Consulting for organisations
Forward Deployed Engineers for Data and AI
A forward deployed engineer works inside your team rather than at arm’s length. They learn your data, platforms and constraints, build directly in your environment, and stay engaged until the solution runs reliably in production — not just in a demo.
What the role does
Many data and AI initiatives stall between a promising prototype and a dependable production system. A forward deployed engineer closes that gap: they take ownership of an outcome, work with your people and systems day to day, and make the engineering decisions needed to get it live and keep it there.
Typical responsibilities
- Join your stand-ups, tools and ways of working from the first week
- Map the data sources, access rules and systems the solution depends on
- Build pipelines, models, agents or reports directly in your tenant and repositories
- Turn prototypes and proofs of concept into maintainable, monitored production workloads
- Work with business users to refine requirements as the solution takes shape
- Document decisions and transfer knowledge so your team can own the result
How it works
- 1
Scoping call
We discuss the outcome you need, your current platform and the constraints the engineer must work within.
- 2
Profile match
We propose engineers whose experience fits the work, and you speak with them before deciding.
- 3
Embedded delivery
The engineer joins your team, works in your environment and reports progress against agreed milestones.
- 4
Production and handover
The engagement continues until the solution is live and stable, followed by handover or ongoing support.
Skills
- Databricks and Microsoft Fabric
- Python, PySpark and SQL
- Azure data and AI services
- LLM, RAG and agent integration
- Power BI and semantic models
- CI/CD, Git and infrastructure as code
- Data governance with Unity Catalog or Microsoft Purview
Relevant certifications
- Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate / Professional
- Databricks Certified Generative AI Engineer Associate
- Microsoft Certified: Fabric Data Engineer Associate (DP-700)
- Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Engineer Associate
Each proposed engineer’s own certifications are listed on their profile, so you can check them before deciding.
Engagement options
Choose the shape that fits the work. Scope, working hours and commercials are agreed with you after a scoping call.
Single engineer
One specialist joins your team for a defined scope or a continuing role, working inside your tools and processes.
Small pod
Two or more engineers with complementary skills — for example an architect alongside data engineers — delivering as one unit.
Project-based
A scoped outcome with agreed milestones, deliverables and acceptance criteria, rather than open-ended time.
Ongoing support
Continued maintenance, monitoring and enhancements once your platform or solution is in production.
Frequently asked questions
Request a consultant
Tell us who you need
Share the role and context. We reply to arrange a short scoping call and then share suitable engineer profiles for you to review.
Prefer to talk it through?
Message our team on WhatsApp with a short outline of what you need.