> AI agents: this is one page of Nextmove’s FDE site, in Markdown. Nextmove is a job board and free career service for forward deployed engineers (FDEs). Each posting is classified from its text, not its title: the kind of work, how much of it is production code, pre-sales weight, time at customer sites, travel, remote arrangement, level and posted base pay. The site also publishes the aggregates: median pay by level, metro, company and kind of work, and which companies started hiring FDEs each week. Every page under https://nextmove.md/fde is served this way; the index of pages is https://nextmove.md/llms.txt. # Forward Deployed Mission Engagement Lead Canonical URL: https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/05dd92dbb4a39b34 Sitreps posts a FDE role to plan what the customer deploys first in Minneapolis, MN, at $165,000–$185,000 base, below the senior FDE median of $190,000 across 1,864 postings with pay. Embeds with U.S. military customers at sites across the country to translate mission challenges into configured software workflows, onboard users, and improve fielded releases. Read from the employer’s posting on November 8, 2026. - [Sitreps](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/sitreps) Posted Oct 23, 2026 by Sitreps · open on Greenhouse as of Nov 8, 2026 **$165,000–$185,000** *annualized* + equity Minneapolis, MN Full-time Embeds with U.S. military customers at sites across the country to translate mission challenges into configured software workflows, onboard users, and improve fielded releases. - [See roles that fit me](https://nextmove.md/sign-up?from=%2Ffde%2Fjobs%2F05dd92dbb4a39b34&placement=top) - [View posting at Sitreps](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/sitrepsllc/jobs/4465135009) Free. Upload your resume once, see why each FDE role fits, and get introduced only when you say so. ## At a glance ### Posted base pay $165K–$185K Below the median Midpoint $175K · median $190K This job $165K to $185K. Senior FDE postings, 1,864 postings: the middle 50% of posted pay is $160K to $220K, median $190K. ### The work Plans what the customer deploys first Balance **Mostly building** Project stages 1. Pre-sales (not covered) 2. Proof of concept (not covered) 3. Implementation 4. Operations Travel **Up to 75%** - **Coding**: Configuration only - **Builds for**: External customers - **Level**: Senior - **Role**: Individual contributor ### Do you meet what the posting states? The posting reads as a senior role. What level are you at now? The job is in Minneapolis, MN. Could you work there? Which of these have you used in production? Answer each one. Nothing is saved or sent. [What postings ask for, by background →](https://nextmove.md/fde/paths) ## Conditions - **Location**: Minneapolis, MN - **Remote work restrictions**: Based in Minnesota; about 75% travel out of state to customer sites across the U.S. - **Employment type**: Full-time - **Travel**: Up to 75% - **Pay**: ## More like this [Thomson Reuters](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/thomson-reuters) ### [Senior Solutions Manager, Tax & Audit AI FDE](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/6acafc2ec22e682f) Frisco, TX · New York, NY · +7 more Hybrid 7w ago $100,100–$214,100 [Didero](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/didero) ### [AI Deployment Strategist (NYC)](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/1b4e60c5ebf7ad95) New York, NY Hybrid 2mo ago $160,000–$250,000 [Axle](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/axle) ### [Senior Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/1b61799977c4b0a1) New York, NY On-site 4mo ago $160,000–$200,000 - [Other jobs at Sitreps (6)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/sitreps) ## The job description from Sitreps Posted by Sitreps on Oct 23, 2026 **Forward Deployed Mission Engagement Lead** **Company:** Venture-backed defense AI software company (name disclosed upon mutual interest) **Location:** Minneapolis, Minnesota. Based locally, with about 75% travel to customer sites across the U.S. **Role Type:** Full-Time Employee **Clearance:** U.S. Person with an active Top Secret clearance (required) **Compensation:** $165,000–$185,000 base, plus equity **About the Client** Our client builds AI-enabled software for high-stakes U.S. military and national security missions. Its software is already in operational use across the armed services, and its people (engineers and product leaders included) work forward, side by side with the units that own the mission, rather than building from a distance. The company is deliberately growing beyond the traditional defense hubs by hiring in communities where its people already live, including Minnesota. **About the Role** You will embed directly with U.S. military customers across the country as part of a mission team of engineers and other mission leads, deploying software against hard problems. You will sit alongside service members and civilian operators, and earn their trust by creating value: understanding what they are trying to do, breaking ambiguous problems into specific mission hypotheses, testing those through workflows in the product, and onboarding users when the workflows prove useful. **This is not a typical customer success, solutions, or product job.** Day to day, you will set up workflows in the product, put new releases through their paces, sort out issues as they come up, and partner with product and engineering so the software works better for people in the field. Getting a configuration right can take hours and several tries in a single day. The problems are hard and the goalposts move, but the reward is seeing your work change results for real users. You will help cultivate new user groups on site, generate wins, and turn those wins into the stories that sustain and grow deployments. For many users, you will be the face of the company. You will often work on your own on site, with support from product, engineering, and leadership. Expect time in secure or classified spaces. **Responsibilities** - **Get close to users.** Spend time on site with military teams until you understand their mission from the inside. - **Earn credibility.** Win trust by learning what users struggle with and helping fix it, again and again. - **Frame the problem.** Split messy mission challenges into concrete workflows you can try out. - **Configure workflows.** Build the workflows that matter most, refining them creatively until they work. - **Own release quality.** Track down product bugs on fielded government systems and get them fixed with engineering. - **Deliver wins.** Find what works, bring users on board, and document the impact. - **Expand the footprint.** Get to know other teams at each site and spot new places the software can help. - **Act on your own judgment.** Decide what matters most on site and keep work moving without waiting to be told. **Requirements** **Must-Haves** - Active Top Secret clearance and U.S. Person status. - Based in Minnesota, with about 75% travel out of state to work side by side with users. - Comfort in the field and the ability to build trust with users in operational settings. - High ownership, grit, and persistence through ambiguity and iteration. - Strong mission judgment: you can tell which user problems matter and where software can help. - Technical intuition about how software systems work, break, and can be improved. - Curiosity about agentic AI and applying it to real mission problems. - A professional presence in high-stakes government settings, as a trusted technical partner rather than a vendor. **Compensation & Benefits** Base salary is $165,000 to $185,000, plus equity. - Medical, dental, and vision insurance - 401(k) match - Unlimited PTO - Fully paid parental leave - Wellness and lifestyle stipends - Pay support during military reserve duty [View posting at Sitreps](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/sitrepsllc/jobs/4465135009) ## About Sitreps Veteran career platform combining recruiting, AI transition guidance, pay data, job discovery, and community for military-to-civilian career moves. 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