Forward Deployed Engineer Lead

conductorai; United States; On-site; USD 200,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

ConductorAI in Washington, DC area is seeking an ambitious FDE lead to bridge engineering and customer partnership. You will sit onsite with customers, diagnose needs, translate user feedback into product improvements, and shape architecture of a platform built to leverage LLMs and modern AI techniques.

As an early team member, you will own the full loop from problem to deployment, require strong communication, and help grow a small team while contributing to company strategy and culture.

Qualifications

• US citizenship required by applicable federal law and government contract obligations; we are unable to consider green card holders or sponsor visas.
• Active DoD TS or TS/SCI clearance required at time of hire; required due to the classified nature of work performed under US government contracts
• Experience in defense, intelligence, or national security environments
• 3+ years of professional software engineering or forward deployed engineering experience
• Proficiency in Python and TypeScript
• Experience working directly with end users or customers in a technical capacity
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences
• Ability to travel up to 50% domestically and OCONUS

Responsibilities

• Go onsite to customer environments to configure, optimize, and support ConductorAI software, including customizing workflows for specific customer use cases and troubleshooting the system
• Write and maintain production-quality code in Python and TypeScript within a small engineering team
• Work directly with users to gather feedback, understand workflows, and translate insights into actionable product requirements
• Debug and improve system reliability, performance, and usability based on real-world customer usage
• Build and deliver technical demonstrations to new and existing customers
• Collaborate with the product and engineering team to develop new features, with a direct line from customer need to shipped capability
• Identify opportunities to automate manual processes and improve operational efficiency at customer sites
• Help define and demonstrate what being an impactful FDE means at ConductorAI
• Help lead a small and growing team of FDEs
• As a core team member, contribute to company strategy, culture, and evolving responsibilities as we grow

Job description

Introduction

We value candidates who have significant experience with managing complexity, working independently, and are motivated by hard problems.

What We Offer

• The ability to have real impact on mission-critical workflows
• The chance to use state-of-the-art tech to solve novel problems with mission partners
• The opportunity to define your role through time as we grow
• Competitive salary and equity upside with annual merit refreshes based on impact

Position Overview

As an FDE lead, you will set the example of what being an FDE means at ConductorAI, and help to empower and lead our growing FDE team. You will sit at the intersection of engineering and customer partnership. You will be onsite with customers regularly, building trust, diagnosing needs, and translating user feedback directly into product improvements. You are still fundamentally an engineer: you will write code, debug systems, and help shape the architecture of a platform built to leverage LLMs and modern AI application techniques. But you are equally comfortable in a customer briefing room as you are in a terminal.

This role is for someone who finds it energizing to own the full loop: understand the problem, build the solution, deploy it, and watch it create value for users in real time. You should be comfortable with ambiguity, have a bias for action, and take pride in the quality and reliability of what you ship. You will work on a small, tight-knit team and will be expected to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to users and stakeholders with varying levels of technical fluency.

As an early team member, you will also help shape our culture, processes, and product direction. We expect you to measure your work by impact, not activity.

Location

Washington, DC area. Up to 50% travel domestically and OCONUS.

Key Responsibilities

• Go onsite to customer environments to configure, optimize, and support ConductorAI software, including customizing workflows for specific customer use cases and troubleshooting the system
• Write and maintain production-quality code in Python and TypeScript within a small engineering team
• Work directly with users to gather feedback, understand workflows, and translate insights into actionable product requirements
• Debug and improve system reliability, performance, and usability based on real-world customer usage
• Build and deliver technical demonstrations to new and existing customers
• Collaborate with the product and engineering team to develop new features, with a direct line from customer need to shipped capability
• Identify opportunities to automate manual processes and improve operational efficiency at customer sites
• Help define and demonstrate what being an impactful FDE means at ConductorAI
• Help lead a small and growing team of FDEs
• As a core team member, contribute to company strategy, culture, and evolving responsibilities as we grow

Qualifications

• US citizenship required by applicable federal law and government contract obligations (ITAR/EAR); we are unable to consider green card holders or sponsor visas for this role
• Active DoD TS or TS/SCI clearance required at time of hire; required due to the classified nature of work performed under US government contracts
• Experience in defense, intelligence, or national security environments
• 3+ years of professional software engineering or forward deployed engineering experience
• Proficiency in Python and TypeScript
• Experience working directly with end users or customers in a technical capacity
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences
• Comfort operating with high autonomy in ambiguous, fast-moving environments
• Experience with LLMs and modern AI application techniques
• Ability to travel up to 50% domestically and OCONUS

Desired Qualifications

• Experience at an early-stage startup or in fast-moving, ambiguous environments
• Background in system design or full-stack development
• Existing relationships with DoD or civil agency stakeholders

Compensation

The base salary range for this role is $200,000-260,000, with the opportunity for meaningful equity commensurate with a Series A stage opportunity. Starting pay will be based on qualifications, experience, and location. This range reflects base salary only and does not include equity or other compensation components.

ConductorAI is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.