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10 forward deployed engineering leaders
These ten current and former forward deployed engineering leaders have held head, vice president, director and manager titles over forward deployed engineering teams. A reader can learn how forward deployed engineering leaders approach their work from people who have held the role.
Professionals to explore
01—10Brendan Pan
LinkedInExperience: Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering · C3 AI
Former Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering at C3 AI (2025-2026), after a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer role there (2023-2024). Earlier roles shown include Senior Software Developer at General Motors (2021-2023). The profile headline describes him as a Forward Deployed Engineering Lead at Salesforce building federal solutions.
Colin Jarvis
LinkedInExperience: Head of Forward Deployed Engineering · OpenAI
Head of Forward Deployed Engineering at OpenAI since 2025; the profile describes establishing a Forward Deployed Engineering team at OpenAI. He was Head of Solution Architecture, Strategics at OpenAI in 2024, after Distinguished Architect and Principal Solutions Architect roles there, and has been Chief Technology Officer at SB OAI Japan since late 2025.
Jacob Snead
LinkedInExperience: Vice President - Forward Deployed Engineering · nCino
Vice President - Forward Deployed Engineering at nCino since 2026. His other nCino roles include Executive Director - PDE Operations & Strategic Initiatives (2024-2026), Director - Solution Architecture (EMEA) (2022-2024) and Senior Manager - Solution Architecture (2020-2022).
Justin Sharps
LinkedInExperience: Head of Forward Deployed Engineering · Encord
Head of Forward Deployed Engineering at Encord since November 2025, based in London, after serving as Head of Product Engineering at Encord (2022-2025). Former CTO at Zorro Cash (2019-2021) and Full Stack Engineer at Tamecco K.K. (2014-2018). The profile headline describes solving problems with data and ML.
Kevin Burke
LinkedInExperience: RVP Forward Deployed Engineering · Salesforce
RVP Forward Deployed Engineering at Salesforce since 2025; the profile describes the role as head of the AI Technical Architects for EMEA. His other Salesforce roles include Global AI Practice, AI and Data Lead, EMEA (2023-2025) and Senior Director, Program Architect (2011-2023).
Nicholas Kochanek
LinkedInExperience: VP, Head of Forward Deployed Engineering · Moment
VP, Head of Forward Deployed Engineering at Moment since 2025, after serving there as Director of Engineering (2024-2025) and Founding Tech Lead (2023-2024). Former Team Lead, Manager (2022-2023) and Software Engineering Team Lead (2021-2022) at Zoba, based in New York.
Phillip Cross
LinkedInExperience: Director of Forward Deployed Engineering · Addepar
Director of Forward Deployed Engineering at Addepar since 2018; the profile headline gives his title as Sr Director of Forward Deployed Engineering. Former Embedded Analyst at Palantir Technologies (2012-2018) and Program Manager at Microsoft (2008-2012), based in New York.
Remington Lee
LinkedInExperience: Global Head of Forward Deployed Engineering Adobe Firefly & GenAI Innovation · Adobe
Global Head of Forward Deployed Engineering Adobe Firefly & GenAI Innovation at Adobe since 2025. He was also Sr. Director, Head of Content GenAI AEM Consulting - Americas at Adobe (2023-2025) and AVP, Global Head of Content & Marketing Services Digital Learning at Cognizant (2020-2023).
Rob Hardy
LinkedInExperience: Global Head of Forward Deployed Engineering · Anthropic
Global Head of Forward Deployed Engineering at Anthropic since 2026. Former Head of AI Solutions & Services at Notion (2025-2026), after Professional Services & Channel Lead (2024-2025) and Professional Services Lead (2024) roles at Notion, and Sr. Director, Alliances & Partnerships at NZero (2023-2024).
Will Barley
LinkedInExperience: Director of Forward Deployed Engineering · Gecko Robotics
Director of Forward Deployed Engineering at Gecko Robotics since 2021, based in Waco, Texas. Former Senior Solutions Engineer at Socotra (2020-2021), Founder, CEO of Thoron (2016-2019), Head of Software Innovation at Essentium Inc. (2018-2019) and Senior Consultant at Control Group (2005-2007).
Choose the right perspective
Match the person's company type to your situation, since a frontier AI lab, an enterprise software vendor and a smaller startup each run forward deployed teams for different customers. Consider whether you need someone who built a team from the start or someone who ran one inside a larger engineering or services group.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How do you decide which customer engagements get forward deployed engineers and for how long?
- 02How do you hire and measure forward deployed engineers compared with software engineers and solutions architects?
- 03How does work done in the field flow back into the core product?
Reaching forward deployed engineering leaders
How can I contact one of these forward deployed engineering leaders?
Pick one of the 10 people on this page and choose "Book a paid call", or describe your project to find others. You offer a fee for a 15-minute call or a written answer, Instant Expert finds the person's work email and sends the invitation, and they decide whether to accept. The list covers 10 companies, including C3 AI, OpenAI and nCino, based on profile data retrieved on October 9, 2026. Being listed here doesn't mean someone has agreed to take calls.
How much does it cost to reach forward deployed engineering leaders?
You choose the offer, starting at $5 per person. It includes Instant Expert's 20% fee, so an offer that pays the person $100 costs you $125. You're charged only when the person books the call or sends the answer.
What if they don't reply?
You pay nothing. Instant Expert sends follow-up reminders, and if the person hasn't booked or answered within 7 days, the request expires and any hold on your card is released. You can invite several of the 10 people on this list at once and cap your total spend, so you pay only for the ones who accept.
Can an AI agent ask one of these forward deployed engineering leaders a question?
Yes. An agent with a USDC wallet on Base can ask one question without an Instant Expert account. It names the person, for example by the LinkedIn URL on this page, and pays per ask over x402 (HTTP 402). The person answers in writing or by voice note, and if nobody answers within 7 days, the payment goes back to the wallet automatically. x402 docs
About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot and may describe past or present roles. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
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