Communication and Influence
Moving people who do not report to you
You have no authority inside the customer's organization, and you regularly have to change what it does anyway. Influence comes from being visibly useful, saying true things plainly, and being the same person in the executive readout as in the engineering standup. This is where technically excellent engineers most often fail the role.
Progression
What changes at each level.
- FDE I
Deployed
Communicates clearly in writing and in working sessions. Gives honest status, including when something is late. Presents their own work without needing a senior person to translate it.
- FDE II
Embedded
Runs their own workshops and demos and drives them to a decision. Adjusts register between engineers, operators, and managers without changing the substance. Raises risks early with a proposed option rather than only a problem.
- FDE III
Trusted
Holds executive-level conversations and is trusted in them. Delivers unwelcome news, including about their own team's product, without damaging the relationship. Builds internal advocates inside the customer who make the case when the FDE is not in the room.
- FDE IV
Principal
Is brought into the conversations that decide whether an engagement continues. Repairs relationships others have damaged. Sets the standard for how the organization communicates in the field and coaches others toward it.