Founding Forward-Deployed Engineering Lead

Invoca; Los Angeles (CA); Hybrid; USD 200,000 - 275,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

Equity / Stock options

401(k) match

Paid time off

Sabbatical after 7 years

Professional development reimbursement

Job summary

Invoca is seeking a Founding Head of Forward Deployed Engineering to build and lead a team of engineers embedded in our Go-to-Market motion. You will own the function that turns technical credibility into closed deals and successful onboardings.

This player-coach role involves hiring, coaching, and prioritizing deals, guiding when to deploy engineering resources, and serving as the escalation point on high-stakes engagements while shaping the team’s growth and impact.

Qualifications

• Experience leading customer-facing technical teams (Forward Deployed Engineering, Solutions Engineering, or similar).
• People management experience or clear leadership in a technical capacity.
• Strong business judgment to prioritize deals needing engineering effort.
• Comfort working across Sales, Product, and Engineering and saying no when needed.
• Track record turning ad-hoc customer work into repeatable processes and assets.
• Excellent executive communication to convey impact to sales and leadership.

Responsibilities

• Hire, coach, and manage a team of Forward Deployed Engineers; set standards for excellence.
• Prioritize deployment across the deal pipeline and determine when dedicated technical support is warranted.
• Own escalation on strategic or high-stakes deals and implementations.
• Collaborate with Sales, Solutions Engineering, and Customer Success leadership on GTM integration.
• Define PoCs scope, debrief wins/losses, and capture reusable assets.

Skills

Forward Deployed Engineering

People management

Business judgment

Cross-functional collaboration

Executive communication

Strategic prioritization

Job description

Invoca is seeking a Founding Head of Forward Deployed Engineering to build and lead a team of engineers embedded in our Go-to-Market motion. You will own the function that turns technical credibility into closed deals and successful onboardings.

This player-coach role involves hiring, coaching, and prioritizing deals, guiding when to deploy engineering resources, and serving as the escalation point on high-stakes engagements while shaping the team’s growth and impact.