Cloud Platform Engineer

$65,000 - $150,000/Yr

Unclassified - Seattle, WA

Full-time - Mid Level

Seattle, WA

About the position

As an IT Cloud Platform Engineer at Sound Transit, you will play a pivotal role in designing, implementing, and maintaining our cloud infrastructure to support IT operations and digital initiatives. Your primary responsibility will be to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams to ensure a secure, scalable, and highly available Azure cloud environment that enhances reliability and service delivery across the Agency. This includes establishing a framework to manage our Azure environment, adhering to enterprise architecture strategy and direction, and establishing standards as needed. You will work across all IT teams to support business demand, data platform needs, and other administrative and planning requirements. In this role, you will be involved in cloud infrastructure design and implementation, working with solution architects to design, deploy, and maintain cloud-based infrastructure solutions on the Azure platform. You will implement best practices for security, scalability, and performance optimization, automate provisioning and deployment processes, and collaborate with software development teams to ensure compatibility with cloud platforms. Additionally, you will work with third-party cloud service providers to ensure seamless integration and support, and automate deployments of new applications and services to the cloud platform. Security and compliance will be a key focus, as you will establish and maintain security protocols, access controls, and compliance standards for the Azure environment. You will monitor and mitigate security risks, conduct regular vulnerability assessments, and ensure data protection. Utilizing Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, you will manage infrastructure configurations, version control, and document infrastructure changes. Performance optimization is another critical aspect of your role, where you will monitor system performance, troubleshoot issues, and implement cost management strategies to control cloud expenditure. You will also develop and maintain disaster recovery plans to ensure high availability of cloud services, conduct regular backups, and collaborate with IT teams to gather requirements and provide technical expertise. Continuous improvement will be a part of your responsibilities, as you stay updated on cloud technology trends and recommend improvements to existing infrastructure. You will also participate in preventative maintenance and after-hours maintenance as needed, ensuring critical updates are applied to agency systems and maintaining accurate change management records.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and maintain cloud-based infrastructure solutions on Azure platform.
• Implement best practices for security, scalability, and performance optimization.
• Automate provisioning and deployment processes to enhance operational and financial efficiency.
• Collaborate with software development teams and solution architects to ensure compatibility with cloud platforms.
• Work with third-party cloud service providers to ensure seamless integration and support.
• Establish and maintain security protocols, access controls, and compliance standards for Azure environment.
• Monitor and mitigate security risks, conduct regular vulnerability assessments, and ensure data protection.
• Utilize Infrastructure as Code tools (e.g., ARM, Ansible) to manage infrastructure configurations.
• Monitor system performance and troubleshoot issues to optimize cloud resources.
• Develop and maintain disaster recovery plans and ensure high availability of cloud services.
• Collaborate with IT teams, developers, and stakeholders to gather requirements and provide technical expertise.
• Document configurations, procedures, and troubleshooting guides.
• Stay updated on cloud technology trends and recommend improvements to existing infrastructure.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business Management Information Systems or closely related field.
• Four years of experience in Azure cloud engineering role or closely related field; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Proven experience as a Cloud Platform Engineer or similar role.
• Strong knowledge of Azure cloud platform.
• Strong knowledge of PowerShell and Infrastructure as Code tools and automation.
• Strong knowledge of Active Directory Object Administration, Management, and Federation Services.
• Strong knowledge of cost management and related techniques in a cloud environment.
• Knowledge of Databases, including SQL and schemas.
• Familiarity with cloud security best practices and compliance standards.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and ability to work in a collaborative team environment.
• Strong documentation skills.
• Exceptional listening, verbal, and written communication skills.

Nice-to-haves

• Knowledge of AWS or other cloud platforms.
• Azure Administrator certification.
• Azure Security certification.
• Solution Architect certification.

Benefits

• Health Benefits: Two choices of medical plans, a dental plan, and a vision plan at no cost for employee coverage.
• Long-Term Disability and Life Insurance.
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Retirement Plans: 401a with a 12% match by Sound Transit; 457b up to IRS maximum.
• Paid Time Off: 25 days of paid time off annually, 12 paid holidays, 2 paid floating holidays, and 2 paid volunteer days per year.
• Parental Leave: 12 weeks of parental leave for new parents.
• Pet Insurance.
• ORCA Card: All full-time employees receive an ORCA card at no cost.
• Tuition Reimbursement: Up to $5,000 annually for approved tuition expenses.
• Inclusive Reproductive Health Support Services.