Sr. Forward Deployment Strategist

CSQ128R189

As a Forward Deployment Strategist (FDS), 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.

You will report to the Director, Forward Deployed Engineering.

The impact you will have:

• C-Suite Scoping & Value Definition: 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).
• End-to-End Product Ownership: 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.
• Agile Project Execution & Delivery: 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.
• Solution Launch & Landing: 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.
• Strategic Handoff & Growth: Scope the ongoing maintenance plan, create customer documentation/training, and leverage your trusted advisor status to identify the next high-value FDE engagement.

What we look for:

• Executive Presence & Communication: 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.
• Product & Strategy Mindset: A Product Thinker and Systems Thinker who can perform a SWOT analysis, understand a competitive landscape, and define what to build and why.
• Relentless Execution: 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.
• Ideal Experience: 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).
• Proven Skills: Demonstrated experience in value-based scoping (TCO/ROI), managing agile software projects, writing PRDs, and the ability/interest to travel up to 50%.