CollectWise — Forward Deployed Engineer

CollectWise — Forward Deployed Engineer Type: Full-time | On-site (4 days/week) | New York City, NY Compensation: $240,000–$300,000 + 0%–1% equity Hiring count: 2 Visa sponsorship: No general sponsorship; open to Canadian candidates requiring sponsorship (TN-eligible). Confirmed by David. Reports to: Founder (no name / LinkedIn in source) About CollectWise CollectWise is a Y Combinator–backed startup using generative AI to automate consumer debt collection, a $35B market in the US alone. Their AI agents already outperform human collectors by 2X at a fraction of the cost, automating asset research, pre-legal outreach, litigation, credit reporting, and enforcement actions such as garnishments and liens. With a team of three, they scaled to $1M ARR in a few months, closed a $4M round extension at a $60M valuation, and are now at $2M ARR in under a year — hiring to reach $10M ARR within the next year. Founded: 2024 | Team size: 1–10 (Seed; ~3 core) | Funding: $4M round extension at a $60M valuation (YC-backed) Industry: AI Tools Website: collectwise.com Office: New York City, NY Why Candidates Should Join High ownership: Own customer implementations end-to-end, working directly with the founder and clients in a highly visible role. Momentum: YC-backed, $2M ARR in under a year at a $60M valuation, with a clear mandate to drive toward $10M ARR. Real impact: AI agents already beat human collectors 2X in a $35B market — your work ships to live customers and drives revenue immediately. Intake Call Summary Not available in source. An intake video is present on the role page, but no transcript or written summary was included in the pasted HTML. Do not fabricate — pull from the video if David wants this section populated. The Role A Forward-Deployed Engineer leading end-to-end customer implementations, working at the intersection of engineering and operations — building the integrations and technical systems that bring clients into production. Blends software engineering with hands-on customer work; suited to someone who enjoys ambiguity, ships quickly, and translates business requirements into robust, testable systems. What You'll Be Doing Build and maintain custom integrations with client systems Configure and productionize AI agents for each client (prompts, workflows, data transfers) Develop and implement client solutions using modern back-end frameworks Translate vague customer requirements into clear technical specs and ship solutions quickly Build internal tools to make implementations faster and more repeatable Tech stack: Full-stack JavaScript/TypeScript, Node.js, React.js, AWS, SQL, LLMs (GPT-5 or other) Requirements Strong engineering background in full stack JavaScript/TypeScript Shipped real production products at early-stage startup OR built meaningful side projects/started own company Strong communication skills Native English speaker (US/Canada) Prompt engineering experience Green Flags Experience with Node.js, React.js, AWS, SQL, and GPT-5 or other LLMs Top 40-50 university graduate Background in investment banking or consulting transitioning to engineering Internships or experience at well-known tech companies Built end-to-end projects Early-stage startup experience Red Flags Job hopping (short stints) No production experience Poor communication skills Not willing to be scrappy/grind Role Details Salary — $240,000–$300,000 Equity — 0%–1% On-site policy — In-office 4 days/week, flexible in-person schedule; most of the team works ~9–6 in the office Visa sponsorship — No general sponsorship; open to Canadian candidates requiring sponsorship (TN-eligible) Employment type — Full-time Location — New York City, NY Screening Questions Not present in source. No screening-questions section was included in the pasted HTML. Do not fabricate. Interview Process Stage 1 — Pending Approval — Candidates awaiting initial approval. Stage 2 — Initial Call — Initial screening call with founder. Stage 3 — Backlog — (No description provided in source.) Stage 4 — Take-Home Assignment — 2-hour take-home assignment specifically geared toward the forward-deployed role. Stage 5 — Technical Interview — Live technical interview on Zoom covering practical JavaScript/TypeScript, building exercises, and discussion of the take-home implementation. Stage 6 — Offer Extended Stage 7 — Candidate Hired — Candidate accepts and starts. Ideal Companies & Backgrounds Ideal Companies — Palantir Technologies, Sierra, Retell AI Ideal Candidate Profiles Section is labeled "Ideal Candidates — DO NOT CONTACT" on the role page. These are reference profiles that must NOT be sourced or contacted. Kanishk Dutta — LinkedIn (URL not captured in pasted HTML) Matthew Cunningham — LinkedIn (URL not captured in pasted HTML) Rejected Candidate Feedback Not present in source. No rejected-candidate feedback section was included in the pasted HTML. Visa Sponsorship — Resolved The structured Job Details field read "None Available," but the role body and outreach both stated it is open to Canadian candidates requiring sponsorship. Confirmed position (per David): no broad/US work-visa sponsorship (no H-1B, etc.), but Canadian citizens are explicitly welcome — TN-eligible for the NYC office, consistent with the "Native English speaker (US/Canada)" requirement. Work-authorization screening: US citizens / green-card holders, or Canadians (TN).