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NEXTMOVEFDE careers · United States
Zendesk

Forward Deployed Engineer

AI summary of the role

This Forward Deployed Engineer role is a hybrid of software engineer and strategic consultant, embedded with Zendesk's most strategic customers to solve high-stakes technical blockers.

What you’ll do

  • Lead complex end-to-end deployments of Zendesk’s AI Agents and LLM-powered workflows, owning discovery, technical scoping, system design, and production rollout.
  • Remove technical blockers and act as the final line of defense for complex technical escalations outside standard Support or Professional Services.
  • Work directly with strategic clients to design and code custom integrations and agents, writing critical code and configuring RAG architectures.
  • Bridge the gap between customer IT teams and Zendesk’s core Product/Engineering teams, turning customer friction into product roadmap features.

What you’ll bring

  • 5+ years of experience writing production-grade code.
  • Proficiency in Python (for AI/Data) and JavaScript/TypeScript (for frontend/integrations).
  • Deep understanding of the LLM ecosystem, including model performance evaluation, context window management, and guardrails for enterprise-grade AI.
  • Comfortable navigating the entire stack from React-based UIs to REST/GraphQL APIs, cloud infrastructure (AWS), and Metaflow.

Technologies

Python · JavaScript · TypeScript · Ruby · Java · React · REST · GraphQL · AWS · Metaflow · RAG · LLM

About Zendesk

AI-first customer and employee service platform unifying support channels, automation, knowledge, analytics, and contact-center workflows for enterprises and SMBs.

Acquired · 5000+ people

Source and classification

Production engineering · Evidence for this classification:

Job Description Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) – AI & Solutions As a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), you are part of an elite technical hybrid—part software engineer, part strategic consultant. You don't just sell the dream; you build the reality. You will be embedded with our most strategic customers to solve their most complex, high-stakes technical blockers. Whether it’s architecting a multi-layered AI agent, building custom data pipelines for Zendesk, or integrating our AI capabilities into a legacy tech stack, you are the "boots on the ground" builder who ensures our technology delivers measurable ROI. What You’ll Do Drive Outcomes and own the "Last Mile" of AI: Lead complex end-to-end deployments of Zendesk’s AI Agents and LLM-powered workflows. You own the discovery, technical scoping, system design, and production rollout. Troubleshoot the "Unsolvable": Remove technical
More from the job description

Job Description Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) – AI & Solutions As a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), you are part of an elite technical hybrid—part software engineer, part strategic consultant. You don't just sell the dream; you build the reality. You will be embedded with our most strategic customers to solve their most complex, high-stakes technical blockers. Whether it’s architecting a multi-layered AI agent, building custom data pipelines for Zendesk, or integrating our AI capabilities into a legacy tech stack, you are the "boots on the ground" builder who ensures our technology delivers measurable ROI. What You’ll Do Drive Outcomes and own the "Last Mile" of AI: Lead complex end-to-end deployments of Zendesk’s AI Agents and LLM-powered workflows. You own the discovery, technical scoping, system design, and production rollout. Troubleshoot the "Unsolvable": Remove technical blockers and act as the final line of defense for complex technical escalations that fall outside the scope of standard Support or Professional Services. Build Bespoke Agentic Solutions: Work directly with strategic clients to design and code custom integrations and agents. You will personally write critical code, configure RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) architectures, and ensure seamless integration with legacy tech stacks. Bridge the Gap: Work between the customer’s IT team and Zendesk’ [... source excerpt omitted ...] s. You are the field's voice, turning customer friction into product roadmap features. What You Bring The "Founder" Mentality: You thrive in ambiguity. You can walk into a messy customer environment, map their undocumented APIs, and find a path to victory without a playbook. Engineering Rigor: 5+ years of experience writing production-grade code. Proficiency in Python (for AI/Data) and JavaScript/TypeScript (for frontend/integrations) is required. Familiarity with Ruby or Java (Zendesk’s core) is a plus. Full-Stack Mindset: Comfortable navigating the entire stack—from React-based UIs to REST/GraphQL APIs, cloud infrastructure (AWS) and Metaflow AI Fluency: Deep understanding [... source excerpt omitted ...] indows, and implement guardrails for enterprise-grade AI. Communication: Ability to explain complex architectural trade-offs to a CTO while simultaneously pair-programming with a customer’s lead dev. Preferred Qualifications Experience with Zendesk and AI Agents Background in FDE, Professional Services or Technical Account Management implementing complex systems Ability to travel 25-50% of the time, as needed to customer sites The US annualized OTE (On Target Earnings) range for this position is $200,000.00-$300,000.00 with a pay mix of 80/20 (base/commission). This position may also be eligible for bonus, benefits, or related incentives. While this range reflects the minim

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