About this role
Join the AWS EMEA Telecom team as a Customer Development Engineer — a builder-first technical role that combines the strategic advisory expertise of a Solutions Architect with hands-on software engineering capabilities. You will work directly in customer non-production sandbox environments to create working prototypes, proof-of-concepts, and AI-driven solutions that prove AWS value faster than traditional advisory engagements, eliminating the traditional handoff between advisory and implementation. You will be the primary technical partner for major European telecommunications operators, leading with Agentic AI and AI-assisted software development as the primary value proposition while building directly alongside customer engineering teams. Key job responsibilities Builder-First Engagement Build working prototypes in customer non-production sandbox environments using AI-augmented development tools — delivering tangible, demonstrable value early in the engagement Pair-program with customer teams, embedding directly with their engineers during time-boxed sprints to accelerate AI adoption and cloud-native development Write high-quality sample code for proof-of-concepts, demos, and sample applications spanning generative AI architectures, agentic systems, and telco-specific workloads (operations support system modernization, network cloudification, contact centre AI) Design and deploy infrastructure using Infrastructure-as-Code (AWS CDK, Terraform, CloudFormation) in customer sandbox environments, demonstrating scalability and security patterns Strategic Advisory Own the end-to-end technical relationship with Tier-1 European telco groups, acting as trusted advisor to technical decision makers Shape AI and cloud strategy for major operators — translating complex technical capabilities into business-outcome narratives Lead architecture design for Agentic AI initiatives including multi-agent orchestration, foundation model integration, and enterprise AI platforms Drive AI-assisted software development lifecycle strategy, positioning AWS developer tools for software transformation at scale across large engineering organizations Revenue and Opportunity Acceleration Accelerate deal cycles by removing technical blockers through hands-on building — measurably reducing opportunity cycle time Identify and launch new opportunities discovered during customer engagements Increase service adoption per customer through tangible demonstrations of multi-service integration Customer Development Engineer Operating Principles Demonstrate value through building AND advisory — lead with building to show tangible value Act as an extension of customers through hands-on co-development in their environments Outcome-focused — identify, develop, and realise business opportunities through tangible proof points Security first, speed second — but both are possible — AI-augmented development compresses timelines without compromising security or architectural integrity Technical accuracy over short-term revenue — recommend the right solution for customer context, even if it results in lower immediate revenue Scale innovation through reusable solutions — build once, share broadly via accelerators and reference architectures About the team The EMEA Telecom Solutions Architecture team covers the largest telco operators across Europe. We sit within the AWS Global Telecom Industry Business Unit and drive technical outcomes across cloud transformation, AI adoption, network cloudification, and software modernisation. The team operates with a "forward-deployed competence" mindset — bringing deep technical expertise directly to where customers need it most.