Forward Deployed Engineer - AI

Forward Deployed Engineer - AI

Full-Time 80000 - 100000 £ / year (est.) Home office (partial)
Avepoint

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead AI workshops, build prototypes, and deliver custom solutions for clients.
  • Company: Join AvePoint, a leader in AI governance and enterprise solutions.
  • Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible work options, and opportunities for professional growth.
  • Other info: Dynamic role with high autonomy and the chance to make a significant impact.
  • Why this job: Shape the future of AI while working directly with clients to solve real-world problems.
  • Qualifications: 5+ years in software engineering with hands-on AI experience required.

The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.

Enterprises are adopting AI faster than they can govern it — and they are looking for a partner who can do two things at once: speak credibly about AI trust, governance, and security, and actually build.

The Forward Deployed Engineer (AI) is that partner.

You are the technical face of Ave Point inside client organizations: equally comfortable whiteboarding AI trust and governance concepts with a CISO, translating a business problem into a scoped AI build project, and writing the first working prototype yourself.

You embed with clients, ship real outcomes, and own the engagement end to end.

This is not a pre-sales role with a demo script, and not a back-office delivery role.

It is the engagement model pioneered by leading AI companies for their strategic enterprise customers: a senior engineer deployed forward, with the autonomy to own the problem from first workshop to production.

What you\'ll do

Lead workshops that help clients understand and take control of their AI landscape — agents, copilots, models, and the data behind them, including the shadow AI they didn\'t know about.

Explain AI governance, security posture, and resilience concepts credibly to both technical teams and executives.

Guide clients through obligations such as the EU AI Act, NIS2, and ISO 42001, and help them stand up practical operating models: AI inventories, approval workflows, risk classification, and audit evidence.

Scope and shape AI build projects.

Sit with business stakeholders to understand the underlying need behind "we want AI for X." Identify the highest-value use cases, define success criteria, and translate ambiguous requirements into concrete, estimable technical scopes — architecture outlines, data and integration requirements, delivery phases, effort and risk assessments.

Write statements of work that engineering teams can actually deliver and clients can actually sign.

Build and deliver.

Develop prototypes and production components for client AI solutions: agent workflows, RAG pipelines, LLM integrations (Azure Open AI, AWS Bedrock, Google Vertex, Anthropic), MCP-based tool integrations, and the governance and security controls around them.

Deliver custom adapters and local tooling for regulated, cloud-restricted, or air-gapped environments where standard Saa S approaches cannot go.

Own the relationship through delivery.

Act as the trusted technical advisor from first workshop through go-live: run enablement sessions, support adoption, troubleshoot in production, and expand the engagement where you see genuine value for the client.

  • What we\'re looking for
  • Must-haves
  • 5+ years in software engineering, solutions architecture, or technical consulting, with at least 2 years hands-on with modern AI/LLM systems in real projects (not only experimentation).
  • Practical experience building with LLM APIs and frameworks (e. g., Azure Open AI, Bedrock, Vertex, Lang Chain, Semantic Kernel) and patterns such as RAG, agentic workflows, and tool/function calling.

Machine Learning Expertise

Hands-on machine learning experience spanning model development, evaluation, deployment, and operationalization, with a focus on enterprise AI solutions, predictive analytics, and scalable MLOps practices.

  • Strong programming skills in Python and/or C#/Type Script, plus working fluency with at least one major cloud platform (Azure, AWS, or GCP), including identity, networking, and data services.
  • Demonstrated ability to scope technical projects from ambiguous business requirements: you can run a requirements workshop, challenge assumptions constructively, and produce a credible plan with phases, estimates, and risks.
  • Excellent communication in front of senior stakeholders — you can explain why AI governance matters to a board member and debate vector database trade-offs with a platform engineer in the same meeting.
  • Willingness to travel to client sites and to operate with high autonomy in ambiguous, fast-moving engagements.
  • Strong pluses
  • Working knowledge of AI governance and compliance frameworks: EU AI Act, NIS2, ISO/IEC 42001, NIST AI RMF, or Gartner\'s AI TRi SM model.
  • Experience with AI security topics: prompt injection, data leakage, agent permissioning, model and data security posture (AI-SPM/DSPM concepts).
  • Familiarity with the Model Context Protocol (MCP), agent runtimes, or vector databases (e. g., Pinecone, Milvus, Weaviate, Chroma).
  • Background in enterprise data governance, security, backup/resilience, or the Microsoft 365 / multi-cloud ecosystem where Ave Point operates.
  • Experience delivering into regulated industries (public sector, defense, financial services, healthcare) or air-gapped/sovereign environments.
  • Prior experience in a forward-deployed, embedded consulting, or customer-facing engineering role.
  • Additional languages relevant to your region\'s client base.
  • How we\'ll measure success

Within your first 6–12 months, you will have led AI discovery and governance workshops for multiple enterprise clients, scoped and won at least one significant AI build or governance engagement, and delivered working software into a client environment.

Above all: clients ask for you by name.

Why this role, why now

AI adoption has outrun enterprise control, and regulators have noticed.

Every large organization now needs to see, govern, secure, and sustain its AI estate — and most need a partner who can both advise and build.

As an FDE at Ave Point you will help define this engagement model from the ground floor, work at the frontier of agentic AI and AI trust, and do it with two decades of enterprise data governance and resilience expertise behind you.

Any personal data you share with us during the application process will be processed strictly in compliance with applicable data protection laws and our Privacy Notice.

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Forward Deployed Engineer - AI employer: Avepoint

At AvePoint, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer in the tech industry, offering a dynamic work culture that fosters agility, passion, and teamwork. Our employees benefit from market-competitive compensation, generous annual leave, and robust career progression opportunities, all while working collaboratively to deliver innovative software solutions. With unique perks like extra paid days off for personal milestones and a commitment to employee growth, AvePoint is the ideal place for those looking to thrive in a rewarding sales career.

Avepoint

Contact Details:

Avepoint Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Forward Deployed Engineer - AI

Join Local Tech Meetups

Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Avepoint or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!

Contribute to Open Source Projects

Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Avepoint.

Tap into Online Developer Communities

Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Avepoint.

Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles

Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Avepoint that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!

We think you need these skills to ace Forward Deployed Engineer - AI

AI Governance
AI Security
Machine Learning Expertise
Prototyping
Software Engineering
Solutions Architecture
Technical Consulting

Some tips for your application 🫡

Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.

Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Avepoint.

Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Avepoint and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!

Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!

How to prepare for a job interview at Avepoint

Brush Up on Your Coding Skills

For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.

Know Your Tools and Frameworks

Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Avepoint uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.

Showcase Your Projects

Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.

Prepare for Behavioural Questions

While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.