Forward Deployed Engineering Build Manager

ServiceNow•San Diego, CA

About The Position

Team Bio: ServiceNow’s Applied AI Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) team is where bold ideas meet transformative action. We partner with our most strategic customers to shape the future of enterprise AI. Together, we identify high-value opportunities, accelerate business outcomes, and build reusable AI-native solutions that advance the Now AI Platform. Our mission: We partner deeply with our customers to build intelligent, scalable AI solutions that solve their most mission-critical challenges. By embedding in real-world complexity, we deliver fast, iterate with purpose, and transform every success into reusable patterns that accelerate transformation across the Now Platform and the broader enterprise. Why This Role Matters: Enterprise leaders aren’t just experimenting with AI—they’re demanding outcomes. The next wave of adoption will be led by those who can move fast, deliver measurable value, and transform 1-off wins into repeatable success. As a FDE Build Manager, you operate on the frontlines of transformation. You will support ServiceNow’s cross-functional Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) teams in building and delivering intelligent, scalable AI solutions that solve our customers’ most mission-critical challenges. You'll work in a fast-paced environment as our FDE team partners with key strategic customers to accelerate time to value. You will provide a proactive, strategic perspective, manage customer relationships, and drive tactical execution from initial conception through FDE build development, delivery, and successful completion. Who You Are: You are a dynamic and innovative problem-solver who thrives in complex, fast-paced environments. You have a strong analytical mindset while still keeping focus on the bigger picture. You have a background managing SDLC processes while keeping a customer-first mentality. You have a passion for AI and scaling innovation. You excel at transforming ambiguity into clarity and have hands on experience driving projects/programs end to end.

Requirements

10+ years of project/program management experience in mid/large size software development companies
A solid understanding of SDLC and release management practices in cloud-based SaaS product organizations
Prior work delivering AI or intelligent workflow solutions at scale, with proven success in deploying AI solutions that delivered tangible customer impact
Familiarity with AI governance, compliance, and enterprise security practices

Nice To Haves

Demonstrated competence in key AI/ML software engineering program management best practices: program planning, schedule construction and management; risk assessment & mitigation, dependency management, change management, and predictive metrics
Outstanding collaboration and communication skills - clearly communicate changes, requests, and deadlines to the teams and risks, status, progress, and decisions to a variety of audiences including executives
Passion for working with people in technical and innovative environments, with the ability to work well with many different types of personalities in various functions
Strong leadership and relationship building skills to influence and motivate without authority - masterful in the art of bringing people together
Strong facilitation skills to lead/drive a variety of build events, with a high regard for quality, drive for continuous improvement across the organization, and ability to keep the big picture in view
Experience deploying AI solutions to production and skilled at identifying waste/delays in AI end-to-end development, deployment, and release processes
Exceptional team building and team management skills, including interpersonal skills, conflict resolution, and negotiation
Experience in leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving

Responsibilities

Work seamlessly with software engineers, product managers, product designers, and customers, to deliver intelligent systems that address mission-critical challenges using AI
Collaborate directly with customers to co-innovate AI solutions tailored to their needs, acting as the first point of contact or escalation
Develop trusted relationships with key internal and external technology leaders and stakeholders to drive focus on the strategic build objectives and optimize build delivery - this includes supporting and holding resources accountable for their responsibilities within the build
Drive large scale, cross-functional, high visibility AI software development builds on condensed timelines
Organize complex, ambiguous problems into prioritized milestones, deliverables, and success criteria for your builds, translating business objectives into execution strategy (tactical and strategic)
Anticipate and remove obstacles that slow down or prevent builds from delivering on objectives, especially on the AI/ML deployment front
Help manage risks, dependencies and escalate impediments, as well as releases and navigating AI release requirements
Drive process improvements and create documentation to promote best practices using automation to replace repeatable, operational tasks
Coordinate day to day activities required to deliver a great solution on time, as well as create transparency through reports, dashboards, and status updates
Seek to continuously grow by proactively seeking and embracing constructive feedback, as well as provide feedback to colleagues to encourage an open and collaborative culture