Lead DevOps Engineer

Job Title: Lead DevOps Engineer

Experience: 11+ Years
Job Type: W2 Only

Job Description:

We are seeking a highly experienced Lead DevOps Engineer with 11+ years of progressive experience in designing, implementing, and managing scalable CI/CD pipelines, cloud infrastructure, and automation frameworks. The ideal candidate will lead a team of DevOps engineers, drive best practices across the SDLC, and act as a key technical liaison between development, QA, and operations teams.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the design, implementation, and optimization of CI/CD pipelines using tools such as Jenkins, GitLab CI, Azure DevOps, or CircleCI
• Architect and manage cloud infrastructure across AWS, Azure, and/or Google Cloud Platform using Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation, ARM templates)
• Drive containerization and orchestration strategy using Docker and Kubernetes (EKS/AKS/GKE)
• Implement and maintain configuration management using Ansible, Chef, or Puppet
• Establish and enforce DevSecOps practices, integrating security scanning (SonarQube, Snyk, Aqua) into pipelines
• Lead monitoring, logging, and observability initiatives using Prometheus, Grafana, ELK/EFK Stack, Datadog, or Splunk
• Mentor and manage a team of DevOps/SRE engineers, providing technical guidance and career development
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams (Dev, QA, Security, Product) to streamline release management and deployment strategies
• Own incident management, root cause analysis, and disaster recovery planning
• Drive cost optimization strategies for cloud infrastructure
• Define and enforce branching strategies, release governance, and change management processes
• Evaluate and introduce new tools/technologies to improve automation, scalability, and reliability

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• 11+ years of overall IT experience with 6+ years specifically in DevOps/SRE leadership roles
• Strong hands-on experience with AWS/Azure/Google Cloud Platform (certification preferred)
• Expert-level knowledge of CI/CD tools: Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, Azure DevOps, Bamboo
• Deep expertise in Terraform/CloudFormation (IaC)
• Strong knowledge of Kubernetes, Docker, and container orchestration at scale
• Scripting proficiency in Python, Bash, Shell, PowerShell, or Groovy
• Experience with configuration management tools (Ansible, Chef, Puppet)
• Solid understanding of networking, security, and compliance in cloud environments
• Experience with monitoring/logging tools (Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, Splunk, Datadog, New Relic)
• Strong experience with version control systems (Git, GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket)
• Proven leadership experience managing DevOps teams (minimum 3-5 direct reports)
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills

Nice to Have:

• Certifications: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer / Solutions Architect, CKA/CKAD, Azure DevOps Engineer Expert
• Experience with service mesh (Istio, Linkerd)
• Exposure to GitOps tools (ArgoCD, Flux)
• Experience in regulated industries (Healthcare, Finance, Eduction, Insurance)