Senior Forward Deployed Engineer

Planetlabs; Town of Belgium (WI); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Paid time off

Home office reimbursement

Phone & Internet reimbursement

Learning stipend

Volunteer PTO

Wellness program

Job summary

Planet is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to develop transformative solutions for global defense and security customers. You will be a hands-on contributor within a collaborative team, tackling complex, mission-critical challenges from design to delivery.

This is a full‑time, remote position based in the Netherlands or Belgium with up to 50% onsite time with customers. If you are near an office, you may work from there 3 days a week.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of relevant software engineering experience.
• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field.
• Experience with geospatial software development and concepts (Rasterio, Fiona, Shapely, OpenLayers, GDAL).
• AWS or GCP experience.
• Proficiency in Python.
• Solid knowledge of software engineering best practices, code reviews, source control, and testing.
• Excellent customer engagement skills and ability to explain complex technical concepts.

Responsibilities

• Own the full development lifecycle from design to delivery.
• Design and build robust full‑stack software including cloud infrastructure and CI/CD pipelines.
• Collaborate with customers to translate requirements into actionable technical specs.
• Identify reusable patterns to inform platform development.
• Mentor engineers and contribute to code reviews.

Skills

Python

Geospatial development

AWS/GCP

Customer engagement

Fast iteration

Security clearance eligible

Education

Bachelor’s Degree

Tools

Rasterio

Fiona

OpenLayers

GDAL

Job description

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloud-based platform to authoritative figures in commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors. We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planet's data to develop new technologies, drive revenue, power research, and solve our world’s toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a people‑centric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth. Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

About the Role:

We are seeking a Senior Software Engineer to help develop transformative solutions for our most strategic accounts, starting with our Global Defense and Security customers. In this role, you will work directly with key partners, acting as a senior technical contributor and hands‑on builder within a collaborative engineering team. Your mission will be to tackle complex, mission‑critical customer challenges by building high‑impact software solutions.

You will have a high degree of autonomy to design and build what is needed, turning ambiguous requirements into functional and reliable software. Your work will directly contribute to delivering on critical customer commitments and will help inform future product development. This role is ideal for an individual contributor who thrives in dynamic environments and enjoys taking ownership of complex technical problems from design to delivery.

This is a full‑time, remote position based in the Netherlands or Belgium with up to 50% time onsite with the customer. If located near the office, you are expected to work from that office 3 days per week.

Impact You’ll Own:

• Contribute to the full development lifecycle: from discovery and decomposition to designing, building, and deploying bespoke solutions for customer challenges.
• Design and develop robust, full‑stack software, including front‑end, back‑end, data integration, cloud infrastructure (e.g., AWS), and CI/CD pipelines.
• Work directly with customers to understand their operational challenges and translate them into clear technical requirements.
• Identify reusable patterns in customer solutions to inform broader platform development.
• Leverage the latest AI tooling and an AI‑first mindset to drive rapid iteration, deliver value quickly, and adapt to evolving requirements with a bias for action.
• Mentor other engineers, contribute to code reviews, and help foster a collaborative team environment.
• Deliver critical commitments on time, understanding their direct impact on customer relationships and business objectives.

What You Bring:

• 6+ years of relevant work experience in software engineering or in an equivalent technical role.
• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field.
• Experience with geospatial software development and concepts (e.g., Rasterio, Fiona, Shapely, OpenLayers, GDAL).
• AWS or GCP experience.
• Proficiency in Python.
• Excellent knowledge of software engineering best practices, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, and testing methodologies.
• Excellent customer engagement skills, with the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.
• Experience with fast, iterative development cycles and an ability to adapt to shifting requirements.
• Willingness to travel 30-50% to customer sites within the region.
• Have the ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.

What Makes You Stand Out:

• Experience with JavaScript, Java, Go or C#

Application Deadline:

July 8, 2026 by 11:59p / 23:59 CET (Central European Time)

Benefits While Working at Planet:

• Paid time off including vacation, holidays and company‑wide days off
• Employee Wellness Program
• Home Office Reimbursement
• Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement
• Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning
• Equity
• Volunteering Paid Time Off

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

EEO statement:

Planet is committed to building a community where everyone belongs and we invite people from all backgrounds to apply. Planet is an equal opportunity employer, and committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Know Your Rights.