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Principal Forward Deployed Engineer

Atlassian

San Francisco, CAJob$174–274K/yrPosted 2w agoStill listed today

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At a glance

Compensation
$174–274K/yr
Location
San Francisco, CA
Work Authorization
Not specified

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Job overview

The Principal Forward Deployed Engineer works with customers and cross-functional teams to deliver AI-powered solutions. The role leads solution design and production deployment, builds enterprise integrations, and guides customers in adopting AI-augmented workflows. It also addresses risk, privacy, and compliance needs, mentors engineers, and aligns technical work with business objectives. Atlassian describes the position as high-visibility and suited to people comfortable with fast-paced, ambiguous environments.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Python (Programming Language)JavaScript (Programming Language)Artificial IntelligenceAPI ManagementMicroservicesInformation PrivacyRisk AnalysisCollaborationMentorshipApplied AI/MLGenerative AILarge Language ModelsAgent-Based FrameworksAPI IntegrationEnterprise IntegrationProblem SolvingCommunicationCross-Functional InfluenceAI Risk AssessmentData PrivacyRegulatory ComplianceAtlassian IntelligenceRovo AIRegulated IndustriesProduction AI DeploymentEngineering Mentorship

Qualifications

10+ Years Backend Development5+ Years Production AI/MLFounding or Forward-Deployed Engineer Experience0-to-1 Product Development ExperienceGDPR

Full job description

Overview

Working at Atlassian Atlassians can choose where they work – whether in an office, from home, or a combination of the two. That way, Atlassians have more control over supporting their family, personal goals, and other priorities. We can hire people in any country where we have a legal entity. Your future team As a Principal Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) at Atlassian, you’ll be at the forefront of applied AI, working directly with customers and cross-functional teams to deliver innovative, AI-powered solutions. The FDE team partners with top organizations across industries, helping them leverage Atlassian’s AI capabilities to solve complex, real-world problems. You’ll collaborate with product, engineering, and design, rapidly growing your technical and domain expertise while making a tangible impact on business outcomes. This is a high-visibility, high-impact role for those who thrive in fast-paced, ambiguous environments and are passionate about shaping the future of AI-powered teamwork.

Responsibilities

What you’ll do As a Principal Forward Deployed Engineer, you will:

  • Lead the design, development, and deployment of AI/ML-powered solutions tailored to customer needs.

  • Architect and implement robust application integrations using Python, JavaScript, or similar languages, with a focus on APIs, microservices, and enterprise-scale systems.

  • Drive data-driven solution development by analyzing complex datasets to extract insights and inform product direction.

  • Champion the adoption of AI-augmented workflow automation within customer environments, maximizing business value and operational efficiency.

  • Oversee the end-to-end deployment of AI solutions into production, ensuring continuous evaluation, monitoring, and improvement.

  • Navigate risk and compliance requirements, including AI risk assessment, data privacy (GDPR), and regulatory frameworks.

  • Mentor and guide junior engineers, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning.

  • Communicate complex technical concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders, creating concise artifacts for peers, partners, and leadership.

  • Align technical solutions with business objectives, setting a clear vision for technological progress and measurable results.

Compensation

At Atlassian, we strive to design equitable, explainable, and competitive compensation programs. We follow consistent hiring practices and account for each candidate's skills, knowledge, and experience when setting base pay within the range. Please visit go.atlassian.com/payzones for more information on which locations are included in each of our geographic pay zones. However, please confirm the zone for your specific location with your recruiter. This role may also be eligible for benefits, bonuses, commissions, and equity.

Pay Ranges

In The United States, we have three geographic pay zones. For this role, our current base pay ranges for new hires in each zone are: Zone A: $209,700 - $273,775 Zone B: $188,730 - $246,398 Zone C: $174,051 - $227,233

Qualifications

On the first day, we'll expect you to have:

  • 10+ years of experience in backend software development.

  • 5+ years of experience delivering impactful AI/ML solutions in production environments, including experience as a founding or forward-deployed engineer in 0-to-1 product development.

  • Deep expertise in applied AI/ML, including generative AI, LLMs, and agent-based frameworks.

  • Proficiency in Python, JavaScript, or similar languages, and experience with APIs, microservices, and enterprise integration.

  • Demonstrated ability to solve complex, ambiguous problems and thrive in rapidly changing environments.

  • Strong communication and collaboration skills, with experience influencing cross-functional teams without formal authority.

  • Experience with AI risk assessment, data privacy, and compliance (e.g., GDPR).

  • Strategic and innovative thinking, with a track record of aligning technical solutions to business goals.

It's great, but not required, if you have:

  • Experience with Atlassian Intelligence, Rovo AI, or AI-powered Atlassian features.

  • Familiarity with regulated industries (e.g., finance, healthcare).

  • Experience deploying AI solutions to complex production systems at scale.

  • Prior experience mentoring or leading engineering teams.

Benefits & Perks Atlassian offers a wide range of perks and benefits designed to support you, your family and to help you engage with your local community. Our offerings include health and wellbeing resources, paid volunteer days, and so much more. To learn more, visit go.atlassian.com/perksandbenefits. About Atlassian At Atlassian, we're motivated by a common goal: to unleash the potential of every team. Our software products help teams all over the planet and our solutions are designed for all types of work. Team collaboration through our tools makes what may be impossible alone, possible together. We believe that the unique contributions of all Atlassians create our success. To ensure that our products and culture continue to incorporate everyone's perspectives and experience, we never discriminate based on race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or marital, veteran, or disability status. All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines. To provide you the best experience, we can support with accommodations or adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process. Simply inform our Recruitment team during your conversation with them. To learn more about our culture and hiring process, visit go.atlassian.com/crh. In line with local law, identity verification (which may include use of biometric data) is a condition of employment with Atlassian for employment fraud purposes.

How this job compares

Set against the 2,913 open Forward Deployed Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 5, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$174–274K/yr
  • California median$156–265K/yr537 salary ranges
  • US median$140–265K/yr2,532 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $224K, is 9% above the California median midpoint ($205K) — in the middle half of Forward Deployed Engineer salary ranges in California.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 653 open Forward Deployed Engineer jobs in California and 2,913 across the US. 5% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in California
Experience
This posting asks for at least 10 years of experience — more than three in four Forward Deployed Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for (median 5 years, across 2,552 postings).
Education
630 of the 2,913 open Forward Deployed Engineer jobs (22%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 5, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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