Forward Deployed AI Engineer

StephenBackholm

Systems ArchitectTechnical Founder

Customer-facing technical founder and systems architect translating ambiguous business problems into deployed software, AI systems, and operational infrastructure.

TEL623-229-6571 BASERelocating to Wilmington, NC AVAILRemote · Hybrid · 25–50% Travel WEBstephenbackholm.com
Profile
Professional Summary

Built for ambiguous problems and production adoption.

Customer-facing technical founder and systems architect with 15+ years of experience translating ambiguous business problems into deployed software, AI systems, and operational infrastructure.

Combines hands-on technical delivery with executive communication, technical discovery, team leadership, revenue operations, and full lifecycle ownership from architecture through production adoption.

Core Qualifications

Forward-Deployed Delivery

Hands-on technical depth for customer-facing engagements, from stakeholder discovery through production deployment, team enablement, and continuous optimization.

Focus 01 · Delivery

Forward-deployed delivery

Stakeholder discovery, requirements, architecture, prototyping, implementation, deployment, training, incident response, and optimization.

Focus 02 · Applied AI

Applied AI systems

Agentic workflows, tool-enabled agents and sub-agents, RAG, structured outputs, model routing, evaluations, human approval gates, voice AI, and MCP-enabled systems.

Focus 03 · Full Stack

Production-ready systems

JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, SQL, PostgreSQL, Supabase, Neon, React/Vite, Express, APIs, SDKs, WebRTC, authentication, and OAuth.

Focus 04 · Operations

Production operations

Deployment, migrations, rollbacks, monitoring, encryption, secrets, rate limits, security reviews, and AI-assisted remediation.

Focus 05 · Leadership

Customer and leadership

Executive presentations, technical discovery, project scoping, user training, cross-functional delivery, KPI management, and hybrid teams of up to 12.

Professional Experience

2008 to Present
2025–Present · Independent Consultant

Forward Deployed Systems Architect

Customer-Facing Engagements

Embed with founder-led companies to convert executive priorities and operational friction into production software, AI workflows, marketing infrastructure, and scalable operating systems.

Own delivery from technical discovery and architecture through implementation, production deployment, user enablement, KPI measurement, incident response, and continuous optimization.

Architected and deployed a members platform with custom WebRTC video, React/Vite, Express, Socket.IO, Mediasoup, PostgreSQL, Redis, authentication, permissions, member products, payment integration, content libraries, and host/moderation controls.

Built customer acquisition and revenue infrastructure spanning CRM architecture, lead routing, attribution, referral management, seller and agent funnels, inventory systems, payments, communication workflows, and sales-team reporting.

Develop AI-assisted workflows using Claude, OpenAI/Codex, Hermes Agent, RAG, structured outputs, skills, sub-agents, model routing, Retell AI, and ElevenLabs, with human approval for consequential actions. Design integrations across CRMs, databases, APIs, webhooks, telephony, payments, and marketing platforms with validation, retry paths, monitoring, and operational alerts.

Serve as a technical and operational advisor to ownership while coordinating developers, sales teams, marketers, and operators around measurable business outcomes.

Technical discovery to deployment Applied AI systems Cross-functional delivery
2018–2025 · Arizona to Nationwide

Nationwide Real Estate Investment Company

Founder & Systems Operator

Founded and scaled a lean investment and wholesale operation that completed 550+ transactions across 28+ states and achieved consecutive year-over-year record growth.

Built the operational backbone across acquisitions, dispositions, transaction coordination, marketing, sales management, reporting, and creative transaction structures. Designed CRM architecture, role-level automation, KPI dashboards, lead pipelines, and standardized workflows for a small distributed team.

Managed high-volume lead and transaction data, production incidents, system migrations, access controls, and security-sensitive workflows, then converted internally proven systems into repeatable frameworks for consulting clients.

550+ transactions 28+ states Consecutive record growth Role-level automation
2018 · Real Estate Startup

Technology, Marketing & Systems Partner

Minority Owner

Helped scale the company to approximately $800K in revenue within six months by owning technical systems, marketing infrastructure, lead generation, automation, and client-facing applications.

Contributed across frontend and backend delivery, CRM and database architecture, APIs, sales systems, campaign execution, and operational reporting before exiting through a partner buyout to pursue a new venture.

~$800K revenue in six months Marketing infrastructure CRM & database architecture
Approx. 2016–2018 · Google/Waymo Program

Autonomous Vehicle Software Test Operator

Contractor · Safety-Critical Field Testing

Tested newly deployed autonomous-vehicle software in real-world conditions and evaluated system behavior, functionality, and unexpected performance.

Documented and reported issues to development teams, supporting the feedback loop between field testing and engineering through structured testing procedures, detailed observation, and clear technical communication.

Autonomous systems testing Issue reporting Engineering feedback loops
2008–2018

Boutique Software & Web Development Agency

Founding Partner

Co-founded and operated a development firm delivering marketing sites, custom CRMs, booking platforms, internal tools, and operational software for small businesses and larger organizations.

Led client discovery, requirements gathering, system design, frontend/backend delivery, integrations, testing, technical support, and account relationships. Managed local and remote contributors and sold the ownership interest after a successful ten-year run.

10+ years at the helm Custom software delivery Successful exit

Technical Environment

Selected Tools & Systems

A practical, production-minded technical toolkit spanning application architecture, AI systems, integrations, infrastructure, and the business platforms behind customer operations.

01 · DATA

Languages & Data

Hands-on full-stack delivery across modern application languages, relational data, and managed database platforms.

Core Stack
JavaScript TypeScript Python SQL PostgreSQL Supabase Neon
02 · APPLICATIONS

Applications & Integration

Web applications and connected systems built for real-world delivery, operational adoption, and reliable customer experiences.

Application Stack
React Vite Express REST APIs Webhooks Custom SDKs WebRTC Socket.IO Mediasoup OAuth
03 · AI SYSTEMS

AI Systems

Applied AI delivery for useful, governed workflows: agents, retrieval, structured outputs, model routing, evaluations, and human approval for consequential actions.

AI Toolkit
Claude Claude Code OpenAI Codex Hermes Agent RAG Structured outputs Tool calling Model routing Agent skills & sub-agents Evaluations MCP workflows
04 · OPERATIONS

Voice, Media & Infrastructure

Production operations and media systems designed to support dependable launches, managed infrastructure, and safe iteration after deployment.

Platforms & Practices
Retell AI ElevenLabs Self-hosted image/video generation Docker Cloudflare Vercel Replit Dedicated servers & VPS Git/GitHub Monitoring & incident response Migrations, rollbacks & encryption
05 · BUSINESS SYSTEMS

Business Systems & Working Familiarity

Business platforms and infrastructure concepts used to connect technical delivery with revenue operations, customer workflows, and dependable deployment practices.

Systems
Salesforce GoHighLevel Follow Up Boss Podio Monday.com n8n Make Zapier Stripe Spiffy AWS services Kubernetes concepts Terraform workflows

Selected Scale & Impact

Deployed & Operated
01 · DEPLOYMENT

150+ systems deployed

Applications, websites, and operational systems delivered into real customer environments.

02 · USERS

Thousands supported

Registered users and hundreds of concurrent users supported across production platforms.

03 · DATA

Tens of thousands

Database records and leads processed through customer and internal operating environments.

04 · TRANSACTIONS

1,000+ transactions

Supported across owned and client operating environments.

05 · TEAMS

Teams of up to 12

Technical and operational teams managed across local and remote environments.