Engagement: Hourly / part-time, ongoing or full-time

About the Role 

We're looking for a Lead Forward Deployed Engineer to run one of these engagements end to end. This isn't an architecture-from-a-distance role — you'll sit shoulder to shoulder with a pod of 2–4 engineers, write code yourself, make the calls that keep delivery moving, and act as the person who turns an ambiguous ask into a shipped product. You'll carry the outcome for the whole pod, not just your own commits, and you'll spend most of your week building rather than managing from a distance. 

Your Mission 

• Own delivery for one active client engagement at a time, from first conversation to production 
• Lead and grow a pod of 2–4 forward-deployed engineers 
• Translate ambiguous business needs into a scoped, testable delivery plan 
• Keep the client's trust by shipping — consistently, visibly, on time 
• Bring AI-assisted development practices into daily delivery work 

Key Responsibilities 

Delivery & Technical Leadership 

• Lead a pod of engineers through end-to-end delivery of a single project, from problem framing to production hand-off 
• Write production-ready code as a hands-on contributor, not just a reviewer 
• Make day-to-day technical decisions — frameworks, data models, deployment targets — and escalate architectural calls when needed 
• Run code reviews and pairing sessions that raise the team's technical bar 
• Use AI-assisted development tools (Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, and similar) to accelerate delivery, and bring what works back to the wider engineering team 

Stakeholder & Client Management 

• Partner directly with business leaders, domain experts, and client stakeholders to understand needs and shape scope 
• Represent the pod in status reviews, demos, and retrospectives 
• Identify risks, dependencies, and blockers early — and drive the team through them 

Team & Knowledge Building 

• Mentor engineers through pairing, feedback, and targeted coaching on craft and consulting skills 
• Document design decisions and reusable components to support future engagements 
• Stay current with emerging AI tools and development practices, and pilot their adoption within your project 

What We're Looking For 

Must Have 

• 8+ years in software development, systems integration, or technical consulting, with recent hands-on delivery experience 
• 2+ years leading the technical side of a shared project — as a tech lead, team lead, or senior engineer 
• Advanced proficiency in at least one modern language (Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, Go, Java, or similar) 
• Solid grounding in software architecture, API design, data modeling, and full-stack or backend delivery 
• Fluency in at least one major cloud platform (AWS, Azure, or GCP) and modern practices — CI/CD, containers, version control, testing 
• Hands-on experience applying AI tooling (Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, vector search, prompt engineering, RAG) in real delivery work 
• Track record of shipping production software on tight timelines in a consultative or embedded setting 
• Experience mentoring engineers and running effective code reviews 
• Strong communication skills — able to translate technical tradeoffs for non-technical stakeholders 

Nice to Have 

• Experience delivering AI, automation, or data-intensive applications in an enterprise environment 
• Experience working within large, decentralized, or multi-site organizations 
• Prior experience as a forward-deployed engineer, solutions engineer, or delivery consultant 
• Cloud architecture or AI/ML certification (AWS, Azure, GCP, or equivalent) 

Why You'll Love This Role 

• Real ownership: one engagement, full accountability, direct client contact — no layers of hand-off 
• A working lead role — you build alongside your team, not just manage it 
• Room to bring modern AI-assisted tooling into how the team actually works, not just talk about it 
• A small, senior team where your technical calls carry real weight 
• Flexible working setup and a clear path into engineering leadership 

If you'd rather be embedded in real delivery than sitting one layer removed from it — let’s talk.