Kong
API and AI governance
ForwardDeployedEngineer
Neural analysis suggests this role is
optimal for Senior candidates.
“Forward Deployed Engineer at Kong. Skills: API gateways, AI gateways, service connectivity, cloud-native platforms, API and AI Connectivity platform, Kubernetes, cloud-native infrastructure, automation, migration tooling, CI/CD pipelines, Python, Go, Java, JavaScript, Lua, Terraform, Ansible. Partner directly with enterprise customers to design, build, and implement Kong-based solutions across cloud, hybrid, and on-premise environments. Lead hands-on implementation efforts for API gateways, AI g”
What You'll Achieve.
accelerate adoption of Kong’s API and AI Connectivity platform; accelerate migrations; deliver production-grade solutions; ensure successful customer outcomes; influencing Kong’s product direction based on field experience; make a massive impact on Fortune 50/500 customers; modernize mission-critical systems for the AI era; accelerate AI adoption through Kong’s connectivity platform; deliver measurable business outcomes; scale delivery excellence across the organization
Industry & Context.
solve complex technical problems with minimal supervision; solve complex technical and operational challenges; solving ambiguous problems
What They're Looking For.
Must Have
8+ years in customer-facing engineering, platform engineering, professional services, site reliability engineering, or software engineering roles, hands-on software engineering and implementation experience, Experience with API gateways, API management, integrations, or distributed systems platforms, Kubernetes and cloud-native infrastructure expertise, Experience building automation frameworks, deployment tooling, CI/CD pipelines, or migration tooling, proficiency in Linux, networking, cloud infrastructure, and DevOps practices, Experience with major cloud providers including AWS, Azure, or GCP, Programming experience in languages such as Python, Go, Java, JavaScript, or Lua, Experience with Infrastructure-as-Code and automation tooling such as Terraform, Helm, Ansible, or GitOps frameworks
Nice to Have
Prior experience working in API Management, Open Source, Middleware, SaaS, or Infrastructure software companies is highly preferred, builder mindset with the ability to solve complex technical problems with minimal supervision, Comfortable operating in ambiguous, fast-moving enterprise environments, Passion for working directly with customers and delivering measurable business outcomes, Excellent communication and collaboration skills across technical and executive audiences, Highly organized with prioritization and execution skills, Passion for innovation, modern infrastructure, APIs, AI, and cloud-native technologies, Team-oriented with a sense of ownership and accountability
What You'll Do.
Partner directly with enterprise customers to design
and implement Kong-based solutions across cloud
and on-premise environments
Lead hands-on implementation efforts for API gateways
and related connectivity technologies
Build automation frameworks
and reusable accelerators to simplify customer adoption and modernization efforts
Drive migration initiatives from legacy API management platforms to Kong
Develop production-grade code
Kubernetes automation
and infrastructure tooling as part of customer engagements
Create reusable best practices
reference architectures
and design patterns to scale delivery excellence across the organization
Support strategic customer initiatives involving AI connectivity
platform modernization
and cloud-native transformation
How You'll Work.
Team & Collaboration
Work directly alongside customer engineering teams; Collaborate closely with Solutions Architects, Engagement Managers, Product Engineering, Customer Success, and Product teams; Work closely with customer developers, platform teams, architects, security teams, and executives; Collaborate with Kong Product and Engineering teams
Communication Scope
Excellent communication and collaboration skills across technical and executive audiences
Process & Methodology
prioritization and execution skills
Full Job Description
Are you ready to unlock intelligence? If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others. Join the global leader in API and AI governance in the era of Artificial Intelligence! API traffic now outnumbers human traffic online, and a significant portion of that traffic is powered by the Kong platform, the world’s most popular API gateway. As organizations modernize for AI-driven connectivity, Kong is uniquely positioned at the center of enterprise transformation. We are seeking a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) to join Kong’s growing Professional Services organization. This is a highly strategic, customer-facing engineering role focused on helping enterprise customers accelerate adoption of Kong’s API and AI Connectivity platform through hands-on implementation, automation, migration tooling, and solution engineering. As an FDE, you will work directly alongside customer engineering teams to solve complex technical challenges, accelerate migrations, build reusable automation, and deliver production-grade solutions in real-world enterprise environments. You will operate at the intersection of software engineering, architecture, platform engineering, and customer delivery. This role is ideal for engineers who enjoy building, coding, solving ambiguous problems, and working directly with customers on mission-critical initiatives involving APIs, AI gateways, service connectivity, modernization, and cloud-native platforms. You will collaborate closely with Solutions Architects, Engagement Managers, Product Engineering, Customer Success, and Product teams to ensure successful customer outcomes while also influencing Kong’s product direction based on field experience. Working at Kong is a unique opportunity to make a massive impact on Fortune 50/500 customers as they modernize
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