Platform Engineer
Defense Unicorns2 months ago
Remote, United StatesMid Level
Base Salary
$123k - $167k/yr
Responsibilities
- Build, maintain, and improve Kubernetes clusters and containerized deployments across AWS, EKS, and RKE2 environments.
- Develop and manage infrastructure as code for consistent and repeatable platform provisioning.
- Own and improve GitLab CI pipelines, runner deployments, and automated build and deployment workflows.
- Support identity and access management with Keycloak, including onboarding, role configuration, and troubleshooting.
- Implement monitoring, alerting, and logging for platform health and incident investigation.
- Manage public certificate renewals and certificate lifecycle automation.
- Improve platform security through container security practices, Iron Bank image compliance, and ATO support.
- Troubleshoot deployment issues, broken pipelines, and platform integration problems with application teams.
- Maintain technical documentation, runbooks, ADRs, architecture standards, and operational standards.
- Contribute to strategic planning aligned with mission objectives.
- Participate in tier 2 on-call rotations and support platform incidents.
- Mentor junior engineers through pairing, code reviews, and knowledge sharing.
Requirements
- Hands-on experience deploying, managing, and troubleshooting Kubernetes clusters and workloads.
- Experience with infrastructure as code tools such as Terraform, Pulumi, or similar.
- Proficiency with CI/CD tooling, particularly GitLab CI or equivalent platforms.
- Working knowledge of Linux/Unix operating systems and command-line administration.
- Experience with cloud platforms, preferably AWS, including EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, and VPC.
- Familiarity with Docker, container image builds, and registry management.
- Ability to read and write YAML for Kubernetes manifests, CRDs, Helm charts, and pipeline configurations.
- Ability to work independently in a remote, asynchronous environment and solve complex problems.
- U.S. citizenship, eligibility for CUI access, and possession or ability to obtain a DoD 8570 IAT II certification such as Security+ CE.
- Preferred qualifications include security clearance eligibility, UDS Core or Iron Bank experience, C-ATO or production ATO experience, identity and access management experience, monitoring and observability experience, programming or scripting in Go, Python, or Bash, DevSecOps experience, GitOps experience, AWS platform or solutions architecture certifications, and experience writing ADRs, runbooks, or engineering standards.
Benefits
- Remote position in the USA.
- Travel expectation of 5–10%.
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance with premiums 100% company paid.
- Health Savings Account, life insurance, disability insurance, 401(k) retirement plan, company stock options, and home office budget.
- Flexible Time Off, federal holidays, one week for Thanksgiving, two weeks for Christmas and New Year’s, and paid parental leave.
- Reimbursement for approved training and subscriptions, plus conference travel, lodging, and fees.
Tech Stack
AWSAzureBashDockerGitLab CI/CDGoogle Cloud PlatformGrafanaHelmKubernetesLinuxPrometheusPythonTerraform
Categories
DevOpsSite Reliability
About Defense Unicorns
Defense Unicorns builds platform software and services that streamline secure, cloud-native delivery for defense and federal programs, with emphasis on DevSecOps, Kubernetes, and air‑gapped environments. It provides software and professional services under government contracts to deploy open-architecture platforms and CI/CD pipelines across classified and disconnected systems. Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Colorado Springs, the privately held company serves U.S. defense and national security agencies.