Planet Labs

Senior Forward Deployed Engineer

Planet Labs$160K — $200K *
US-AnywhereRemote in United States
Aerospace & Defense
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 6+ years of experience in software engineering or equivalent technical role.
  • Experience in geospatial software development and concepts (e.g., Rasterio, Fiona, Shapely).
  • Familiarity with AWS or GCP cloud services.
  • Proficient in Python programming language.
  • Strong understanding of software engineering best practices including coding standards and testing methodologies.
  • Excellent customer engagement skills for communicating technical concepts.
  • Adaptability to fast, iterative development cycles.

Responsibilities

  • Contribute to the full development lifecycle, from design to deployment of bespoke customer solutions.
  • Design and develop full-stack software including front-end and back-end components.
  • Engage directly with customers to translate operational challenges into technical requirements.
  • Identify and document reusable patterns in solutions for future use.
  • Utilize an AI-first approach to drive rapid iterations and adapt to evolving product needs.
  • Mentor junior engineers and engage in code reviews to ensure quality.
  • Meet critical delivery commitments that impact customer relationships and business goals.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans.
  • Health Savings Account (HSA) with company contributions.
  • Generous Paid Time Off and company-wide days off.
  • 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave.
  • Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
  • Home Office Reimbursement and monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement.
  • Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning.
  • Equity options available.
  • Commuter Benefits for local employees.
  • Volunteering Paid Time Off to support community engagement.
Full Job Description
About the Role:

We are seeking a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer to help develop transformative solutions for our most strategic accounts, starting with our Global Defense and Security customers. In this role, you will work directly with key partners, acting as a senior technical contributor and hands-on builder within a collaborative engineering team. Your mission will be to tackle complex, mission-critical customer challenges by building high-impact software solutions.

You will have a high degree of autonomy to design and build what is needed, turning ambiguous requirements into functional and reliable software. Your work will directly contribute to delivering on critical customer commitments and will help inform future product development. This role is ideal for an individual contributor who thrives in dynamic environments and enjoys taking ownership of complex technical problems from design to delivery.

This is a full-time, remote position based in the United States. If located near an office, you are expected to work from that office 3 days per week.

Impact You'll Own:
  • Contribute to the full development lifecycle: from discovery and decomposition to designing, building, and deploying bespoke solutions for customer challenges.
  • Design and develop robust, full-stack software, including front-end, back-end, data integration, cloud infrastructure (e.g., AWS), and CI/CD pipelines.
  • Work directly with customers to understand their operational challenges and translate them into clear technical requirements.
  • Identify reusable patterns in customer solutions to inform broader platform development.
  • Leverage the latest AI tooling and an AI-first mindset to drive rapid iteration, deliver value quickly, and adapt to evolving requirements with a bias for action.
  • Mentor other engineers, contribute to code reviews, and help foster a collaborative team environment.
  • Deliver critical commitments on time, understanding their direct impact on customer relationships and business objectives.

What You Bring:
  • 6+ years of relevant work experience in software engineering or in an equivalent technical role.
  • Experience with geospatial software development and concepts (e.g., Rasterio, Fiona, Shapely, OpenLayers, GDAL).
  • AWS or GCP experience.
  • Proficiency in Python.
  • Excellent knowledge of software engineering best practices, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, and testing methodologies.
  • Excellent customer engagement skills, with the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.
  • Experience with fast, iterative development cycles and an ability to adapt to shifting requirements.
  • Willingness to travel 30-50% to customer sites within the region.
  • Must have a current active security clearance (TS or TS/TSI).

What Makes You Stand Out:
  • Experience with JavaScript, Java, Go or C#.

Application Deadline:

September 116, 2026 by 11:59p PT

Benefits While Working at Planet:

These offerings are dependent on employment type and geographical location, based upon applicable law or company policy.
  • Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans
  • Health Savings Account (HSA) with a company contribution
  • Generous Paid Time Off in addition to holidays and company-wide days off
  • 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave
  • Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
  • Home Office Reimbursement
  • Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement
  • Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning
  • Equity
  • Commuter Benefits (if local to an office)
  • Volunteering Paid Time Off

Compensation:

The US base salary range for this full-time position at the commencement of employment is listed below. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary short-term and long-term incentives (bonus and equity). The final salary range is determined by job related experience, skills and location. The range displays our typical hiring range for new hire salaries in US locations only. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

#LI-REMOTE

New York City + California Salary Range

$172,200-$215,200 USD

San Francisco Salary Range

$182,900-$228,600 USD

US National Salary Range

$160,600-$200,800 USD

San Francisco Fair Chance OrdinancePursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

About Planet Labs

Planet Labs is an aerospace and defense company that designs and manufactures small satellites for Earth observation. The company offers services such as satellite imagery, data analysis, and geospatial insights. Planet Labs was founded in 2010 and is based in San Francisco, CA.
Learn more about Planet Labs
Size
500 employees
Industry
Founded
2010

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