Forward Deployed Engineer

About the role

Forward Deployed Engineer This isn't a remote support role, you're building the product shoulder-to-shoulder with the people using it. Navi is already live at major flight schools across the country, and every one of them wants more — dashboards, tools, the workflow features that make their day run better. You're the person who embeds with a customer, learns their operation, and builds exactly what they need, fast. You're a compulsive builder who can scope and ship end to end on your own — you'd empathize with the customer's needs and show them something working by tomorrow. You don't bring a playbook; you reason from the actual situation and believe any problem can be figured out. You have the run-through-walls grit of a founder, the technical bar of a real engineer, and genuine curiosity about how a flight school runs — because that's where the best features come from. The simplest test: would a chief instructor and an engineer both want you in the trenches? Every feature you ship makes a customer more committed, and the signal you bring back from the field — the edge cases, the workflow friction, the things nobody thought of — sharpens the whole product. You're not just serving one customer. You're supercharging how fast this company learns. What you'll do - Embed with a customer until you understand their operation extremely well - Build the dashboards, tools, and features they're asking for, and ship them fast - Gather field intelligence — user feedback, edge cases, performance data, workflow observations — and bring it back to product and engineering in a way that drives action - Own the customer relationship on the ground — you are Navi's face at every site you touch - Work directly with engineering to compress the feedback loop between field reality and product iteration About you - You can build and ship an app, dashboard, or internal tool end to end, by yourself — design, code, deploy - You learn a domain fast and can smoothly own talking to a chief instructor one hour and debugging at your desk the next - You stay effective when there's no manual, no clear owner, and the requirements keep changing - You're comfortable embedding with a customer and flexible about travel - You read a room and build trust fast — customers want you back on site, and you can turn a vague ask into a clear plan they're bought into Nice to have - Familiarity with aviation systems, flight schools, avionics, or defense operations - Pilot certificate or flight training experience - Experience working on military installations, flight schools, or in DoW environments Why this role matters Navi's technology only matters if it works where it counts — in the cockpit, the briefing room, the ops center. You're the person who makes that happen. Every site you deploy is a new proof point. Every feature you ship makes a customer more committed. Every insight you bring back compounds across the whole product. You close the gap between product and reality — and that's what lets this company scale without breaking. What you'll get - Flight training — earn your pilot's license and work with true domain expertise - Competitive salary and full travel coverage — flights, lodging - Impact you can see — work directly with pilots, instructors, and military operators using what you deployed - A role that scales into field operations leadership as we grow How we work - Find a way. We don't wait for permission or perfect information. Ideas come from anywhere regardless of title. Figure it out, ship it, iterate. - Creativity over control. First principles over process. We'd rather have a creative solution that's 80% right today than a perfect one next quarter. - Update fast. Come in with a hypothesis, throw it away when the data says otherwise. Ego has no place here. - Intensity with focus. We work hard because the mission demands it. Clarity on what matters is how we make that sustainable. San Francisco

Key responsibilities

• check_circleCollaborate with the team on day-to-day project tasks
• check_circleLearn tools and processes used by the organization
• check_circleDocument work and participate in team meetings
• check_circleSupport quality checks and continuous improvement

Requirements

• check_circleEmbed with a customer until you understand their operation extremely well
• check_circleBuild the dashboards, tools, and features they're asking for, and ship them fast
• check_circleGather field intelligence — user feedback, edge cases, performance data, workflow observations — and bring it back to product and engineering in a way that drives action
• check_circleOwn the customer relationship on the ground — you are Navi's face at every site you touch
• check_circleWork directly with engineering to compress the feedback loop between field reality and product iteration
• check_circleYou can build and ship an app, dashboard, or internal tool end to end, by yourself — design, code, deploy
• check_circleYou learn a domain fast and can smoothly own talking to a chief instructor one hour and debugging at your desk the next
• check_circleYou stay effective when there's no manual, no clear owner, and the requirements keep changing
• check_circleYou're comfortable embedding with a customer and flexible about travel
• check_circleYou read a room and build trust fast — customers want you back on site, and you can turn a vague ask into a clear plan they're bought into
• check_circleFamiliarity with aviation systems, flight schools, avionics, or defense operations
• check_circlePilot certificate or flight training experience

Skills & keywords

Benefits & perks

• check_circleMentorship
• check_circleCertificate of completion
• check_circleFlexible work arrangement where applicable