Forward Deployed Engineering, Portworx

purestorage

Santa Clara, California · Santa Clara · United States

Posted Aug 18, 2026

Other
On-site
Engineering

Job description

We’re in an unbelievably exciting area of tech and are fundamentally reshaping the data storage industry. Here, you lead with innovative thinking, grow along with us, and join the smartest team in the industry.

This type of work—work that changes the world—is what the tech industry was founded on. So, if you're ready to seize the endless opportunities and leave your mark, come join us.

THE ROLE

Portworx is building a Forward Deployed Engineering team to embed directly with our most strategic customers during their highest-stakes Kubernetes storage deployments. You'll be the technical bridge between complex customer infrastructure and Portworx itself: designing production architectures, unblocking critical rollouts, and turning field experience into structured product feedback that shapes our roadmap.

This is not a support role and not a pure pre-sales role. You'll own engagements end-to-end: from solution validation before you ever get on a plane, through architecture design, production stabilization, and a clean handoff. You'll leave behind documentation and automation that make the next customer's journey faster.

Just as important as the technical delivery: this is a relationship-building role. You'll work directly with senior technical leaders (Directors and VPs of Infrastructure and Platform Engineering), and the goal is to become a trusted advisor on their broader platform strategy, not just their Portworx footprint. Done well, this role gives Portworx (and Pure) visibility and influence across the customer's whole platform organization.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

Where possible - reproduce a customer's target environment, whether on-prem or cloud/CaaS, in a lab and validate the proposed solution and architecture pattern before traveling on-site, so on-site time is spent building trust and executing a proven design
Design and validate production Portworx architectures for complex, high-stakes customer environments (multi-cluster, DR, KubeVirt VM migration, regulated/air-gapped deployments, cloud-native CaaS platforms)
Lead hands-on implementation: storage class design, KVDB topology, snapshot/backup policy, async/sync replication, capacity and sizing models
Run failure-mode and performance validation before go-live (node/AZ loss, network partition, upgrade paths)
Troubleshoot production-blocking issues in real time during critical rollouts
Author runbooks, reference architectures, and automation that become reusable IP across engagements
Upskill customer platform teams so they can operate independently post-handoff
Build and sustain relationships with senior technical leaders (Directors/VPs of Infrastructure and Platform Engineering) by understanding and helping shape their broader platform strategy, not just their Portworx deployment
Conduct periodic visits to established, already-live accounts to maintain the relationship, stay current on their evolving platform needs, and surface expansion opportunities. Many customers start small and grow, and this is how that growth gets found and won
Develop enough fluency in the customer's development environment and workflows to speak credibly to their CaaS platform needs as a whole
Log and structure field feedback (bugs, feature gaps, roadmap signal) for a recurring feedback loop with Product and Engineering
Partner closely with Sales Engineering, Customer Success, and Support to triage which engagements warrant FDE involvement
We are primarily an in-office environment and therefore, you will be expected to work from the Santa Clara office in compliance with Everpure's policies, unless you are on PTO, or work travel, or other approved leave.

WHAT YOU BRING

5+ years in infrastructure/platform engineering, SRE, or field/solutions engineering roles; prior "forward deployed," field engineering, or professional services experience a plus
Deep, hands-on Kubernetes expertise (CKA/CKS or equivalent production experience). You've run clusters in production, not just in a lab
Strong understanding of enterprise storage infrastructure: SAN/NAS, Fibre Channel, iSCSI, NVMe/TCP, multipath (dm-multipath), LVM
Solid Linux systems administration background
Comfort working across both on-prem and cloud/CaaS deployment models. You shouldn't have a blind spot on either side
Working understanding of customer development environments (CI/CD, application deployment patterns, dev/test workflows) sufficient to reason about CaaS platform needs beyond just the storage layer
Experience with virtualization and migration patterns (VMware, KubeVirt) a strong plus
Prior experience with Portworx, other CSI-based storage platforms, or enterprise storage vendors (Pure Storage, NetApp, Dell, etc.) is highly valued
Genuine relationship-building instincts. This role requires earning trust with senior technical leaders over time, not just closing out a project; comfort running both a technical whiteboard session and a live war-room call, and staying in touch between fires
Strong technical writing skills. The artifacts you leave behind are as important as the fix you made

#LI-ONSITE

Salary ranges are determined based on role, level and location. For positions open to candidates in multiple geographical locations, the base salary range is reflective of the labor market across the applicable locations.

This role may be eligible for incentive pay and/or equity.

There is no application deadline and we accept applications on an ongoing basis until the job is filled.

The annual base salary range is:

$208,000—$305,000 USD

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM US:

Innovation: We celebrate those who think critically, like a challenge, and aspire to be trailblazers.
Growth: We give you the space and support to grow along with us and to contribute to something meaningful. We have been named Fortune's Best Workplaces in Technology™, Fortune's Best Workplaces in the Bay Area™, and certified as a Great Place to Work®!
Team: We build each other up and set aside ego for the greater good.

And because we understand the value of bringing your full and best self to work, we offer a variety of perks to manage a healthy balance, including flexible time off, wellness resources, and company-sponsored team events. Check out purebenefits.com for more information.

ACCOMMODATIONS AND ACCESSIBILITY:

Candidates with disabilities may request accommodations for all aspects of our hiring process. For more on this, contact us at TA-Ops@purestorage.com if you’re invited to an interview.

OUR COMMITMENT TO A STRONG AND INCLUSIVE TEAM:

We’re forging a future where everyone finds their rightful place and where every voice matters. Where uniqueness isn’t just accepted but embraced. That’s why we are committed to fostering the growth and development of every person, cultivating a sense of community through our Employee Resource Groups and advocating for inclusive leadership.

Everpure is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or any other characteristic legally protected by the laws of the jurisdiction in which you are being considered for hire.

Join us and bring your best.

Bring your bold.

Pure and simple.