> 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. # Product Manager, Forward Deployed Canonical URL: https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/5c82ba2222265ca0 Exa (formerly Metaphor) posts a FDE role to plan what the customer deploys first in San Francisco, CA, at $155,000–$275,000 base, above the not stated FDE median of $180,000 across 50 postings with pay. The Forward Deployed Product Manager spends most of their time with customers, translating technical requirements into solutions that drive adoption and expansion. Read from the employer’s posting on November 8, 2026. - [Exa (formerly Metaphor)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/exa-formerly-metaphor) Posted Sep 25, 2026 by Exa (formerly Metaphor) · open on Ashby as of Nov 8, 2026 **$155,000–$275,000** + equity San Francisco, CA On-site Full-time The Forward Deployed Product Manager spends most of their time with customers, translating technical requirements into solutions that drive adoption and expansion. - [See roles that fit me](https://nextmove.md/sign-up?from=%2Ffde%2Fjobs%2F5c82ba2222265ca0&placement=top) - [View posting at Exa (formerly Metaphor)](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/exa/521540d5-697e-4020-aa83-cd2f60e144a2/application) 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 $155K–$275K Above the median Midpoint $215K · median $180K This job $155K to $275K. Not stated FDE postings, 50 postings: the middle 50% of posted pay is $151K to $204K, median $180K. ### The work Plans what the customer deploys first Balance **Mixed** Project stages 1. Pre-sales 2. Proof of concept 3. Implementation (not covered) 4. Operations (not covered) - **Coding**: Prototypes and scripts - **Builds for**: External customers - **Role**: Individual contributor ### What they ask for Experience - **2+ years** product management experience building technical or developer-facing products Background - **Software engineering** ### Do you meet what the posting states? The posting asks for 2+ years. How many do you have? The job is in San Francisco, CA. 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**: San Francisco, CA - **Work arrangement**: On-site - **Employment type**: Full-time - **Pay**: ## More like this [Usul](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/usul) ### [Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/fc9099f16c8dfd11) San Francisco, CA · Washington, DC On-site 3mo ago $140,000–$200,000 [Conversion](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/conversion) ### [Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/7914d652b8187ed0) San Francisco, CA On-site 4w ago $150,000–$225,000 [Afresh](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/afresh) ### [Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/1960ef4a20e750b6) San Francisco, CA Remote 7w ago $171,200–$256,800 · OTE - [Other jobs at Exa (formerly Metaphor) (3)](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/exa-formerly-metaphor) ## The job description from Exa (formerly Metaphor) Posted by Exa (formerly Metaphor) on Sep 25, 2026 ### About Exa Exa is building a search engine for the AI era. Our Search API currently powers Agents, Fortune 500s, and AI labs. We're a largely SF-based team of ~150 from Harvard, MIT, Meta, Google Research, ex-founders, and dropouts alike. ### About this role Forward Deployed PM candidates are customer obsessed. Majority of your time will be spent in the field talking to customers and connecting their technical requirements to Exa product offerings. FDPMs ensure our customers’ success by building and delivering solutions that meet their needs. ### Minimum requirements - 2-8+ years of product management experience building technical or developer-facing products - Strong technical background - CS/EE degree, production engineering experience, or equivalent depth earned on the job. - Ability to communicate highly technical concepts to all kinds of audiences including the latest AI developments - Focus on driving outcomes, not just technical milestones - Ability to navigate complex customer/technical scenarios and come up with creative solutions - **Preferred:** Early startup or founding experience + technical PM experience ### Key responsibilities ### Customer Journey - Engage directly with customers from fast-moving startups to large enterprises, to identify use cases and convert interest into long-term usage and expansion - Help our sales team define + propose tailored solutions and proof-of-value demos that demonstrate Exa’s value - Help GTM team appropriately price our products in custom engagements - Act as a trusted technical advisor to customers, often interfacing with executive audience members and engineers alike ### Product Roadmap - Identify common themes and high leverage feature requests across customers - Drive execution of product enablement Exa is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related conditions, criminal histories consistent with applicable law, or any other basis protected by applicable law. [View posting at Exa (formerly Metaphor)](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/exa/521540d5-697e-4020-aa83-cd2f60e144a2/application) ## About Exa (formerly Metaphor) Search engine API built for LLMs and AI agents. Crawls and indexes the web with semantic embeddings, sold as API to thousands of developers. Series B · 50–100 people ## Similar jobs [BetterUp](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/betterup) ### [Staff Product Manager, Forward Deployment](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/5fba1ee621bbcb82) Austin, TX · New York, NY · +1 more Hybrid 2w ago $180,000–$250,000 [Chalk](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/chalk) ### [Forward Deployed Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/b4e356b364ebc5fc) San Francisco, CA On-site 2mo ago $180,000–$250,000 [Emanate](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/emanate) ### [Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/4ecbbd856813e7d7) San Francisco, CA On-site 4mo ago Pay not posted [Lightfield](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/lightfield) ### [Deployment Strategist](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/99e691095b205253) San Francisco, CA Hybrid 2w ago $170,000–$250,000 [Seekr](https://nextmove.md/fde/companies/seekr) ### [Deployment Strategist ](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs/105d5ad33f153b39) Austin, TX · Menlo Park, CA · +1 more Hybrid 2mo ago $180,000–$235,000 - [Compare US FDE salary ranges](https://nextmove.md/fde/salary) - [Similar jobs in SF Bay Area](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?region=sf-bay-area) - [Similar jobs that plan what the customer deploys first](https://nextmove.md/fde/jobs?role=strategist) Hiring at Exa (formerly Metaphor) and want this page changed or removed? Email info@nextmove.md and we take it down. Employer postings · [How we read postings](https://nextmove.md/fde/method)