Forward Deployed Engineer

Description

You will join a modeling group inside the Transformation Command Center that works on network capital strategy.

Your projects will use AI-first and agent-driven modeling, statistics and advanced analytics to answer long-term network capacity questions.

The aim is to size future capacity needs for the multi-billion dollar investments in the network.

You will work with a high degree of independence, designing and running AI-based capacity simulations and optimizations alongside business partners.

You will also watch for new modeling methods and technologies that could make simulations more accurate, faster or better overall.

Your output feeds accurate capacity plans to finance teams, who use them to fund next-year expansion and day-to-day network work.

Responsibilities

• Work with stakeholders to build AI, agent-based and algorithmic models of network elements and processes that support the 3-year capital budget.
• Plan and design a new capacity model, and get agreement from NCS and the business team on it.
• Run the model at several checkpoints each year, and turn it into a hardened deployment with documentation and a plan to automate the process later.
• Plan upgrades to the model that bring in other algorithm types, AI techniques or extra input features.
• Use and test AI tools, including agentic workflows, LLM-assisted coding and automated documentation and reporting, to speed up model building, scenario testing and stakeholder deliverables. The company openly backs AI-assisted work of this kind.
• Push through obstacles in the software development process on your own, and escalate them when needed.
• Give occasional presentations to leaders and engineers explaining how the systems you built work.
• File patents on new the company inventions where appropriate.

Requirements

• Interest in AI, innovation, process improvement, advanced algorithms and sound independent software design.
• You can decide the next steps when requirements are missing, and know when to bring in the team and business partners.
• You can explain technical material to both technical and non-technical audiences, keeping in mind that a single project can shift millions of dollars of spend toward better network service for customers.
• Bachelor's degree or 4+ years of work experience.
• 4+ years of relevant experience, gained through work, military service, specialized training, or a mix of these.
• Intermediate skill in Python (or R) and SQL, with a moderate record of completed projects.
• Intermediate skill in Alteryx or Knime.
• Experience building or connecting agentic AI workflows, such as LLM-based agents, tool-use or function-calling pipelines, or automation frameworks like LangChain, AutoGen, or Claude or GPT agents, that automate data intake, scenario generation or report writing for capital planning and simulation.
• Even better if you have one or more of the following:
• A degree in business intelligence and analytics, data science, engineering, computer science, mathematics or a similar field.
• Experience with time series analysis or forecasting.
• Strong background in engineering investigations, performance optimization or network capacity management.
• Experience with engineering budget cycles, such as funding requests for cell-site builds in a regional role.
• Experience gathering requirements and turning them into specific software practices.
• Experience with data engineering.
• Knowledge of cloud platforms such as Google Cloud Platform or Amazon Web Services.
• Experience with high-performance containerized GPU environments.
• Solid grounding in mathematical optimization, prescriptive modeling and network capacity management.
• Experience designing, building and deploying full-stack web applications and APIs with FastAPI, custom GUIs such as Flet or Marimo, and high-performance BI dashboards that give non-technical leaders access to optimization models and faster scenario planning.
• Apply even if you do not meet every 'even better' item above, if the role and the company look like a fit.

Conditions

Hybrid role: you will have a set work location that includes working from home and a minimum of 3 days per week in the office, assigned by your manager.

You are responsible for following hybrid work policies.

Scheduled weekly hours: 40.

Benefits

• Health and wellness options include medical, dental, vision, short- and long-term disability, basic life, supplemental life, AD&D, identity theft protection, pet insurance, and group home and auto insurance.
• Matched 401(k) savings plan.
• Up to 8 paid company holidays and up to 6 personal days per year.
• Paid parental leave, adoption assistance and tuition assistance.
• Newly hired employees receive up to 15 days of vacation per year, which increases with service.
• Depending on the role, premium pay such as overtime, shift differential, holiday pay and allowances may be available.
• Part-time employees may qualify for some of these benefits, depending on their circumstances.
• The salary depends on location and on confirmed job-related skills and experience. The role is incentive-based, with the potential to earn more.
• Part-time pay is adjusted to the hours worked.
• The annual full-time salary range for the listed location(s) is $101,000.00 - $194,000.00.