At a Glance
- Tasks: Transform ideas into working prototypes and build internal tools that enhance efficiency.
- Company: Join a leading consultancy in Central London, driving innovation and growth.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, equity options, and opportunities for career advancement.
- Other info: Dynamic team culture focused on collaboration and continuous learning.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by shaping AI-native solutions for global clients.
- Qualifications: 5+ years in software engineering with experience in LLM-powered applications.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 € per year.
Location: You will be based in London. Our headquarters are in Central London. It is where it all began for us and continues to be a hub of innovation and growth.
Job Summary: Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs) are the people we put in the room when a problem is ambiguous, the data is messy, and a working solution needs to exist in weeks, not quarters. As an FDE at Elixirr, you will embed with our delivery teams and internal functions to go from idea to working prototype, and to build the internal tools and agents that accelerate how Elixirr itself delivers. An FDE is a hybrid of technical lead, consultant and product manager: someone who writes production-quality code, but is just as comfortable sitting with users, understanding how decisions actually get made, and stress-testing a prototype in the field. Business acumen is core to the job.
Key Responsibilities:
- Embed With Delivery Teams and Internal Functions: Deploy into Elixirr delivery teams and internal functions to identify the highest-leverage AI opportunities inside real workflows. Sit with consultants, operators and end users to understand how decisions are actually made - then design around what you see, not what was described in a deck.
- Idea to Prototype, Fast: Take ideas from napkin to working prototype in days, not quarters. Design, build and demo agents and agentic applications that execute real work. Use modern agent frameworks and tooling pragmatically.
- Build Internal Solutions That Compound: Ship internal agents and tools that measurably accelerate how Elixirr delivers. Extract reusable components, patterns and accelerators from each engagement back into Elixirr’s internal platform.
- Hand Off to Production, Cleanly: Partner with Elixirr’s production engineering team when a prototype earns the right to become enterprise-grade software. Package prototypes for handover with clear documentation.
- Business Acumen and Client Presence: Understand the economics of what you build. Navigate security, compliance, change management and data realities without using them as reasons to slow down.
Qualifications:
- Experience: 5+ years as a software engineer shipping working systems; recent hands-on experience building LLM-powered or agentic applications.
- Technical Expertise: Strong full-stack or backend engineering fundamentals and practical fluency with modern LLMs, agent frameworks, RAG, tool use, evaluation and observability tooling.
- Business Acumen: Able to read a business: you understand revenue, cost, workflow and decision-making.
- Mindset: Bias to action: you’d rather ship a rough v1 and learn than design the perfect v3 in a deck.
Nice to Have:
- Founding or early engineer experience at a startup.
- Experience in regulated industries.
- Open-source contributions or public writing/speaking on agentic systems.
Why Join Us?
- Impactful Work: Shape how a global consultancy operates as AI-native businesses.
- Innovation Culture: Hands-on access to the latest models, agent frameworks and AI developer tooling.
- Growth Opportunities: A rapidly expanding firm with room to grow your career.
- Mission-Driven Team: Join a diverse, entrepreneurial team that combines deep consulting craft with modern engineering and AI.
- Competitive compensation package, including equity options.
Forward Deployed Engineer employer: Elixirr
Elixirr is an exceptional employer located in the heart of Central London, offering a vibrant work culture that fosters innovation and collaboration. As a Forward Deployed Engineer, you will have the opportunity to engage in impactful work, leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies while enjoying ample growth opportunities within a rapidly expanding firm. With a mission-driven team and competitive compensation packages, Elixirr is dedicated to shaping the future of consultancy and empowering its employees to thrive.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Forward Deployed Engineer
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Get out there and connect with people in the industry. Attend meetups, tech talks, or even casual coffee chats. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can refer you directly to hiring managers.
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio that highlights your best projects, especially those that align with the Forward Deployed Engineer role. Share it on platforms like GitHub or your personal website, and don’t forget to link it in your applications!
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by practising common technical questions and scenarios related to the role. Use mock interviews with friends or online platforms to get comfortable discussing your thought process and problem-solving approach.
✨Tip Number 4
Apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, we love seeing candidates who take the initiative to engage directly with us. Don’t hesitate to follow up after applying to express your enthusiasm!
We think you need these skills to ace Forward Deployed Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion:When writing your application, let your enthusiasm for the role shine through! We want to see why you're excited about being a Forward Deployed Engineer and how you can contribute to our innovative culture.
Tailor Your Experience:Make sure to highlight your relevant experience in software engineering and any hands-on work with LLM-powered applications. We love seeing how your background aligns with what we do at Elixirr, so don’t hold back!
Be Clear and Concise:Keep your application straightforward and to the point. We appreciate clarity, so avoid jargon and focus on communicating your skills and experiences effectively. Remember, less is often more!
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows you’re keen to join our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at Elixirr
✨Understand the Role Inside Out
Before your interview, make sure you thoroughly understand what a Forward Deployed Engineer does. Familiarise yourself with the key responsibilities, especially around embedding with delivery teams and translating ambiguous problems into concrete solutions. This will help you speak confidently about how your skills align with the role.
✨Showcase Your Technical Skills
Be prepared to discuss your technical expertise in detail. Highlight your experience with Python, TypeScript/Node.js, and any modern LLMs or agent frameworks you've worked with. Bring examples of past projects where you built prototypes quickly and effectively, as this aligns perfectly with the job's focus on rapid development.
✨Demonstrate Business Acumen
Since business acumen is core to the role, come ready to discuss how you've navigated real-world business challenges in your previous roles. Be specific about how you’ve framed problems as business cases and made decisions based on cost, value, and user adoption. This will show that you understand the bigger picture.
✨Prepare for Client Engagement Scenarios
Expect questions about how you would engage with senior client stakeholders. Think of examples where you've had to frame trade-offs clearly and keep conversations outcome-focused. This will demonstrate your ability to be the trusted technical voice that leaders rely on, which is crucial for this position.
