Forward Deployed Engineer

About the role

This role functions as a critical bridge connecting Figma engineering teams with our most strategic customers in the United States. You will operate in a hands-on capacity, delivering direct technical guidance to assist organizations in adopting new developer workflows, with an initial focus on Make Local. In this capacity, you will gather qualitative and quantitative insights regarding customer friction points to directly inform our product roadmap and future feature development. The position requires a proactive mindset where you diagnose complex technical environments and provide clear, actionable guidance to diverse stakeholders. You will be responsible for establishing the technical foundation necessary for successful adoption of new workflows. Success in this role is defined by your ability to translate complex technical concepts into understandable narratives for both engineering and executive audiences. You will play a key role in shaping the future of how enterprises integrate design and development through direct customer interaction.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Conduct in-depth technical discovery sessions with strategic customers to analyze their existing codebases, identify technical constraints, and clarify overarching development goals.
• Execute comprehensive technical readiness assessments covering environment configuration, permission structure validation, and detailed deployment planning for enterprise accounts.
• Deliver direct implementation support for Make Local and other developer-facing tools, managing debugging sessions and overseeing escalation management processes end-to-end.
• Partner closely with Sales, Solutions Consulting, and Customer Enablement teams to synchronize on success criteria, align messaging, and manage project timelines effectively.
• Author detailed documentation of product gaps, critical bugs, and recurring deployment patterns, subsequently reporting these findings to internal Product and Engineering teams for prioritization.
• Create and maintain reusable technical assets, including sophisticated troubleshooting guides, standardized playbooks, and structured onboarding checklists for internal reuse.
• Establish and monitor key performance metrics related to customer adoption rates, setup speed efficiency, and active usage statistics to measure program health.
• Contribute to the development of the operational framework governing the Forward Deployed Engineering function as the organization scales and matures.
• Facilitate cross-functional workshops to ensure alignment between technical capabilities and business objectives for strategic initiatives.
• Evaluate customer workflow inefficiencies and propose optimized processes leveraging current Figma platform capabilities.
• Serve as a subject matter expert for developer tools, providing training sessions and office hours to maximize platform utilization.
• Analyze usage data to identify feature adoption barriers and opportunities for product enhancement or simplification.
• Act as the primary technical liaison for designated strategic accounts, ensuring consistent communication and relationship management.
• Translate real-world customer use cases into actionable product feedback, documentation updates, and potential new feature specifications.

Requirements

• Bring a professional background from roles such as Solutions Engineer, Software Engineer, Sales Engineer, Technical Consultant, or Developer Advocate.
• Demonstrate proficiency in modern software development practices, including source control management, build tooling, debugging methodologies, and local environment management.
• Provide evidence of a proven track record managing complex technical implementations for enterprise-level customers across various industries.
• Exhibit strong communication skills with the demonstrable ability to translate intricate technical concepts for both engineering specialists and non-technical stakeholders.
• Demonstrate the ability to function effectively in ambiguous environments by creating scalable processes and fostering collaboration across multiple departments.
• Hold the right to work in the United States without sponsorship for this position at this time.
• Commit to maintaining cameras on during all video interviews as part of our hiring process standards.
• Agree to participate in in-person onboarding upon acceptance of a role offer to ensure successful integration.

Nice to have

• Possess familiarity with design, collaboration, AI, or developer-focused products that create a bridge between design and engineering disciplines.
• Have direct experience managing enterprise onboarding processes, handling complex migrations, and executing technical enablement programs.
• Show knowledge of frontend development principles, CI/CD pipeline architectures, component libraries, design systems, monorepo structures, and Dev Infrastructure concepts.
• Have a background in launching or scaling technical service functions or running pilot programs within a corporate environment.
• Demonstrate a history of converting direct customer feedback into tangible product strategy, comprehensive documentation, and clear engineering priorities.

Skills & tools

• Mastery of modern software development practices and toolchains.
• Extensive experience in enterprise customer engagement and relationship management.
• Expertise in technical documentation creation and structured enablement initiatives.
• Proficiency in developer workflow implementation and optimization strategies.
• Strong capabilities in cross-functional stakeholder management and influencing without authority.

Practical notes

• The compensation package for this role includes equity awards, comprehensive health/dental/vision coverage, robust retirement benefits, and structured parental leave policies.
• Additional benefits encompass flexible paid time off, sick leave allowances, and stipends for internet/cell phone services and lifestyle spending accounts.
• Candidates are required to keep cameras activated during video interviews as a mandatory part of our recruitment protocol.
• In-person attendance is required for onboarding procedures following the acceptance of a role offer to ensure complete integration into the team.
• Figma is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities throughout the application process; individuals requiring such accommodations should contact accommodations-ext@figma.com for detailed support.