Should Software Engineers Become FDEs?

Dear Reader,

Shubham Kumar has spent eight years in the IT industry.

Two years ago, he moved into a role called forward deployed engineering.

The switch came with a significant pay rise. His annual salary went from Rs 20-30 lakh as a senior software engineer to Rs 40-50 lakh as an FDE.

And, his job has been making the rounds recently as one of the hottest new tech jobs.

A report by Scaler and CyberMedia Research found that 88% of Indian enterprises surveyed expect demand for FDEs to grow by 2030.

The report also found that engineers in explicitly designated FDE roles earn between Rs 40 lakh and Rs one crore annually.

So, what exactly does an FDE do?

"An FDE is someone who is very good at engineering, at coding and is a good consultant," said Amar Srivastava, CEO of Scaler's online business.

The job involves embedding yourself in an organisation for three to four months, understanding its problems and figuring out how technology can help solve them. It also means working closely with clients and making sure the solutions deliver results.

As more companies adopt AI, this role is gaining importance. Writing code is becoming faster, but getting businesses to actually use new technology still requires considerable human involvement.

Shubham says he spends much of his time talking to clients and managing stakeholders.

But here's the interesting part: he was doing much of this in his previous job, too.

"I found out later in the interview process that this role was a forward deployed engineering role. Since I was already handling clients, I felt confident," he told me.

So, is forward deployed engineering an entirely new profession, or are companies just giving an existing set of responsibilities a new name?

And while the salaries can be attractive, what does it take to break into the field?

In the latest episode of The Signal Brief, I speak to FDEs, founders and industry experts to understand what the job involves, why companies are hiring for it and whether it's a career worth pursuing.

Listen to the episode and let us know what you think.

You can find The Signal Brief on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

Thank you once again for listening and supporting us. We’d love to hear from you; write to us at [email protected] or find us on Instagram or X at @thesignaldotco.

Best,
Kudrat
on behalf of The Core

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