Forward Deployed Engineering Lead - Data Science & Integration

About Salesforce

Salesforce is the #1 AI CRM, where humans with agents drive customer success together. Here, ambition meets action, tech meets trust, and innovation is a way of life. Salesforce leads workforce transformation in the agentic era and seeks Trailblazers who are passionate about bettering business and the world through AI.

We are looking for a highly accomplished and senior‑level Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) to join our elite Public Sector team. This role blends hands‑on data science, integration architecture, and strategic partnership, embedding directly with customers in the U.S. Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and Aerospace & Allied Nations.

• Deploy Cutting‑Edge Data Science & Integration Innovation – deliver API‑led integration, orchestrated workflows, and advanced ML pipelines directly at defense, intelligence, and aerospace customer sites.
• Become a Trusted Partner Embedded with Mission Owners – work in classified and unclassified environments to translate operational challenges into end‑to‑end data science and integration solutions.
• Drive Innovation at the Front Lines – act as the connective bridge between missions and internal engineering teams, gathering feedback to co‑design patterns, templates, and capabilities that strengthen national security outcomes.
• Improve Efficiency, Mission‑Readiness, and Trust – enable faster response times, better personnel utilization, and more effective logistics through integrated data technology stacks.
• Drive Tangible Outcomes through Hands‑On Implementation – own end‑to‑end delivery of complex pipelines, integration flows, and predictive models, writing code, configuring systems, and troubleshooting field issues while guiding juniors.
• Build Transformative Data Science Solutions – design, develop, and implement scalable production ML and analytics systems, including predictive models, intelligent automation pipelines, and LLM‑augmented workflows.
• Engineer Bespoke Integration Architectures – design custom API‑led integrations using platforms like Mule Soft Anypoint or comparable middleware, ensuring seamless connectivity across regulated enterprise data and cloud environments.
• Orchestrate Complex Workflows – model, automate, and optimize multi‑stakeholder operational processes using Regrello or equivalent orchestration platforms.
• Own the Entire Data Lifecycle – manage data modeling, ETL/ELT construction, feature engineering, and integration strategy from on‑site engagement through secure analytics.
• Lead Rapid Prototyping and Iteration – develop proofs‑of‑concept and MVPs alongside customer teams to demonstrate capabilities and accelerate delivery.

• Serve as the forward‑deployed technical lead on high‑profile engagements, designing, building, and deploying tailored data science and integration solutions on‑site.
• Architect and implement enterprise integration solutions using Mule Soft Anypoint or equivalent iPaaS tooling, covering API design, development, and management across REST, SOAP, and event‑driven patterns.
• Design and deploy workflow automation solutions with Regrello or equivalent orchestration tooling to model complex operational processes and surface data‑driven insights.
• Lead integration of AI/ML models, custom data pipelines, and automation flows to enable predictive maintenance, personnel planning, and mission‑critical logistics decisions.
• Collaborate with customer IT and security teams to accelerate Authority to Operate (ATO) and production go‑lives per DoD IL5/IL6 and applicable regulatory frameworks.
• Partner with internal product and engineering teams to co‑develop integration patterns and data science capabilities informed by frontline feedback.
• Enable customers to adopt modern data platforms and integration middleware for field operations, asset visibility, and secure operational workflows.
• Mentor junior FDEs and share lessons learned to shape playbooks, templates, and reusable data science assets for government innovation.
• Translate mission priorities into actionable roadmaps, presenting findings and recommendations to senior stakeholders.

• 8+ years of…