4-year degree in Computer Science or related field or equivalent experience
5+ years of software development experience on Agile teams (Python and Java preferred)
5+ years familiarity with public cloud technologies (Azure preferred)
3+ years in Platform Engineering or Developer Experience roles
Experience with coding agent harnesses like Claude Code, Codex, or Cursor
Strong communication abilities with both technical and non-technical teams
Desire to engage with emerging technologies and expand skill sets
Responsibilities
Exemplify software delivery best practices with Agentic Coding tools
Document and present insights from embedded work to the AI Enablement organization
Monitor and ensure observability of agentic coding tools usage using tools like Datadog
Identify and document gaps between platform offerings and user experience
Manage internal Plugin Marketplace to improve functionality and ease of use
Meet Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and lead incident management
Collaborate with technology and infrastructure teams across tasks
Benefits
Comprehensive health coverage including medical, dental, and vision
401(k) with Roth option and company matching contributions
Generous paid time off policy including 5 weeks of vacation and 3 floating holidays
Paid leave for family-related circumstances including maternity and paternity
Support for self-care, wellness, and mental health initiatives
Full Job Description
Lead Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) (P4570)
We are seeking a Lead Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) to join our AI Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) team and enable evolution of software development using AI tooling across Kroger and 84.51°. The AI SDLC team provides access to Agentic Coding harnesses and agentic coding best practices in collaboration with Security, functional SDLC advisors, and development teams across the enterprise. The AI SDLC team also helps maintain an internal marketplace of Plugins for AI tooling, in tandem with teams offering other supporting services for AI Agents. This role provides an opportunity to shape how thousands of developers adopt AI within a large enterprise. As a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), you will spend time embedded directly with delivery teams and collaborating with platform and security stakeholders. Success for this role means accelerating AI-enabled SDLC - writing code alongside developers, finding where our AI tooling or policy falls short in their workflows, and turning that friction into platform improvements which scale across Kroger and 84.51°. This is a generalist Software Engineer role spanning the Software Development, Observability, DevOps, Security, and Developer Experience domains. This role is hands-on and is expected to both provide technical leadership and to produce code.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Exemplify best-practice for software delivery with Agentic Coding tools (such as Claude Code
Regularly document and present learnings gleaned from embedded work or experiments to the AI Enablement organization
Ensure accurate observability of adoption and usage patterns of agentic Coding tools using Datadog, Dynatrace or other related observability tools
Bridge the gap between Platform offerings and User adoption or usage patterns, discovering and documenting any gaps in capability and experience
Closely monitor and maintain our internal Plugin Marketplaces or similar to enhance usability of offerings
Ensure we hit SLAs and lead incident management procedures
Engage with other technology, infrastructure, and product teams as necessary to complete tasks
Participate routinely in team on-call rotation and customer support during business hours
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, AND EXPERIENCE
4-year degree in a technology related discipline (Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, etc.) or equivalent work experience
5+ years of experience producing high-quality software on Agile development teams. (Python and Java preferred)
5+ years of experience with public cloud technologies (Azure preferred)
3+ years of experience in Platform Engineering, DevEx, or related roles
Demonstrable experience working with Coding Agent Harnesses and related tooling in an enterprise setting (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, etc.)
Strong interpersonal and communication skills with demonstrated experience leveraging these skills with technical teams and non-technical business units
Desire to learn new technology and grow across different areas of technology
Familiarity with AI-related concepts such as LLMs, Agents, Model Context Protocol (MCP)
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, AND EXPERIENCE
Strong technical writing, documentation, or functional research skills
Experience developing AI-powered features or applications
Experience developing CI/CD workflows or other similar automations contributing to code safety and reliability
Experience working with IAC systems, eg. Terraform/Spacelift, Kubernetes, Helm, etc.
Demonstrated ability to prioritize own workload with multiple responsibilities and adaptability to changes in those priorities
#LI-SSS
Pay Transparency and Benefits
The stated salary range represents the entire span applicable across all geographic markets from lowest to highest. Actual salary offers will be determined by multiple factors including but not limited to geographic location, relevant experience, knowledge, skills, other job-related qualifications, and alignment with market data and cost of labor. In addition to salary, this position is also eligible for variable compensation.
Below is a list of some of the benefits we offer our associates:
Health: Medical: with competitive plan designs and support for self-care, wellness and mental health. Dental: with in-network and out-of-network benefit. Vision: with in-network and out-of-network benefit.
Wealth: 401(k) with Roth option and matching contribution. Health Savings Account with matching contribution (requires participation in qualifying medical plan). AD&D and supplemental insurance options to help ensure additional protection for you.
Happiness: Paid time off with flexibility to meet your life needs, including 5 weeks of vacation time, 7 health and wellness days, 3 floating holidays, as well as 6 company-paid holidays per year. Paid leave for maternity, paternity and family care instances.
Pay Range
$125,000-$207,000 USD
About 84.51
84.51° is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co. and is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company was founded in 2015 and provides data analytics and customer insights to Kroger and other consumer-packaged goods companies. The name 84.51° refers to the longitude of the company's headquarters in Cincinnati.
