Deployment Strategist

Databricks

About The Position

The FDE (Forward Deployed Engineering) team is a new, strategic initiative sponsored from the CEO and Founders down. Our mission is to win C-suite-sponsored, high-value AI opportunities by selling and delivering outcomes, not just a platform. You will be part of the founding team, embedded with our most strategic customers from the very first sales call, all the way through to a production-ready solution. You will be the "product manager" for the customer's problem, responsible for the "why" and "what," while our FDEs (Engineers) will be your partners responsible for the "how." As a Deployment Strategist (DS), you are the critical bridge between a customer's multi-million dollar business problem and Databricks' technical solution. You are a "product manager for the field," owning the entire non-technical lifecycle of an FDE engagement. You will partner with our Account Executives to build C-suite trust, perform deep discovery to map the customer's political and technical landscape, and, most importantly, scope the value. You will define the Minimum Viable Product for a pilot, write the PRD that guides the engineering team, and manage the project to a successful landing. This role requires a rare mix of C-suite gravitas, deep product-style thinking, and a hands-on, "get it done" execution mindset.

Requirements

A "Trusted Advisor" with C-suite gravitas and superb communication skills. You are opinionated, humble, and can build rapport and drive decisions in days, not weeks.
A "Product Thinker" and "Systems Thinker" who can perform a SWOT analysis, understand a competitive landscape, and define "what" to build and "why."
An "Execution Driver" with a "Hands-On" mentality. You are relentless, an expert at escalation, and willing to do the unglamorous work to get the project done.
2+ years as a Deployment Strategist OR 2+ years at a high-growth startup in a "builder" or "founder" capacity. (Alternatively: 5+ years in a senior, client-facing "product" or "delivery" role at a top-tier tech company or consultancy).
Demonstrated experience in value-based scoping (TCO/ROI), managing agile software projects, writing PRDs, and the ability/interest to travel up to 50%.

Responsibilities

Partner with Sales to perform deep discovery, map the customer's organization, quantify the business value ($10M+ problems), and define the pilot (MVP, success criteria, timeline).
Act as the "CEO" of the project by authoring the PRD, prioritizing the engineering backlog, relentlessly managing scope, and acting as the primary hands-on QA tester.
Drive the FDE build team via an agile process, manage all stakeholder communications from the C-suite to individual engineers, and act as the "escalation manager" to unblock all technical or political issues.
Own the "Day 0" launch, manage the war room, and drive the solution from launch to full adoption by capturing user feedback, iterating, and proving the defined business value.
Scope the ongoing maintenance plan, create customer documentation/training, and leverage your trusted advisor status to identify the next high-value FDE engagement.