We're building AI that is changing the world. The workforce of the future is going to be multi-dimensional, multi-faceted, conductors of both people and artificial intelligence. We're looking for someone who can do that.
Shelf is the OS for agentic AI: a platform that models your policies, workflows, and operational logic into an AI Data Model so that AI agents don’t just respond, they reason. The result? AI that understands how your business actually runs and delivers precise, compliant, auditable outcomes at scale.
Brands like Amazon, Nespresso, HelloFresh, and KeyBank use Shelf to power their AI agents that automate workflows, improve efficiency, and turn long processes into automated work. We’re partnered with Microsoft, Salesforce, OpenAI, Snowflake, and Databricks — and recognized by Gartner (Cool Vendor) and IDC (Innovator) for our approach.
Job Description:
The Field CTO will serve as Shelf's primary technical authority in customer facing engagements, combining deep technical expertise with strategic sales leadership. You'll take ownership of the critical technical sales function currently handled by our CTO, partnering with Account Executives to close deals across the entire pipeline while building and leading a team of Sales Engineers.
This role offers immediate impact and long term growth potential. You'll engage with Enterprise Architects, CTOs, VPs of Engineering, and AI Leaders to demonstrate how Shelf solves data quality challenges preventing GenAI initiatives from reaching production. Your ability to rapidly solution during fast-paced 3-5 day pilots and translate complex technical concepts into business value will be crucial to driving revenue success.
Reporting to our CTO with a strong dotted line to our VP of Sales, you'll influence product direction while staying laser-focused on sales outcomes. The ideal candidate is a former CTO or VP of Engineering who has transitioned to customer-facing roles, with experience building technical teams in high-growth B2B SaaS environments. Founder or early employee experience is a significant plus.
What We're Looking For:
Key Responsibilities:
Technical Sales Leadership
Strategic Collaboration:
Qualifications:
Success Metrics To be successful in this role, you should aim to achieve the following within the first 18 months:
What We Offer:
Location:
NYC with flexibility to travel for high-stakes customer meetings, industry events, and internal leadership meetings.
Why Shelf:
OUR CORE VALUES:
Quality - We’re united by our focus on world‑class Quality. Quality in all things – starting with everything that leaves your desk. Everything you touch – every email, report, campaign, and piece of code – should be outstanding. Your work product should blow people away. Having people look at what you’ve done and say, “Wow.” That’s the standard here. Remember that how you do anything is how you do everything. Focus on craftsmanship—your ability to make things better.
Momentum - for us means that you should know that the things you’re responsible for are moving forward. When you look around and see something that’s stalled, get it moving again. We pride ourselves on “ball movement.” When your boss or team leaves you with something, they should return to see measurable progress. Small, continuous movement is our recipe for success. Constantly look for how to make the work around you move forward. We want you to initiate solutions, ideas, and progress. Don’t wait for it to come to you—reach out and create movement. All the time.
Accountability - We expect every team member to feel that they are accountable for more than anyone might normally expect. Each of us should feel real responsibility for things even at the edge of our control. We consistently share and align on expectations, give each other open and respectful feedback, and use those two drivers to ensure that every agreement we make with one another is clear and complete.
Hard Work - We’re here to do something difficult together. We care intensely about the mission and we expect that from our teammates. That care means that we work hard here. Hard work comes with long hours, extra effort…and real opportunity at Shelf. Your passion for creating and sustaining output is a part of our DNA. Support each other, cheer each other on, drive the mission forward. Great teams sustain intense effort together to win.
Learning Agility - We’re innovating in one of the fastest‑moving spaces in history at a time of accelerating global change. That’s incredibly exciting and requires each of us to commit fully to learning each and every day so that we can be the best at what we do. None of us know everything. All of us can learn anything. Staying open and constantly curious is a key success driver at Shelf. It also requires humility. We prize people who are consistently humble and open to making mistakes and growing from them. Recognize also that learning itself is a skill…we need you to be really good at it. Keep dialing in your own understanding about how you learn best and push yourself to keep growing.
Adapt and Thrive - Overcoming challenges lives deep in our DNA. We have a proud history of understanding and living the reality that obstacles are our opportunities…they’re the key to our success. Change is a constant in our business and fighting change is counterproductive. We need you to be good at being uncomfortable and understand that discomfort is the key to growth. Cultivate your own ability to adapt and know that struggling well is something you’ll share with every team you’re on at Shelf. Our company stories are about thriving through real difficulty…together.
Win Together - We win or lose as a team. Always. Everything you do here is connected to the rest of the organization. Part of our shared team environment demands full honesty…real candor and directness with one another. We expect you to constantly be thinking about how to support your teammates and the company, always acting in service to our shared mission and what’s best for the organization as a whole.
Shelf is the next generation knowledge platform that helps you eliminate bad data in your documents and files before they go into an LLM and become bad answers.
