The Forward Deployed Engineer · Volume 2

Agents, MCP, and engineering in the field. Chapters 23–43.

Volume 2 takes those foundations into the field: building and evaluating AI agents, connecting them to enterprise systems with the Model Context Protocol, securing and governing AI at scale, and the craft of discovery, delivery and leadership inside customer environments.

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What's inside

Part V — Building Agents 6 chapters

23AI Application Architecture and Evaluation
24Agent Fundamentals: Planning, Memory, and Tools
25Agent Frameworks and SDKs
26Agent Platforms on AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud
27Agent Reliability, Observability, and Fleet Operations
28Human Oversight, Bounded Autonomy, and Multi-Agent Systems

Part VI — MCP and the Connected Enterprise 5 chapters

29The Model Context Protocol
30Building MCP Servers and Clients
31MCP Security, Identity, and Authorization
32Integration Patterns: APIs, SaaS, Legacy Systems, and Events
33Operating MCP at Enterprise Scale

Part VII — Enterprise AI Architecture 3 chapters

34Enterprise AI Platforms and Control Planes
35AI Security and Prompt Injection Defense
36AI Governance, Risk, and Regulation

Part VIII — The FDE in the Field 7 chapters

37The FDE Operating Model and Customer Discovery
38Working Inside Customer Environments
39Prototypes, Vertical Slices, and Proof of Value
40Delivery, Production Readiness, and Handover
41Communication, Stakeholders, and Leadership Without Authority
42Building Your FDE Career
43Capstone: Acme From First Conversation to Production

Appendices 6 items

AAgent and MCP Quick Reference
BProduction Readiness and Review Checklists
CTemplates for Field Engagements
DFurther Reading
Glossary
Index