VP of Customer Engineering

Sayari

2h

About The Position

Sayari is a venture-backed and founder-led global corporate data provider and commercial intelligence platform that serves financial institutions, legal and advisory service providers, multinationals, journalists, and governments. Thousands of analysts and investigators in over 30 countries rely on our products to safely conduct cross-border trade, research front-page news stories, confidently enter new markets, and prevent financial crimes such as corruption and money laundering. Our company culture is defined by a dedication to our mission of using open data to prevent illicit commercial and financial activity, a passion for finding novel approaches to complex problems, and an understanding that diverse perspectives create optimal outcomes. We embrace cross-team collaboration, encourage training and learning opportunities, and reward initiative and innovation. If you like working with supportive, high-performing, and curious teams, Sayari is the place for you. The VP of Customer Engineering will build and lead the Customer Engineering function at Sayari, unifying forward-deployed engineers, delivery consultants, solutions consultants, delivery analysts, the EDD team, the Tradecraft function, and customer health capability under a single operating model. This role owns the end-to-end technical customer experience from the first proof-of-value through multi-year production deployment and partners with the Tradecraft Principal to build the institutional knowledge engine. The VP will report to the COO and sit at the leadership table, carrying direct accountability for an organization spanning Government and Commercial business units, with the mandate to create a unified customer-facing function that has clear delineation between commercial accountability and value delivery accountability. This is a building role, bringing together talented people into a cohesive team with clear identity, shared metrics, and a unified operating cadence, and reshaping the customer success function into an embedded capability focused on customer health and adoption intelligence. The role also involves partnering with the Tradecraft Principal to connect GTM expertise back to Product, R&D, and Marketing.

Requirements

• 15+ years of professional experience in technical delivery, professional services, or customer engineering, with at least 7–10 years in a senior leadership role overseeing multi-disciplinary teams.
• Proven track record of managing and scaling organizations of 40+ headcount, including Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs), Solutions Consultants, and Technical Analysts.
• Demonstrated success acting as a "Connector/Translator" who bridges the gap between technical constraints and commercial goals, making complex engineering concepts legible to non-technical stakeholders.
• Deep experience navigating the distinct procurement cycles and compliance needs of both Government agencies and Global Enterprise customers.
• Extensive experience managing Services P&Ls, with a focus on billable utilization and maintaining a disciplined cost of services between 2–6% of revenue.
• Expertise in "Knowledge Codification"—the ability to transform individual "Tradecraft" and key-person dependencies into institutional capability through structured frameworks and automated training.
• Significant experience in B2B SaaS or Data Intelligence, specifically in environments where the product is a platform and value is unlocked through expert application and integration.
• Proven ability to drive "Time-to-Value Compression," designing end-to-end technical engagement lifecycles from initial proof-of-value to multi-year production deployments.
• Possess "Builder Energy" and a "Starter" orientation, with a history of prototyping new organizational structures and operating models in ambiguous, high-growth settings.
• Strong technical credibility and depth, allowing you to partner effectively with engineers to identify "bad scopes" and ensure technical projects remain high-margin.
• A consistent record of attracting and retaining top-quartile talent, maintaining low voluntary turnover (<15%), and building clear career architectures for technical sub-functions.
• High-stakes communication skills, with the ability to earn trust during deep-dives with engineers and in strategic presentations to the Board of Directors.

Responsibilities

• Architect and operate the end-to-end technical engagement lifecycle: solution design, proof-of-value, implementation, onboarding, optimization, and ongoing analytical and engineering support.
• Establish engagement models that flex between Government and Commercial customer motions, respecting the distinct cadences, compliance requirements, clearance dynamics, and stakeholder environments of each.
• Build the handoff protocols between sales/AMs and Customer Engineering that eliminate the seams customers currently feel. AMs own the commercial relationship. Customer Engineering owns value delivery and customer health.
• Own the customer health function. Build the adoption monitoring, health scoring, and proactive intervention capabilities that identify risk and opportunity before they surface in renewal conversations.
• Design the future-state CS capability for a world where 80% of process and information flow is automated. Hire for domain understanding combined with technical aptitude. Automate the drudgery. Focus the humans on judgment, creative problem-solving, and strategic relationship intervention.
• Ensure customer health insights flow directly to AMs for commercial action and to Product for roadmap prioritization. Customer Engineering is the organization's best source of truth on how customers actually use the product.
• Own the codification and scaling of Sayari's analytical tradecraft. Build the frameworks, training programs, and documentation that transform individual expertise into institutional capability.
• Design and maintain the analyst development curriculum. Define what great analytical work looks like at Sayari and build the progression pathway from junior analyst to senior domain expert.
• Partner with Product and R&D on the strategic initiative to leverage codified domain expertise for AI model training. The tradecraft library is both a delivery asset and a data asset.
• Reduce key-person dependency systematically. The goal is that any customer engagement can be staffed from a pool of capable practitioners, not dependent on specific individuals.
• Lead a team spanning FDEs, delivery consultants, solutions consultants, delivery analysts, the EDD team, the Tradecraft Principals, and customer health managers across multiple geographies and customer segments.
• Define the career architecture for each sub-function. Create clear leveling, progression criteria, and development pathways that retain high performers and build bench depth. Solutions Consultants in particular need a clear third career track alongside sales and pure pre-sales: one that leads toward tradecraft specialization and domain depth.
• Build a resource allocation model that matches capability to customer need across the portfolio. Use demand-based capacity modeling (opportunity volume, hours per engagement, subject matter expertise requirements) to rationalize staffing and deployment.
• Own the services revenue delivery number. Manage the pipeline, forecasting, and execution of billable engagements. Resolve the FDE billability model (recalibrated from 80% assumption to 40-60% reality) and establish FDE-specific SKUs.
• Partner with sales leadership on scoping, pricing, and SOW construction. Ensure scoping accuracy protects both margin and customer satisfaction.
• Drive expansion signals back to AMs. The Customer Engineering team should be the earliest and most credible indicator of where accounts are ready to grow.
• Serve as the technical voice in strategic deal pursuits. Deploy solutions resources to the highest-probability, highest-value opportunities. Feed account health intelligence to AMs for commercial action.
• Build the feedback loop that translates field patterns into product investment priorities. Own the voice of technical customer need. Partner on the AI/tradecraft knowledge codification initiative.
• Manage the services P&L with discipline. Forecast accurately. Staff responsibly. Maintain cost of services within the 2-6% of revenue target.
• Partner on the organizational transition: role mapping, leveling alignment, communication, and change management as teams consolidate under the new structure.

Benefits

• 100% fully paid medical, vision, and dental for employees and their dependents
• Generous time off; we observe all US federal holidays, close our office for a winter break (12/24-12/31), in addition to granting 18 PTO days and 10 sick days
• Outstanding compensation package; competitive commissions for revenue roles and bonuses for non-revenue positions
• A strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Eligibility to participate in additional benefits such as 401k match up to 5%, 100% paid life insurance (up to $100,000 coverage), and parental leave
• A collaborative and positive culture - your team will be as smart and driven as you
• Limitless growth and learning opportunities

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees