AI-Native Forward Deployed Engineer

Contractor Opportunity: AI-Native Forward Deployed Engineer

Location: Onsite – Sacramento, CA

Engagement Type: Contractor via Third-Party Supplier

Contracting Entity: Accenture

Supplier of Record: Manpower Group

Start Date: 10/29/2026

Duration: 6 Months with potential for extension depending on progress delivery

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced AI-Native Forward Deployed Engineer to design, build, and deploy enterprise-grade AI solutions that solve complex business challenges and deliver measurable operational impact. This is a highly technical, hands-on role for an engineer who thrives in ambiguous environments, works directly with stakeholders, and rapidly transforms business requirements into secure, scalable, production-ready AI applications.

As a key member of the delivery team, you will develop AI-native applications, agentic workflows, and cloud-native services that integrate seamlessly with enterprise platforms, data sources, and business processes. You will own the full implementation lifecycle, from discovery and prototyping through deployment, optimization, and operational support, while helping establish reusable AI engineering patterns and modern delivery practices.

This opportunity is open to individuals located in the Sacramento, CA and surrounding areas,

The project hours of operations will be Monday – Friday

Contractors will be engaged and paid by a third-party payroll supplier, Manpower Group, which will serve as the employer of record for tax and compliance purposes.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner directly with business stakeholders, architects, product teams, and engineers to identify and implement high-value AI transformation opportunities.
• Design, develop, and deploy AI-native applications, agentic workflows, and enterprise-grade AI solutions that improve business operations and user experiences.
• Translate complex business processes and operational challenges into scalable technical architectures and production-ready software solutions.
• Build secure, observable, and reliable AI systems utilizing retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), workflow orchestration, tool/function calling, human-in-the-loop processes, and policy-based decisioning.
• Develop cloud-native applications, APIs, integrations, and microservices that support AI-powered business capabilities.
• Drive implementation excellence by balancing performance, maintainability, security, scalability, and business value throughout the delivery lifecycle.

Deliverables or Project Scope

• Design and deploy production-quality AI applications and agent-based solutions that integrate with enterprise platforms, APIs, workflows, and data ecosystems.
• Implement enterprise AI capabilities including retrieval systems, prompt orchestration, model routing, reasoning workflows, structured outputs, and workflow automation.
• Build scalable backend services using cloud-native architectures, containers, Kubernetes, serverless technologies, event-driven processing, and infrastructure-as-code practices.
• Develop evaluation frameworks and monitoring solutions to improve AI accuracy, latency, reliability, cost efficiency, observability, and user adoption.
• Create reusable engineering assets, accelerators, design patterns, and implementation frameworks that accelerate future AI-native delivery initiatives.
• Modernize legacy systems, software delivery processes, and development workflows through practical application of GenAI, automation, and AI-assisted engineering techniques.

Collaboration Tools or Platforms

• Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Outlook, Teams)
• AI/ML Platforms and Model Providers (commercial and open-source LLM platforms)
• Microsoft Azure, AWS, and/or Google Cloud Platform
• Kubernetes, Docker, and managed container platforms
• CI/CD and DevOps platforms (GitHub, GitLab, Azure DevOps, Jenkins, etc.)
• Workflow orchestration and automation platforms
• APIs, enterprise integration platforms, message queues, and event-streaming technologies
• Microsoft Office Suite, Microsoft Teams, and collaboration platforms
• Monitoring, logging, observability, and AI evaluation platforms

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or GED equivalent
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or a related technical field.
• Minimum 8 years of professional software engineering experience developing enterprise-grade applications and distributed systems.
• Minimum 3 years of hands-on experience designing, deploying, or supporting AI, LLM, GenAI, or intelligent automation solutions in production or production-like environments.
• Experience developing backend applications using at least one modern programming language such as Python, Java, TypeScript/Node.js, Go, or C#.
• Demonstrated experience building APIs, microservices, integrations, and cloud-native applications.
• Hands-on experience with one or more of the following: RAG solutions, agentic workflows, LLM orchestration, tool/function calling, AI-assisted business workflows, or AI-native application development.
• Experience with containerization, CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, monitoring, and production operations.
• Knowledge of cloud-native architecture patterns including Kubernetes, serverless computing, event-driven systems, and infrastructure as code.
• Experience working within enterprise security, data governance, identity management, and access control requirements.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to engage directly with technical and non-technical stakeholders

Preferred Qualifications

• 10+ years of enterprise software engineering or technical delivery experience.
• Previous experience as a Forward Deployed Engineer, Solutions Engineer, Platform Engineer, Technical Lead, or Senior Delivery Engineer.
• Experience building AI-native applications that support critical business workflows in production environments.
• Expertise integrating with enterprise AI platforms, model-serving environments, and multi-model architectures.
• Experience designing reusable AI engineering frameworks, platform abstractions, or developer enablement capabilities.
• Familiarity with AI evaluation frameworks, prompt/version management, model observability, tracing, and production AI monitoring.
• Experience supporting highly regulated, security-sensitive, or compliance-driven enterprise environments.
• Experience modernizing legacy systems and enterprise applications using cloud-native and AI-enabled approaches.
• Knowledge of workflow orchestration, policy-based routing, event-driven architecture, and asynchronous processing patterns.
• Experience optimizing AI workloads for quality, performance, cost, scalability, and operational reliability.

