final deployment.
- Own architecture and design decisions to ensure scalable, secure solutions aligned with platform best practices.
- Collaborate with internal engineering and support teams to channel product feedback and resolve engagement issues.
- Develop reusable accelerators and frameworks that scale technical impact across multiple accounts.
- Embed directly with client teams ranging from individual contributors to executives to understand operational challenges.
What you need
- Bring at least six years of professional background in software engineering, data platforms, analytics, or data engineering.
- Write production code comfortably using Python, Scala, JavaScript, TypeScript, or modern frameworks.
- Demonstrate working knowledge of at least two major cloud ecosystems alongside deep expertise in one.
- Possess extensive hands-on experience with distributed computing via Apache Spark and its runtime internals.
- Familiarity with continuous integration and continuous deployment pipelines for production environments.
- Understand modern MLOps practices, machine learning models, and artificial intelligence APIs.
- Manage technical project scope, timelines, and deliverables while working directly with enterprise clients.
Skills and tech stack
Questions candidates ask
What travel is required for this role?
Forward Deployed Engineers travel to customer locations approximately 20% of the time. This travel supports direct collaboration with client teams and stakeholders.
What kind of technical background is needed?
Candidates need at least six years of experience in software engineering, data platforms, analytics, or data engineering. Familiarity with distributed computing and cloud ecosystems is also required.
Who does this team collaborate with?
The group works cross-functionally with engineering, product, and developer relations to shape strategic priorities. Team members also engage directly with client stakeholders ranging from technical individual contributors to executives.