FinOps Engineer

Role: FinOps Engineer Location: Remote
Job Description:

• Establish and continuously improve Cengage's AWS FinOps operating model, defining clear responsibilities and review cadences.
• Build and maintain cost allocation standards, improving the completeness and quality of tags and account metadata.
• Develop practical frameworks and safeguards for account structure, tagging, ownership, budget thresholds, resource lifecycle, non-production scheduling, commitments, and exception handling.
• Build driver-based AWS forecasts, partnering with Finance and technology leaders to establish budgets and variance thresholds.
• Implement AWS Budgets, AWS Cost Anomaly Detection, and monitoring patterns to identify cost anomalies.
• Identify and assist in applying rightsizing, scheduling, autoscaling, and other opportunities to reduce AWS expenses.
• Develop dependable pipelines and services using AWS-native features for capturing and sharing AWS cost and usage data.
• Build pragmatic policies and guardrails regarding account development and resource lifecycle without slowing delivery.
• Identify where automation can enforce a standard safely and where human judgment is required.
• Translate financial and technical data into clear recommendations, encouraging a cost-aware culture among engineering and product teams.
• Help teams make cost-aware architecture decisions early, when changes are less expensive and non-disruptive.

Skills you will need here:

We are seeking an exceptionally skilled FinOps Engineer with demonstrated expertise in cloud infrastructure development, financial management, and AWS cost optimization.

• Five or more years of work in cloud engineering, FinOps, or similar areas, with practical AWS experience.
• Solid experience with tools for managing AWS expenses and consumption, such as Cost Explorer and AWS Budgets.
• Experience with infrastructure as code and version-controlled engineering practices, such as Terraform, CloudFormation, or an equivalent approach.
• Proficiency in SQL and Python, and experience with APIs, data pipelines, and cloud-native automation.
• Ability to analyze complex cost and usage data, test assumptions, identify root causes, and turn findings into actions that teams can implement.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze complex data, test assumptions, and drive actionable recommendations.
• Strong communication abilities, able to clarify economic and technological tradeoffs to varied audiences.
• Ability to influence without authority, establish accountability, and deliver through repeatable processes.

Preferred qualifications include FinOps certifications, experience with the FinOps Framework, and knowledge of sustainability-conscious workload optimization.