Forward Deployed Engineer — Tenex

davidjoseph-co; New York (NY); On-site; USD 240,000 - 600,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

HSA

Commuter Benefits

Life insurance

Long-term disability

Paid time off

Job summary

Tenex is seeking a Forward Deployed Engineer in New York City. You will design, build, and maintain modern web and agentic applications for Fortune 500 clients, owning technical initiatives end-to-end from architecture through production delivery.

The role requires 3+ years of software engineering with strong client-facing skills, and frequent travel to client sites. Expect a competitive base plus uncapped quarterly variable, with equity potential.

Qualifications

• Client-facing experience required.
• Ability to work with ambiguity and autonomous decision-making.
• Experience delivering software solutions directly for Fortune 500 clients.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain modern web and agentic applications for Fortune 500 clients.
• Own technical initiatives end-to-end—from architecture through production delivery.
• Operate with high autonomy in ambiguous, fast-moving client environments.
• Present technical work and architecture to clients in a clear, consultative way.
• Travel to client sites roughly once a month to work in person with stakeholders.

Skills

Client-facing experience

Autonomy

Fast-paced environments

Job description

Tenex — Forward Deployed Engineer

Type: Full-time | On-site | New York City, NY Compensation: $240,000–$600,000 (guaranteed base + uncapped quarterly variable) + competitive equity Hiring count: 1 Visa sponsorship: H-1B (per structured Job Details). Outreach template additionally mentions TN support — lower-priority source; confirm with client before relying on TN. Reports to: One of three engineering managers

About Tenex

Tenex embeds small "pod" teams of strategists and engineers directly into Fortune 500 operations to help enterprises become AI-native. Anthropic and OpenAI are formal partners and Tenex sits with their Applied AI teams on live client problems; Vercel, Lovable, and other leading AI companies also partner. Tenex was the partner Anthropic named for the Claude for Small Business launch, delivering AI‑fluency training across 10 US cities.

Founded: 2025 (~1 year ago) | Team size: ~40 (grew from 5 in a year; ~80 expected by end of quarter, 150–200 by year's end) | Total funding: Fully bootstrapped, no outside fundingIndustry: AI ConsultingWebsite: tenex.coOffice: New York City, NY

Founding team includes a founder with a prior successful company. Beyond consulting, Tenex is exploring client joint ventures and its own go‑to‑market IP products.

Why Candidates Should Join

• Frontier‑lab proximity: Formal partner to two top frontier AI labs; you work alongside their Applied AI teams on real Fortune 500 problems.
• Steep growth, real ownership: Pods own the domain end-to-end; most describe it as the steepest growth of their careers.
• Uncapped upside: Guaranteed base plus uncapped quarterly variable tied directly to shipped output; strong performers have reportedly cleared $60–80K in a single quarter on top of base (per outreach template — treat the specific figure as indicative, not confirmed).

The Role

Forward Deployed Engineers make the strategists' bets real: genuine client‑facing software engineers who design, develop, and maintain modern web and agentic applications embedded with Fortune 500 clients.

What You'll Be Doing

• Design, build, and maintain modern web and agentic applications directly for Fortune 500 clients
• Own technical initiatives end-to-end, from architecture through production delivery
• Operate with high autonomy in ambiguous, fast‑moving client environments
• Present technical work and architecture directly to clients in a clear, consultative way
• Travel to client sites roughly once a month to work in person with stakeholders

Role context / bar: 3+ years professional software engineering, sweet spot 3–8 years, no hard cap. Not a mandated always‑on culture, but not a standard 40‑hour week — if a deliverable isn't done by Friday, the expectation is to grind through the weekend to land it. Tenex also considers intact teams of 2–5 people as a unit, run through the same bar and offered together.

Tech stack: Modern web + agentic application development; agentic coding tools used in daily workflow.

Requirements

• 3-8+ years software engineering
• Client‑facing experience required
• High autonomy, ambiguous environments
• NYC 5 days in‑person + monthly client travel
• Guaranteed base + uncapped variable

Green Flags

• Genuine client‑facing or customer‑facing experience where the candidate owned the relationship and delivered real outcomes
• Founder, co‑founder, or CTO background at a startup, especially someone who built a solo AI or software development practice, even without major commercial traction
• Track record of shipping fast and independently, without waiting to be told what's next
• Comfortable presenting technical architecture in a clear, consultative, non‑technical‑friendly way
• Background at teams inside larger companies known for strong engineering bars

Red Flags

• Career built entirely at large, brand‑name organizations with traditional, slower‑moving software stacks (large banks, telecom, defense contractors)
• Held a "Forward Deployed Engineer" title elsewhere without functioning as a genuine hands‑on engineer
• Master's degree in computer science with no compensating signal of shipped, independent work
• Comfortable working a standard 40‑hour week without urgency; not a fit for a role where deliverables sometimes require working through a weekend
• No demonstrated experience operating independently in ambiguous, fast‑changing environments

Role Details

Salary $240,000–$600,000 (guaranteed base + uncapped quarterly variable) EquityCompetitive equity; may become available to employees in the future On‑site policyNYC, 5 days/week in person + ~monthly client‑site travel Visa sponsorshipH-1B (Job Details); TN mentioned in outreach only — confirm Employment typeFull‑time LocationNew York City, NY

Benefits & perks:

Guaranteed base + uncapped quarterly variable tied to output; comprehensive medical (PPO and HSA options), dental, vision; HSA, Healthcare FSA, Commuter Benefits; 100% employer‑paid life insurance and AD&D; 100% employer‑paid long‑term disability; Responsible PTO.