We're seeking a
Senior Kubernetes Platform Systems Engineer to support our U.S. Government program(s) in
Laurel, MD. The
Senior Kubernetes Platform Systems Engineer will be responsible for administering, automating, securing, monitoring and maintaining Kubernetes platform infrastructure across development, staging and operational environments while supporting mission-critical systems.
Responsibilities:- Administer, maintain, and optimize a highly available Kubernetes platform supporting mission-critical applications across Development, Staging, and Production environments.
- Partner with software developers, systems engineers, and government stakeholders to translate operational requirements into scalable, reliable platform solutions that support mission success.
- Design, build, and maintain hardened container images and deployment templates that ensure consistency, repeatability, and security across enterprise environments.
- Develop, automate, and continuously improve CI/CD pipelines to streamline application delivery, reduce deployment time, and improve overall platform reliability.
- Perform routine vulnerability scanning, system patching, security hardening, and compliance activities to maintain enterprise security standards and accreditation requirements.
- Plan, coordinate, and execute platform upgrades, software releases, and infrastructure enhancements while minimizing operational impact and maintaining service availability.
- Continuously monitor the health, performance, and availability of Kubernetes clusters and supporting infrastructure, proactively identifying and resolving issues before they impact customers.
- Troubleshoot complex infrastructure, application, and platform issues by performing root cause analysis and implementing long-term corrective actions.
- Configure, maintain, and enhance enterprise monitoring, alerting, health check, and logging solutions to improve operational awareness and system performance.
- Establish, manage, and maintain representative development and test environments that accurately mirror production configurations for validation, testing, and release activities.
- Evaluate test coverage, identify operational gaps, and collaborate with engineering teams to improve system quality, reliability, and deployment confidence.
- Coordinate planned maintenance windows and system outages while communicating schedules, risks, and impacts to internal teams, operations personnel, and external mission partners.
- Develop, maintain, and continuously improve technical documentation including Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), Administrator Guides, User Guides, Knowledge Base articles, and operational runbooks.
- Research emerging technologies, Kubernetes best practices, automation tools, and platform enhancements, providing recommendations that improve operational efficiency, scalability, and security.
- Generate operational metrics, service reports, and performance benchmarks to support leadership visibility, capacity planning, and continuous process improvement.
- Provide Tier II/Tier III operational support by investigating customer support requests, troubleshooting complex technical issues, managing certificate requests and renewals, and ensuring timely issue resolution.
- Provision and onboard new customer projects, configuring Kubernetes resources, platform services, and supporting infrastructure to enable secure, reliable, and scalable deployments.
Qualifications:- Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related discipline is desired. An additional five (5) years of experience may be substituted for the degree.
- Twenty (20) years of Systems Engineering experience in programs and contracts of similar scope
- Demonstrated experience administering and supporting Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) environments, including system provisioning, storage and network interface management, OS hardening, vulnerability remediation, patch management, and performance optimization.
- Hands-on experience automating infrastructure and application deployments using Ansible or comparable Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) and configuration management tools to improve operational efficiency and platform consistency.
- Strong experience designing, deploying, and administering Kubernetes platforms in enterprise environments, with a solid understanding of container orchestration, cluster lifecycle management, and production operations.
- Experience supporting virtualized and cloud-based infrastructure using VMware, AWS, Azure, or similar enterprise virtualization technologies.
- Proficiency developing and maintaining Bash scripts to automate routine administrative tasks, streamline operational workflows, and improve system reliability.
- Experience utilizing GitLab, Git, or similar version control platforms to manage source code, infrastructure configurations, and CI/CD workflows.
- Working knowledge of Helm for deploying, configuring, and managing Kubernetes applications through reusable, scalable deployment templates.
- Experience using enterprise monitoring, vulnerability scanning, patch management, and health monitoring tools to maintain secure, highly available production environments.
- Familiarity with Jira or similar Agile project management and ticketing platforms to support sprint planning, change management, incident response, and operational task tracking.
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to work independently while collaborating effectively across cross-functional engineering, operations, and customer teams in a fast-paced mission environment.
- CompTIA Security+ CE (or higher) certification meeting DoD 8570/8140 IAT Level II or Level III requirements is required.
Preferred Qualifications:- Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) or equivalent Kubernetes certification demonstrating advanced platform administration expertise.
- Experience implementing GitOps methodologies and modern DevSecOps practices to automate infrastructure provisioning and application delivery.
- Strong understanding of CI/CD pipeline development and automation for enterprise software deployment and release management.
- Experience developing automation tools or operational utilities using Python.
- Solid understanding of Kubernetes networking concepts, including Ingress, Egress, service discovery, load balancing, and network policies.
- Experience developing and maintaining comprehensive test plans, test procedures, test cases, and validation documentation for infrastructure and platform deployments.
- Experience implementing or supporting test automation frameworks that improve deployment quality, reduce risk, and accelerate release cycles.
- Passion for continuous improvement, automation, and emerging cloud-native technologies, with a desire to help shape and evolve enterprise Kubernetes platform capabilities.
Clearance:Active TS/SCI with Polygraph.
Salary Range: $195,000 - $255,000 USD / year
Salary Description: The pay range for this job, with multi-levels, is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.
Benefits:- Affordable healthcare options through CareFirst that include an HSA option with employer contributions, with the employee coverage 100% paid
- Dental and Vision options
- Employer paid Life, AD&D, STD & LTD coverages
- 401(k) with company match up to 8% and immediate vesting
- Paid Time Off (PTO) - Up to 11 Federal holidays, customizable PTO based on your needs, and Comp Time options
- Annual training and educational reimbursement up to $5,250.00 annually
- Additional Perks - Employee appreciation & family friendly company events, Flexible work schedules, Company Swag to include branded apparel, Generous Bonus programs, and More!
