Clarity Innovations

Sr. Principal Mission Engineer

Clarity Innovations$100K — $330K *
Aerospace & Defense
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Active Top Secret / SCI clearance required.
  • 5+ years managing enterprise Linux environments and bare-metal hardware.
  • Strong experience with Proxmox VE, KVM, or equivalent virtualization technologies.
  • Practical experience with Ceph storage and low-level networking troubleshooting.
  • Excellent interpersonal skills for engaging with government or military personnel.

Responsibilities

  • Maintain and optimize Proxmox VE hypervisor and server hardware.
  • Diagnose hardware failures and resolve virtualization-related issues.
  • Deploy automated system updates and integrate new compute nodes.
  • Act as the primary technical representative for program stakeholders.
  • Conduct on-site technical training and operational briefings.
  • Enforce local security configurations and support hardware modification reviews.

Benefits

  • On-site work in a classified environment.
  • Opportunities for professional growth in advanced virtualization technologies.
  • Engagement with government and military personnel in a technical capacity.
Full Job Description
Senior Principal Mission Engineer (K8s & Proxmox)
Position Overview

The position is for an on-site, cleared Senior Principal Mission Engineer as part of a team of software and platform engineers building a unified, multi-tenant control plane that abstracts away infrastructure differences across AWS, Azure, and on-premises environments. The platform allows application teams to provision secure, isolated Kubernetes clusters and workloads dynamically. The control plane runs Crossplane and Cluster API (CAPI).

As the primary on-site engineer, you will be dedicated to deploying, managing, and maintaining our hardware and Proxmox-based system within a secure, classified space. In this role, you will be the primary on-site technical authority responsible for the physical and virtual health of our control plane footprint. You will bridge the gap between our remote engineering pipeline and the isolated, classified hardware infrastructure, handling everything from low-level virtualization troubleshooting to direct customer engagement and user training.

The ideal candidate is highly independent, capable of driving projects from inception to completion with minimal supervision.
Key Responsibilities
  • System Management & Virtualization Tuning: Maintain, update, and optimize the on-site Proxmox VE hypervisor environments, Ceph distributed storage clusters, and associated underlying server hardware.
  • Troubleshooting & Incident Resolution: Diagnose and resolve complex hardware failures, kernel panics, network partitions, virtualization bottlenecks, Kubernetes pod crash loops, CNI networking failures, and node pressure conditions within the isolated classified space.
  • Integration & Deployment: Deploy automated system updates, patch air-gapped systems, and integrate new physical compute or storage nodes into the local cluster environment.
  • Customer Engagement & Advisory: Serve as the trusted, face-to-face technical representative for the program, managing day-to-day interactions with site stakeholders, mission owners, and local administrators.
  • On-Site Training: Conduct technical walkthroughs, operational training, and compliance briefings for customer personnel interacting with the Proxmox execution platform.
  • Security & Configuration Control: Partner with the program ISSO/ISSM to enforce local security benchmarks, apply security patches, and support configuration control board reviews for physical hardware modifications.
Qualifications
  • Clearance: Active Top Secret / SCI
  • Experience: 5+ years of hands-on experience managing enterprise Linux environments and bare-metal hardware infrastructure in secure environments.
  • Hypervisor Expertise: Strong, demonstrable experience configuring and troubleshooting Proxmox VE, KVM, QEMU, or equivalent enterprise virtualization technologies (e.g., VMware vSphere, OpenStack).
  • Storage & Networking: Practical experience with Ceph storage orchestration, software-defined networking, VLAN tagging, and low-level Linux network troubleshooting.
  • Customer-Facing Skills: Excellent interpersonal skills with a proven track record of managing technical relationships and conducting formal training for government or military personnel.
Preferred Qualifications
  • Live-Production Incident Response: Hands-on experience managing incident response lifecycles and resolving critical control-plane or etcd failures within live, high-scale production systems.
  • Telemetry-Driven Debugging: Advanced capability in utilizing telemetry, API server audit logs, distributed tracing, and metrics to perform root-cause analysis and resolve complex issues in live production environments.

Salary Range: $100,000 - $330,000

About Clarity Innovations

Clarity Innovations offers technical and consultation services to help companies to design, create, and publish education-specific professional development materials in a variety of formats, applications, and online collaboration tools. The company’s service portfolio includes expertise consulting, marketing strategy and analysis, product management, instructional content design, digital learning development, and customer engagement. Clarity Innovations was founded in 1996 and is based in Portland, Oregon.

Clarity Innovations Careers

Joining Clarity Innovations marks the beginning of a unique journey in a company where innovation meets leadership, and diversity fuels growth. Clarity Innovations stands out as a beacon of professional development and technological advancement, offering a plethora of job opportunities that cater to a wide range of skills and interests.

Explore Career Opportunities

Clarity Innovations is actively hiring and continuously seeks passionate, creative, and solution-driven team players. Explore open positions that align with your professional skills and career ambitions. Clarity Innovations values curiosity and leadership, qualities that each team member brings to the forefront of every project.

Innovation and Professional Growth

At Clarity Innovations, the path to professional growth is enriched with endless opportunities. From advanced training programs to leadership development, Clarity Innovations is dedicated to empowering its employees. The company's commitment to innovation is not just about technology but also about pioneering new ways to work and lead.

Diversity and Inclusion

With a firm belief in the power of diversity, Clarity Innovations fosters an inclusive culture that thrives on different perspectives and ideas. Diversity training is integral to the company's ethos, ensuring that all team members feel valued and understood.

Internship Programs

Clarity Innovations offers robust internship programs that provide a solid foundation for a flourishing career. Interns gain hands-on experience, working alongside seasoned professionals and engaging in projects that challenge and enhance their abilities.

Benefits and Culture

The benefits at Clarity Innovations go beyond traditional employment perks. Employees enjoy a supportive and dynamic work environment that promotes personal and professional well-being. The company culture is built on mutual respect, collaboration, and a shared vision for success.

Networking and Career Advancement

Networking within Clarity Innovations opens doors to influential connections and insightful exchanges. The company encourages networking events and professional gatherings that help employees expand their horizons and advance their careers.

Applying for a Position

To apply for a position at Clarity Innovations, candidates are encouraged to submit a resume that highlights relevant experience and skills. The interview process is designed to assess not only professional capabilities but also a fit with the company’s culture and values.

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Join the Clarity Innovations Team

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