Additional Information / Requirements

• This is a 100% hands-on engineering role focused on designing, building, deploying, and supporting production-grade AI solutions.
• Candidates must be comfortable operating in ambiguous environments and rapidly converting evolving requirements into working software.
• Strong emphasis on implementation ownership, technical execution, production readiness, and delivery outcomes.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across engineering, architecture, product, business, and client-facing teams.
• Expected to document technical designs, implementation decisions, operational procedures, and best practices.
• Contribute to AI-native engineering standards, reusable assets, accelerators, and continuous improvement initiatives.

How to Apply

Please register and submit your resume at Avature Contractor Exchange. Qualified candidates will be contacted by Accenture’s Direct Sourcing team for initial screening, then by Manpower Group for next steps.

Compliance Notes

This is a contractor role administered through a third-party payroll supplier. The supplier will determine compensation, benefits, and applicable employment policies. The contractor will not be eligible for employee benefits from Accenture.

The supplier will ensure compliance with applicable federal and state laws including ADA, FMLA, and local ordinances

Contractors must have work authorization that does not now or in the future require sponsorship of a visa for work authorization in the United States.

Individuals currently employed by a client of Accenture or an affiliated Accenture business may not be eligible for consideration.

Contractor candidates will not be obligated to disclose sealed or expunged records of conviction or arrest. A criminal conviction history is not an absolute bar to engagement with Accenture.

Accenture will not discriminate against individuals because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another individual. Those with access to compensation information as a part of their job functions may not disclose such information unless the disclosure is:

• In response to a formal complaint or charge,
• In furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, or
• Consistent with Accenture’s legal duty to furnish information

California residents or those planning to work from Los Angeles County should review additional notifications here.

Please read Accenture’s Recruiting and Hiring Statement for more information on how we process your data during the contractor engagement process.

Compensation Disclosure

Compensation for contractor roles supporting Accenture is determined by the contractor’s employer Manpower Group, and varies depending on factors such as location, role, skill set, and experience.

As required by law, below you’ll find the reasonable range of compensation Manpower Group expects to pay for this role as set forth below.

We anticipate this contractor role will be posted until 10/22/2026.

Manpower Group offers a market competitive suite of benefits that may include medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage; Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA); 401(k) retirement savings plans; supplemental life insurance; short-term and long-term disability insurance; business travel insurance; employee assistance and wellness programs; commuter benefits; and additional voluntary benefits such as identity protection, legal services, and critical illness, accident, and hospital indemnity insurance.

Role Location

Hourly Range

California

$91.00 to $120.00

Colorado

$82.00 to $106.00

Connecticut

$84.00 to $108.00

District of Columbia

$89.00 to $115.00

Illinois

$84.00 to $111.00

Maine

$79.00 to $101.00

Maryland

$87.00 to $113.00

Massachusetts

$91.00 to $118.00

Minnesota

$82.00 to $106.00

New Jersey

$89.00 to $115.00

New York

$94.00 to $123.00

Ohio

$77.00 to $103.00

Virginia

$84.00 to $108.00

Washington

$91.00 to $120.00

Drug-Free Workplace

Accenture maintains a drug-free workplace. Engaging in illegal activities, including drug abuse, may result in termination or other appropriate action. The unlawful manufacture, sale, distribution, transfer, dispensation, possession, or use of controlled substances or marijuana in the workplace is strictly prohibited.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Accenture believes that no one should be discriminated against because of their differences. All decisions regarding contractor engagement shall be made without regard to age, race, creed, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, citizenship status, or any other basis protected by applicable law.

Accenture’s commitment to diversity and inclusion extends to all individuals performing services on its behalf, including those engaged through third-party suppliers. For details, view a copy of the Accenture Equal Opportunity Statement.

Accenture is an EEO and Affirmative Action supporter of Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities and is committed to providing veteran engagement opportunities.

Accenture is committed to fostering an inclusive environment and ensuring equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities or religious observances. If you are hired to perform services as a contractor for Accenture, you may request reasonable accommodations through the supplier, which will coordinate with Accenture as needed to support your ability to perform essential job functions.