Forward Deployed Data Engineer - US

Datafold; United States; Remote; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Datafold is seeking a Forward Deployed Data Engineer to own AI-automated data platform migration projects at the intersection of data engineering, AI, and project leadership. You will lead end-to-end migrations, understand client data platforms, and remove blockers to ensure timely delivery.

In this role you will use Datafold’s AI tooling, acting as a bridge between customers and engineering to deliver high-impact migrations.

Qualifications

• 3–6 years in data consulting, professional services, or a customer-facing data engineering role.
• Excellent communication skills for exec check-ins and technical sessions.
• Strong grasp of the modern data stack (dbt, Snowflake, Databricks, orchestration).
• Extreme ownership: identify, surface, and fix problems and rally the team.
• AI power user: use AI daily and improve usage over time.
• Exposure to legacy data stack and data migration projects is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own 1–4 concurrent migration projects end-to-end: scoping, planning, execution, and handoff.
• Be the primary customer contact: weekly check-ins, manage expectations, raise risks early.
• Configure Datafold’s Migration Agent and oversee migration execution.
• Partner with Datafold’s engineering team to execute migrations.
• Help refine and scale delivery playbooks as the team grows.

Skills

Data engineering

Client communication

dbt

Snowflake

Databricks

Orchestration

AI fluency

Migration experience

Ownership

Tools

dbt

Snowflake

Databricks

Orchestration tools

Job description

About Datafold

Datafold is the data engineering automation platform. A major part of our business is delivering large-scale data engineering projects such as data platform migrations with AI, at fixed price and guaranteed timeline. We are not a typical services provider or SI - we are a venture-backed software company that reimagined automation from the ground up and has been delivering projects up to 6x faster than alternatives.

We partner heavily with leading data platforms, including Databricks and Snowflake, to deliver large-scale complex migrations.

About the Role

Datafold is hiring a Forward Deployed Data Engineer to own the delivery of our AI-automated data platform migration projects. This is a high-ownership, customer-facing role at the intersection of data engineering, AI, and project leadership.

As a Forward Deployed Data Engineer leveraging Datafold’s AI technology, you will own migration projects end-to-end, gain deep understanding of the customer’s data platform, manage execution of the project, and remove any blockers on the way for a timely migration delivery.

Using our proprietary AI tooling to plan and deliver the migration projects, you will be doing the work equivalent to a full team of consultants.

What You’ll Do

• Own 1-4 concurrent migration projects end-to-end: scoping, planning, execution, and customer handoff

• Be the primary customer contact: run weekly check-ins, manage stakeholder expectations, and elevate risks early before they compound

• Configure Datafold’s Migration Agent and oversee the migration execution

• Partner with Datafold’s engineering team to execute migrations

• Help refine and scale our product and delivery playbook as the team grows

What We’re Looking For

• 3-6 years in data consulting, professional services, or a customer-facing data engineering role

• Excellent communication skills - equally comfortable in an exec check-in and a technical design session

• Strong grasp of the modern data stack: dbt, Snowflake, Databricks, orchestration tools, and major patterns (stored procedures, streaming, incremental processing)

• Extreme ownership mentality - you identify, surface, and fix problems and rally the team to help without being told

• AI power user - using AI every day and always learning and improving on how to use it more effectively

• Exposure to legacy data stack and patterns (ETL, stored procedures, etc.) and data platform migration projects is a strong plus

Datafold is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, military status, or any other protected characteristic. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. We strive to create an inclusive and diverse work environment where all employees are valued and unique perspectives are respected and celebrated.