Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE)

Zoho; India; On-site; INR 14,409,000 - 18,252,000; Full time

Job summary

Innover seeks a Forward Deployed Engineer to embed with enterprise clients, sit close to their leadership, and turn ambiguous business problems into production-grade software swiftly.

You will own outcomes from architecture through build, test, deployment, and production support, employing AI-native workflows and guardrails to compress delivery timelines while ensuring quality.

Qualifications

• 12+ years designing and shipping scalable SaaS / B2B platforms end to end, with a track record of owning technical direction.
• Deep, hands-on expertise across the stack: Node.js, React / Next.js, TypeScript, and Python.
• Cloud-native delivery on AWS (Lambda, ECS/EC2, S3, RDS, API Gateway), with Docker, Kubernetes, and CI/CD.
• Strong data and architecture chops: PostgreSQL, DynamoDB, Redis/SQL; microservices, event-driven and distributed systems, multi-tenant design.
• Full SDLC ownership — architecture, build, test, deploy, and production support — not just feature work.

Responsibilities

• Embed with the client and work alongside their engineering, product, and executive teams; become a trusted technical partner.
• Own the full lifecycle from architecture through deployment and production support — ship features into the client environment.
• Build AI-native capabilities using agentic coding tools and guardrails to accelerate delivery while maintaining quality.
• Translate business requirements into scalable software solutions, and clearly communicate progress, risks and tradeoffs to stakeholders.
• Set architectural patterns and code-quality standards; mentor engineers within delivery pods.
• Bridge to delivery by decomposing work into reusable API-driven modules that the teams can build against.

Skills

Full-stack development

Architectural leadership

Client-facing communication

AI-native engineering

Distributed systems

Tools

AWS

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD

Job description

At Innover, we endeavor to see our clients become connected, insight-driven businesses. Our integrated Digital Experiences, Data & Insights and Digital Operations studios help clients embrace digital transformation and drive unique outstanding experiences that apply to the entire customer lifecycle. Our connected studios work in tandem to reimagine the convergence of innovation, technology, people, and business agility to deliver impressive returns on investments. We help organizations capitalize on current trends and game-changing technologies molding them into future-ready enterprises.

Take a look at how each of our studios represents deep pockets of expertise and delivers on the promise of data-driven, connected enterprises.

Experience Required

12+ years of experience

Job Description

A Forward Deployed Engineer is thesharp end of Innover's delivery. You embed directly with an enterprise client,sit close to their product and technology leadership, and turn ambiguousbusiness problems into working, production-grade software fast. You ownoutcomes rather than tickets: architecture through build, test, deployment, andproduction support.

What sets this role apart is howyou build. Our FDEs are fluent, daily practitioners of AI-native engineering —using agentic coding tools and disciplined guardrails to compress deliverytimelines without sacrificing quality. You are the forward point that connectsthe client to Innover's broader delivery pods, translating in both directionsso the right thing gets built and shipped.

What you'll do

• Embedwith the client. Workalongside the client's engineering, product, and executive teams; understandtheir domain, their systems, and their constraints; and become a trustedtechnical partner.


• Ownthe full lifecycle. Takefeatures from architecture and design through implementation, testing,deployment, and production support — shipping into the client's environment.


• BuildAI-native. UseClaude Code, Cursor, and agentic workflows as core tools in daily development;design the conventions and guardrails that keep an AI-augmented codebase fast,maintainable, and safe.


• Translatebusiness into software. Convertbusiness requirements into technical solutions, scope and de-risk deliveryunder ambiguity, and communicate progress, risk, and tradeoffs to non-technicaland executive stakeholders.


• Setthe standard. Definearchitecture patterns and code-quality standards on the engagement, reviewdesigns, and mentor engineers — including Innover's delivery pods that supportthe account.


• Bridgeto delivery. Connectthe client to the wider Innover team, decomposing work into clear, reusable,API-driven modules that pods can build against.

What you'll bring

• 12+years designing and shipping scalable SaaS / B2B platforms end to end, with atrack record of owning technical direction.


• Deep,hands-on expertise across the stack: Node.js, React / Next.js, TypeScript, and Python.


• Cloud-nativedelivery on AWS (Lambda,ECS/EC2, S3, RDS, API Gateway), with Docker, Kubernetes, and CI/CD.


• Strongdata and architecture chops: PostgreSQL, DynamoDB, Redis/SQL; microservices, event-driven anddistributed systems, multi-tenant design.


• FullSDLC ownership — architecture,build, test, deploy, and production support — not just feature work.

AI-native engineering (non-negotiable)

This is the differentiator. Wewant engineers who genuinely build this way today, not who list the tools:

• Dailyproduction use of agentic coding tools (Claude Code, Cursor, and similar) as core to the workflow.


• Experienceauthoring project conventions and guardrails (e.g. CLAUDE.md, structured prompts) that curb LLM failuremodes — hallucinated APIs, type-system bypasses, scope creep.


• AI-augmentedCI/CD: automated codereview, test generation, and security analysis — with a habit of measuring theeffect on speed and defect rates before scaling adoption.


• Judgmenton tooling: matchingmodels to task type on cost and capability, and coaching engineers of varyingAI fluency. RAG / agentic patterns are a plus.

Client-facing strength

• Comfortablepartnering directly with CTOs, product leaders, and executives; can hold theroom and earn trust.


• Provenability to operate under ambiguity and drive to an outcome without afully-specified brief.


• Basedin the US and authorized to work in the US.

Nice to have

• Domaindepth in a client vertical (e.g. financial services, real estate,manufacturing, logistics).


• Architecture-reviewor design-standards leadership at scale (e.g. chairing an Architecture ReviewBoard).


• Serverless-firstdesign, observability (Datadog, CloudWatch, OpenTelemetry), Terraform/IaC, andsecurity fluency (OAuth2/OIDC, SOC 2, RLS, KMS/IAM).


• Patents,open-source, or shipped side projects that show you build with these tools forreal.