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Forward Deployed Engineering Manager - Datadog for Startups

Datadog· Engineering
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Hybrid (New York, NY; San Francisco, CA)$200k - $250kFull-timePosted 4mo ago

About the role

Forward Deployed Engineering Manager in Datadog for Startups, leading the FDE function, shaping operating model, and driving cross-functional collaboration across Sales, Solutions Engineering, Customer Success, and Product teams. Hybrid work environment with global offices.

Responsibilities

  • Evolve and scale the FDE operating model end to end: engagement intake, scoping, sprint delivery, handoff back to account teams, and the success metrics and reporting infrastructure that support them.
  • Build out a catalog of FDE offerings spanning observability quickstarts, custom integration development, LLM/AI observability accelerators, CI/CD pipeline instrumentation, and cost optimization deep dives, including pricing and business models.
  • Capture product and feature gaps during deployments, translate into prioritized briefs, and partner with PM and Engineering to strengthen field-feedback for roadmap decisions.
  • Hire, onboard, and develop full-time FDEs; manage SWE and TSE secondments; build technical assessment frameworks; coach on engagement, scoping, stakeholder communication, and platform depth.
  • Identify high-value mini-product opportunities (integrations, dashboards, automation scripts, open-source tooling); drive lightweight sprints to create reusable assets; maintain a prioritized build backlog.
  • Drive lightweight engineering sprints to convert recurring customer needs into reusable assets across the FDE portfolio.
  • Partner with Sales, Solutions Engineering, Customer Success, and Business Development to identify accounts for FDE, represent the function in QBRs and executive reviews; serve as trusted advisor through complex deployments.

Qualifications

  • 8+ years of experience in forward deployed engineering, solutions architecture, software engineering, or related technical fields, including at least 3 years in a customer-facing technical role.
  • 2+ years of engineering management or technical leadership experience, including hiring, coaching, performance management, and cross-functional collaboration.
  • Contributed to or scaled a technical program, practice, or new function within a high-growth technology company, with a track record of influencing product roadmaps through structured field feedback.
  • Deep familiarity with modern cloud-native stacks (Kubernetes, AWS/GCP/Azure, microservices, CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code) and hands-on experience with observability, monitoring, APM, or logging platforms; Datadog experience is a strong plus.

Skills

Required:Forward deployed engineeringSolutions architectureCloud-native stacks

Benefits

  • Shape and scale a rapidly growing strategic function with significant influence on operating model and direction.
  • Partner directly with leadership across Engineering, Product, Sales, Customer Success, and Business Development.
  • Influence customer outcomes while informing Datadog's product roadmap through structured field feedback.
  • Develop expertise across cloud infrastructure, platform engineering, AI observability, deployment strategy, and customer-facing technical leadership.
  • Gain visibility through executive reviews, planning cycles, and cross-functional initiatives.
  • Benefits and Growth listed above may vary based on the country of your employment and the nature of your employment with Datadog.
Last updated Oct 22, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

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