Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE)

Forward Deployed Engineer At Coupa

Coupa makes margins multiply through its community-generated AI and industry-leading total spend management platform for businesses large and small. Coupa AI is informed by trillions of dollars of direct and indirect spend data across a global network of 10M+ buyers and suppliers. We empower you with the ability to predict, prescribe, and automate smarter, more profitable business decisions to improve operating margins.

The Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) is the technical engine of Coupa's AI Transformation. Sits at the intersection of Generative AI Engineering, Complex Workflow Orchestration, and Enterprise Systems Integration. Responsible for breaking down complex spend friction into logical state-machine workflows, utilizing Coupa Compose to orchestrate data, SLAs, AI agents, and business rules across heterogeneous environments. You translate high-level "intents" defined by the Business Consultant into functional, interconnected AI solutions that drive measurable business outcomes. As a "forward deployed" resource, you act as the critical technical link between customer requirements and Coupa Product Management.

What You'll Do:

• AI Engineering & Agentic Orchestration
• Agent Studio Mastery: Own the build, configuration, and rapid prototyping within Coupa Agent Studio; utilize "Agent Creativity" to expand platform capabilities beyond standard out-of-the-box features.
• Prompt & Model Engineering: Specialized in AI Prompt Configuration and Model Tuning; possess the critical ability to identify when an agent is "hallucinating" and apply technical guardrails to ensure "Golden Standard" accuracy.
• Multi-LLM & Tool Fluency: Fluent in multiple AI solutions and frameworks beyond Coupa (e.g., Claude, OpenAI, MCP, LangChain) to architect the most effective "Best-of-Breed" agentic workflows.
• Architect Extensibility (Embedded UI Assistant & MCP): Design and deploy Coupa's open extensibility frameworks. Enable the Embedded UI Assistant (via Open Assistant Framework) to integrate external AI into the Coupa UI, and leverage the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to allow external enterprise orchestrators to securely execute Coupa actions.
• Agent-to-Agent Communication: Design the logic and hand-off protocols that allow multiple agents to collaborate autonomously on complex, multi-step workflows.
• Process State Machine Design: Decompose highly complex, multi-step procurement and finance challenges into deterministic, resilient workflow logic. Account for multi-tiered routing, operational SLAs, real-time data transformations, and asynchronous exception-handling threads.
• UX Alignment & Adoption Engineering: Own the user journey within Tonkean (Smart Intake & Orchestration). Ensure that data extracted by agents maps seamlessly to intuitive, personalized frontend fields, eliminating change management overhead and driving process adoption.
• Integration & Technical Leadership
• Full-Suite API Mastery: Leverage deep technical API knowledge to ensure secure, low-latency data exchange between AI agents and 3rd-party enterprise ecosystems (ERP, CLM, CRM).
• Security & Risk Alignment: Partner directly with customer IT teams to resolve security questions, risk assessments, and technical feasibility blockers, ensuring all builds meet enterprise-grade standards.
• Consumption Strategy: Understand and manage the impact of agentic use cases on Coupa credit usage and resource consumption.
• The Field-to-Product Bridge
• Bi-Directional Feedback Loop: Act as the primary technical liaison to Product Management; identify roadmap gaps, articulate customer technical issues, and prioritize new features based on actual engagement data.
• "As-Designed" Integrity: Close the loop between the original architectural vision and the final technical delivery to ensure the solution remains aligned with "As Designed" specifications.
• Technical Sales Support: Own and curate a library of "Agent Blueprints" to rapidly deploy high-impact PoCs in pre-sales, serving as the final authority on technical feasibility.
• Delivery Scaling & Asset Democratization: Move beyond localized blueprints for sales pitches. Package customized SIO workflows and Agent Studio configurations into standardized, reusable implementation patterns and framework components that optimize delivery velocity across the global Professional Services ecosystem.
• Performance Tuning & Quality Assurance
• Guardrail & Simulation Design: Design the authorization boundaries and simulation runs that define where an agent can act autonomously versus where "Human-in-the-Loop" intervention is required.
• Functional Correctness: Develop automated evaluation harnesses to move past "semantic correctness" and ensure rigorous "functional correctness" in production environments.
• Monitoring & Health: Own the technical lifecycle of the build, including unit testing, monitoring agent health, and remediating workflow breakages.
• Continuous Improvement: Understands human-in-the-loop best practices and where and how to build that into tech solutions.

What You Will Bring to Coupa:

• Must-Have Technical Expertise
• Integration Background: Proven experience in a technical integration role (Middleware, API Engineering, or Systems Architecture) with a deep knowledge of REST/GraphQL and JSON.
• Programming Proficiency: Fluency in Python and/or JavaScript (Node.js).
• System Connectivity: Experience building the "connective tissue" between non-deterministic AI outputs and deterministic enterprise systems.
• Coupa S2P Domain Awareness: Understanding of Source-to-Pay business requirements; ability to map agentic workflows to core procurement, invoicing, and payables logic.
• Agentic Frameworks: Hands-on experience with MCP or similar open-standard agentic architectures (e.g., LangChain, AutoGen).
• Desired "Super Powers"
• The "Builder" Mindset: Ability to move rapidly from a blank page to a functional, "pluggable" AI component.
• Strategic Problem Solving: Skill in debugging complex systems where errors may stem from data quality, prompt ambiguity, or API latency.
• Strategic Rapport: Ability to establish technical trust with C-suite stakeholders, serving as the "Expert in the Room" for AI transformation.
• Digital Transformation Foundation: Proven experience in enterprise strategic consulting and large-scale digital transformation initiatives.
• Technical Agility: Works well in an agile implementation environment and can quickly redesign an agent's logic.
• Transparent Translator: Can explain why the tech is behaving that way without being too technical, and also instill confidence in the customer.
• Coupa API/Compose Depth: Can diagnose if it's the agent's fault, is it the product, is it the data, is it the configuration. Also will help with expectation-setting upfront to give the customer knowledge proactively.
• The "Logical Systems" Architect: The ability to map complex, highly political, and fragmented legacy client processes into streamlined, automated workflow dependencies without losing architectural coherence.

At Coupa, we are 100% committed to creating and nurturing an environment that supports your physical, mental, and community well-being. We offer a comprehensive suite of benefits designed to help you and your family thrive:

• Global Well-Being Perks (For All Employees Globally)
• Global Wellness Days: Enjoy two designated, company-wide paid wellness days off each year (typically the first Friday in March and the last Friday in September) so the entire global team can unplug, step away, and recharge together.
• Birthday Time-Off: Celebrate your day! Coupa provides a paid day off on your birthday or another day of your choice within your birthday month.
• Volunteer Time Off (VTO): Giving back is in our DNA. We offer 40 hours of paid VTO annually to support the community initiatives and volunteer programs you are passionate about.
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP): Access free, confidential, 24/7/365 counseling and resources for emotional support, work-life solutions, financial advice, legal guidance, and support for new parents.
• Business Travel Protection: Travel with peace of mind. Zurich Travel Assist provides medical, safety, pre-trip planning, and emergency support during any business travel.
• Referral Bonus Program: Share the Coupa experience! Receive generous monetary referral bonuses when you successfully refer talented friends or acquaintances who are hired into open roles.

Please note: In addition to these global well-being perks, Coupa offers highly competitive, location-specific benefits packages (which include comprehensive medical/dental insurance, retirement/pension plans, and life or accident protection) tailored to your primary work location. Your recruiter will walk you through the specific regional benefits package for this