Staff Backend Engineer, Forward Deployed
Job Description
Foxglove is building the future of robotics development tools, focusing on open source and commercial solutions to accelerate the robotics industry. They're seeking a Staff Backend Engineer for a Forward Deployed role, combining deep technical expertise with customer-facing responsibilities. This position requires an experienced engineer with 5+ years of experience in Python, C++, ROS, and Node.js, along with significant robotics industry knowledge.
The role involves working directly with strategic customers to integrate Foxglove's platform into their environments while contributing to core product development. The ideal candidate will be comfortable with both technical implementation and customer collaboration, serving as a bridge between Foxglove's technology and customer needs.
Based in San Francisco, CA, this role offers a competitive compensation package ranging from $175K to $230K, plus equity in a Series A company. The position requires on-site work with occasional travel to the Peninsula or South Bay. The company maintains Pacific Time hours and seeks candidates within ±4 hours of U.S. time zones for effective collaboration.
Key responsibilities include customer collaboration, solution architecture, hands-on development, and acting as a trusted engineering partner. The role requires expertise in robotics systems, cloud architecture, and database-backed APIs, with a focus on delivering end-to-end solutions using technologies like TypeScript/React, Node.js, Python, ROS, and SQL.
Benefits include comprehensive medical insurance, 401k matching, generous vacation time, and company off-sites. This is an excellent opportunity for a senior engineer looking to combine technical expertise with customer-facing work in the rapidly growing robotics industry.
Responsibilities For Staff Backend Engineer, Forward Deployed
- Customer Collaboration – Embed deeply with customer teams to understand business goals, domain constraints, and technical requirements
- Design & Development – Architect and build end-to-end solutions with an experiment-driven, iterative approach
- Scoping & Planning – Draft clear scopes of work, timelines, and success metrics for proofs-of-concept through production roll-outs
- Hands-On Delivery – Code side-by-side with customer engineers, deploying on their cloud or on-prem environments
- Cross-Functional Alignment – Partner closely with Sales and Customer Success on accounts
- Product Feedback Loop – Relay frontline insights to Research, Product, and Engineering
- Internal Enablement – Document best practices, contribute to internal libraries, and mentor future FDEs
Requirements For Staff Backend Engineer, Forward Deployed
- 5+ years of professional experience in Python, C++, ROS, and Node.js
- 3+ years of professional experience in Robotics or Autonomous systems
- Experience in customer-facing engineering roles, ideally with robotics or autonomy exposure
- Proven history of rapid prototyping and iterative delivery with external stakeholders
- Solid grasp of network and cloud architecture (AWS, GCP, or Azure) and database-backed REST APIs
- Comfortable owning problems end-to-end, learning what's missing, and communicating technical details to any audience
- Willingness to travel extensively and work on-site with customers when required
Benefits For Staff Backend Engineer, Forward Deployed
- Competitive equity grant in a Series A company
- Medical insurance coverage at 90% for employees and 75% for dependents
- 401k matching up to 4%
- 4 weeks vacation, plus holidays and winter break
- All expenses paid company off-sites 2x/year
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