North Austin, Texas 78758
The Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) works directly with the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) and partner agencies to rapidly design, build, deploy, and iterate modern digital solutions—often working onsite or embedded with mission teams. The role combines hands-on engineering, problem solving, rapid prototyping, and production deployment to accelerate modernization and reduce dependency on legacy integrator models. The FDE bridges gaps between product teams, security, business units, and cloud engineering, applying platform-agnostic engineering practices and evaluating AI/LLM capabilities based on business need, security requirements, data classification, interoperability, sustainability, and total cost of ownership. The consultant helps DIR and agencies understand what is possible with modern technology, translates emerging capabilities into practical delivery patterns, and coaches internal teams on responsible adoption. This is a hybrid role based in North Austin, TX (3 days per week on-site), running from July 13, 2026 through October 31, 2026 (approximately 90 days initially, with extensions possible), not to exceed 500 total hours.