Founding Deployment Strategist

Job description

About the Role A Y Combinator–backed enterprise AI SaaS startup (Seed stage, SF-headquartered, 11–50 people) is hiring a Founding Deployment Strategist to lead its European expansion from Munich. You will work directly with the CEO to turn large enterprises into AI-native operators — combining hands-on agent development, high-touch customer partnership, and team-building to drive measurable AI adoption across complex organisations. This is a founding-level role with end-to-end ownership, a direct line to the top, and significant scope to shape both the product roadmap and the European team as the company scales. What You'll Do Lead the European go-to-market rollout from Munich, partnering directly with the CEO on strategy and execution. Diagnose high-leverage AI opportunities within enterprise accounts and prioritise the highest-value use cases for each customer. Build initial agents and automated workflows to prove value quickly, then drive adoption organisation-wide. Run agent hackathons and coach C-suite stakeholders on AI transformation strategy and rollout planning. Navigate complex enterprise politics — identify champions, remove blockers, and cultivate relationships across all seniority levels. Serve as the voice of the customer to product and engineering, advocating for critical features and improvements. Hire, mentor, and grow the European team as the company scales. Systematically automate your own role and manual processes using the company's own AI agents — practising what you preach. Own outcomes end-to-end; proactively pick up tasks beyond the formal job description. What We're Looking For Required: Native or near-native German (spoken and written) for executive-level collaboration and communications. Deep, hands-on experience shipping AI agents, workflows, or production ML/AI features in enterprise settings. Proven track record leading enterprise AI deployment programmes — strategy, implementation, and impact measurement. Strong understanding of model selection, routing, evaluation design, data residency, and integration architecture. Demonstrated ability to manage and influence C-suite stakeholders ; polished executive-level communication and presentation skills. Experience building and leading cross-functional deployment teams in high-ambiguity, fast-moving environments. Commercial sharpness with experience influencing revenue outcomes — re…