Principal Engineer - Database Platform Engineering & SRE The Principal Engineer is a senior technical leader responsible for driving the transformation of Lumen's database organization from a traditional operations-focused model to a modern Platform Engineering and Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) operating model.
This role focuses on standardization, automation, operational excellence, reliability, toil reduction, lifecycle management, observability, and continuous improvement across the existing database estate. The Principal Engineer will lead initiatives that reduce operational complexity, improve service reliability, accelerate cloud readiness, and increase engineering productivity through automation and process optimization.
LocationThis role is designated as a fully remote position within the United States.
Key ResponsibilitiesOperational Transformation & SRE Enablement- Lead the transformation of DBA teams toward Platform Engineering and SRE practices.
- Drive adoption of automation-first and reliability-focused operating models.
- Develop engineering standards, operational processes, and best practices that improve consistency and scale.
Toil Reduction & Continuous Improvement- Identify and eliminate repetitive manual activities across database operations.
- Analyze ServiceNow incidents, requests, and recurring work patterns to identify automation and optimization opportunities.
- Drive reductions in ticket volume, operational overhead, and technical debt.
Platform Standardization & Cloud Readiness- Lead brownfield modernization, standardization, and simplification initiatives across database platforms.
- Improve operational consistency, platform resiliency, and migration readiness.
- Establish reusable engineering patterns that support modernization and cloud adoption initiatives.
Automation & Engineering Excellence- Establish automation frameworks, standards, governance, and reusable engineering capabilities.
- Drive Operational automation initiatives.
- Improve provisioning, patching, upgrades, compliance remediation, and operational workflows through automation.
Reliability Engineering & Observability- Establish proactive monitoring, observability, and performance management practices.
- Drive improvements in platform reliability, availability, resiliency, and operational health.
- Lead initiatives focused on performance optimization, capacity management, and operational risk reduction.
Lifecycle Management- Develop scalable approaches for patching, upgrades, platform currency, and lifecycle management.
- Improve compliance with security, supportability, and operational standards.
Technical Leadership- Provide technical leadership, mentorship, and guidance across engineering and operational teams.
- Partner with Operations, Security, Cloud, and Architecture teams to operationalize transformation initiatives.
- Promote a culture of continuous improvement, engineering excellence, and operational discipline.
What We Look For in a CandidateRequired Qualifications:- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or equivalent experience.
- 12 years of experience in database engineering, platform engineering, infrastructure engineering, site reliability engineering (SRE), cloud engineering, or related technical disciplines.
- Proven experience leading large-scale engineering, automation, operational excellence, or transformation initiatives in complex enterprise environments.
- Experience driving standardization, process optimization, reliability improvements, and operational efficiency across large-scale technology platforms.
- Strong experience with Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), automation, CI/CD, and modern engineering practices.
- Demonstrated success leading cross-functional technical initiatives and influencing engineering teams.
- Strong leadership, communication, problem-solving, and stakeholder management skills.
Preferred Qualifications:- Experience transforming traditional DBA or operations organizations into Platform Engineering, DevOps, or SRE operating models.
- Experience with enterprise database platforms including Oracle, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Cassandra, or similar technologies.
- Experience establishing automation standards, governance frameworks, reusable patterns, and self-service capabilities.
- Hands-on experience with Terraform, Ansible, AWX, GitOps, CI/CD pipelines, scripting, and enterprise automation platforms.
- Experience analyzing ServiceNow incident, request, and change data to identify service improvement and automation opportunities.
- Experience implementing observability, proactive monitoring, reliability engineering, performance optimization, and operational health management practices.
- Experience driving database lifecycle management programs including patching, upgrades, platform currency, vulnerability remediation, and technical debt reduction.
- Experience leading brownfield standardization and optimization initiatives to simplify legacy environments and accelerate cloud migration readiness.
- Experience supporting cloud migration, datacenter exit, modernization, or large-scale infrastructure transformation initiatives.
- Familiarity with AWS, Azure, GCP, hybrid cloud, and multi-cloud environments.
- Experience leveraging AI and intelligent automation to improve operational efficiency, engineering productivity, and service delivery.
Success ProfileThe ideal candidate is a hands-on technical leader who thrives in transforming operational organizations into modern engineering organizations. This individual has a proven track record of reducing complexity, improving reliability, driving automation at scale, eliminating operational toil, and enabling cloud modernization through standardization, process optimization, and engineering excellence.
CompensationThis information reflects the anticipated base salary range for this position based on current national data. Minimums and maximums may vary based on location. Individual pay is based on skills, experience and other relevant factors.
Location Based Pay Ranges
$152,066 - $202,755 in these states: AL AR AZ FL GA IA ID IN KS KY LA ME MO MS MT ND NE NM OH OK PA SC SD TN UT VT WI WV WY
$159,670 - $212,893 in these states: CO HI MI MN NC NH NV OR RI
$167,273 - $223,031 in these states: AK CA CT DC DE IL MA MD NJ NY TX VA WA
Lumen offers a comprehensive package featuring a broad range of Health, Life, Voluntary Lifestyle benefits and other perks that enhance your physical, mental, emotional and financial wellbeing. We're able to answer any additional questions you may have about our bonus structure (short-term incentives, long-term incentives and/or sales compensation) as you move through the selection process. Learn more about Lumen's:Benefits
Bonus Structure
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Requisition #: 343224
