Forward deployed engineers for product data and AI
Sitation's forward deployed engineers work inside your team, with your users, data and systems. AI engineers and PIM architects learn how the work is done, build what it needs and stay responsible for the result until it is in production and in use.
- Best for
- Product data, integration and AI initiatives that need engineers who understand the business.
- How it starts
- A framing session that maps users, systems, constraints and the result you need.
- Team
- One forward deployed engineer, up to a full Sitation team.
- What you keep
- Working software, documentation and a team ready to own it.
What a forward deployed engineer does
A forward deployed engineer works directly with your teams, data and systems to turn a business problem into a working solution in production. The role has spread with AI, because results depend on the details of each business: its data, its rules and the people who review the work. Read the full definition in our glossary.
Sitation's forward deployed engineers bring product data expertise as well as engineering. They understand product information, commerce and the integrations that connect them, so decisions about data, systems and AI are made with the people who will use them.
- Learn
- How the work is actually done, from the people who do it.
- Decide
- What to build, together with your business and technical owners.
- Build
- Working software, reviewed with your team as it develops.
- Hand over or stay
- Documentation and knowledge transfer, or ongoing support after launch.
How a forward deployed engineer compares
Three common ways to bring outside expertise into a product data or AI initiative.
| Forward deployed engineer | Consultant | Added capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who decides what to build | You and the engineer together, based on how the work is actually done | The consultant recommends and your team decides | Your team, before the person joins |
| Who builds it | The engineer, with your team | Often someone else, after the plan is handed over | The added person, from your backlog |
| Who is responsible for the result | The engineer, until it is in use | Your team | Your team |
| When the work ends | After release and handover, or the engineer stays to keep improving it | When the recommendation is delivered | When the contracted hours end |
What forward deployed engineering includes
Forward deployed AI engineers
An AI engineer works with your product, IT and operations owners to put AI into real workflows. They connect agents and generative AI to your approved product data, set permissions and review points, and measure whether it works. See our AI implementation services and Managed Agents.
- Agents and AI-assisted tools grounded in approved information
- Connections to your PIM, ERP and commerce systems
- Permissions, evaluation and human review
- Workflows your team can run and improve
Forward deployed PIM architects
A PIM architect works alongside your merchandising, eCommerce and IT teams on the data model, governance and platform decisions behind your product data. They work across platforms, including Stibo Systems, Salsify and Akeneo. See PIM, MDM & DAM implementation.
- Product data model and taxonomy design
- Governance rules, workflows and ownership
- Platform configuration decisions made with your team
- Guidance for the internal team that will own the platform
Applications, integrations and automation
Engineers build the interfaces your teams need to manage products and review exceptions. They connect PIM, MDM, DAM, ERP and commerce with APIs and workflows that account for errors and recovery. See our integration expertise.
- Internal tools for product and exception management
- APIs and integrations across PIM, MDM, DAM, ERP and commerce
- Automation that replaces manual handoffs
- Testing for integrations, access and recovery
How a forward deployed engagement runs
Frame the work
Map users, systems, constraints and the result you need.
Outcome: A shared plan and owners
Build in increments
Review working software and resolve decisions as the work develops.
Outcome: Working software
Validate and release
Check integrations, access, recovery and user acceptance.
Outcome: A tested release
Transfer or continue
Plan documentation, knowledge transfer and ongoing ownership.
Outcome: A team ready to own it
The right team for the work
Start with part of one forward deployed engineer's week, add several specialists to your delivery process, or hand a defined outcome to an entire Sitation team. Each engineer works in your systems and process, with clear responsibility for the result.
Specialist
One expert, part-time or full-time.
A forward deployed AI engineer or PIM architect, part-time or full-time.
Team extension
Several specialists inside your team and delivery process.
Several forward deployed engineers working from your backlog.
Dedicated team
A Sitation-led team that owns a defined outcome.
A Sitation-led team that delivers a defined build end to end.
Services that work together
Our four services are built to connect, so the team that builds your foundation can also run it, extend it and put AI to work on it.
Managed servicesKeep what we build running with ongoing managed services.
AI digital transformationChoose and prove AI use cases before you build them in.
PIM, MDM & DAM implementationBuild the PIM, MDM and DAM foundation your engineers work on.
Forward deployed engineeringEngineers inside your team who own the result.This page
Questions about forward deployed engineers
What is a forward deployed engineer?
An engineer who works directly with your teams, data and systems to turn a business problem into a working solution in production, and stays involved until people use it. See the glossary definition.
How is a forward deployed engineer different from a consultant or a contractor?
A consultant usually recommends and hands over a plan. Staff augmentation adds people to work through a backlog your team has already defined. A forward deployed engineer learns how the work is done, decides with you what to build, builds it and is responsible for the result.
What kind of work do your forward deployed engineers take on?
AI workflows and agents grounded in your approved product data, PIM and MDM data models and governance, and the applications, integrations and automation that connect PIM, MDM, DAM, ERP and commerce.
Which platforms do they work in?
Our engineers are platform-agnostic. They work across Stibo Systems, Salsify, Akeneo and the ERP, DAM and commerce systems around them.
Can we start with one engineer?
Yes. Start with one forward deployed engineer, part-time or full-time, and add specialists or a Sitation-led team as the work grows.
What happens when the engagement ends?
We plan documentation and knowledge transfer from the start, so your team can own what we built. If you would rather we keep improving it, the work can continue as managed services.
Talk to us about a forward deployed engineer
Tell us the initiative, the systems involved and where your team needs help. We will suggest the right engineers and a first piece of work.
