Forward Deployed Engineer

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in New Jersey.

📋 Description

• Collaborate directly with enterprise clients to design, construct, and implement solutions based on Kong across cloud, hybrid, and on-premise settings.

• Spearhead hands-on implementation projects for API gateways, AI gateways, service meshes, developer portals, and associated connectivity technologies.

• Develop automation frameworks, migration tools, custom integrations, and reusable accelerators to facilitate customer adoption and modernization efforts.

• Lead migration projects from legacy API management systems to Kong.

• Work closely with customer developers, platform teams, architects, security teams, and executives to tackle intricate technical and operational challenges.

• Generate production-quality code, scripts, plugins, CI/CD integrations, Kubernetes automation, and infrastructure tools as part of customer engagements.

• Partner with Kong Product and Engineering teams to shape roadmap priorities informed by real-world customer insights and implementation experiences.

• Create reusable best practices, technical resources, reference architectures, documentation, and design patterns to enhance delivery excellence throughout the organization.

• Assist in strategic customer initiatives related to AI connectivity, governance, platform modernization, and cloud-native transformation.

⛳️ Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in customer-facing engineering, platform engineering, professional services, site reliability engineering, or software engineering roles.

• Strong practical software engineering and implementation experience.

• Familiarity with API gateways, API management, integrations, or distributed systems platforms.

• Robust expertise in Kubernetes and cloud-native infrastructure.

• Experience in developing automation frameworks, deployment tools, CI/CD pipelines, or migration tools.

• High proficiency in Linux, networking, cloud infrastructure, and DevOps methodologies.

• Experience with leading cloud providers such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.

• Programming skills in languages like Python, Go, Java, JavaScript, or Lua.

• Experience with Infrastructure-as-Code and automation tools such as Terraform, Helm, Ansible, or GitOps frameworks.

• Previous experience in API Management, Open Source, Middleware, SaaS, or Infrastructure software firms is highly preferred.

🏝️ Benefits

• Access to healthcare benefits

• 401(k) plan

• Short and long-term disability benefits

• Basic life and AD&D insurance