Cloud Computing Engineer Principal

Syms Strategic Group, LLC (SSG)•Ann Arbor, MI

1d•$109,623 - $126,790•Remote

About The Position

Syms Strategic Group (SSG) is seeking an experienced Cloud Computing Engineer Principal to support Veterans Affairs healthcare systems. This is a 100% U.S.-based remote, full-time, W-2 position supporting the VA. The role focuses on designing, deploying, securing, operating, and governing Azure cloud infrastructure and services, including systems hosted in VA Enterprise Cloud (VAEC) Azure GovCloud environments. Candidates must be U.S. citizens and must possess or qualify for a Public Trust (MBI). Applicants residing in California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, or Washington will not be considered. The stated salary range is $109,623–$126,790. The position includes cloud architecture and diagramming, automation and CI/CD, access and permissions management, monitoring and compliance, customer-focused VAEC environment support, cloud security documentation, and identifying cloud-readiness gaps. The engineer will contribute technical leadership, mentor other engineers, lead complex cloud modernization and migration efforts, and collaborate across teams. On-call and operational response support may be required. The posting requires a bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Cloud Engineering, or a related technical discipline and 20 years of experience, or a master's degree in those fields and 10 years of experience. The posting separately states 20+ years of professional experience. U.S. citizenship is required, and applicants must possess or qualify for Public Trust (MBI).

Requirements

20+ years of professional experience, as stated in the posting.
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Cloud Engineering, or a related technical discipline and 20 years of experience, or a master's degree in the same fields and 10 years of experience.
U.S. citizenship.
Must possess or qualify for a Public Trust (MBI).
Proven experience designing, deploying, and managing Azure infrastructure and services.
Experience with large-scale, highly available, and scalable cloud architecture.
Expertise with Azure Virtual Machines, Azure Blob Storage, Azure SQL Database, Azure Virtual Network (VNet), Azure Functions, Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Resource Manager (ARM), Azure Monitor, and Azure DNS.
Experience with Azure security practices and services, including Microsoft Entra ID, Azure RBAC, Azure DDoS Protection, and Azure Web Application Firewall.
Proficiency with Azure networking components, including VNet Peering, Azure ExpressRoute, VPN Gateway, Private Endpoints, and Azure Load Balancer.
Ability to design, deploy, and manage scalable, secure, and highly available Azure cloud infrastructures.
Experience governing multi-subscription Azure environments using Management Groups, Azure Policy, and Azure Landing Zones.
Knowledge of cloud cost management, FinOps practices, budgeting, tagging strategies, and Azure Cost Management.
Proficiency in Python, PowerShell, Bash, or JavaScript/NodeJS for automation and cloud operations.
Experience with IaC tools such as ARM Templates and Ansible, and with GitOps methodologies.
Proficiency with monitoring, logging, and observability tools, including Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Application Insights, Azure Activity Log, Prometheus, Grafana, or New Relic.
Experience optimizing Azure resource and service performance, availability, and resiliency.
Understanding of Azure security best practices and compliance frameworks including HIPAA, FedRAMP, NIST, GDPR, and PCI DSS.
Experience implementing encryption, key management, secrets management, and identity solutions using Azure Key Vault, customer-managed keys, and Microsoft Entra ID.
Knowledge of Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, Azure Cosmos DB, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, and Azure Database for MySQL.
Experience with database performance tuning, backup and recovery, high availability, and disaster recovery.
Familiarity with CI/CD tools and practices, including Azure DevOps Pipelines, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, and GitLab CI.
Experience with Docker, Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Container Apps, and Kubernetes.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
Ability to prioritize tasks, manage competing priorities and time effectively, and meet project deadlines.
Strong attention to detail to ensure system stability, security, operational excellence, and data integrity.
Ability to mentor engineers and provide technical leadership and guidance.
Ability to lead technical projects and collaborate with cross-functional teams.
Willingness to provide on-call and emergency support and participate in operational response when required.
Strong documentation skills.
Ability to manage and contribute to multiple projects simultaneously while producing timely, high-quality deliverables.
Commitment to staying current with emerging Azure technologies, cloud-native architectures, tools, and industry practices.

Nice To Haves

Deep hands-on EDIFECS experience with Electronic Data Interchange X.12 (EDI) transaction standards and workflows, including medical claims transactions 837, 834, 835, and 277; 270/271 and 278 transactions; and 999 transactions.
Experience with Edifecs.
Microsoft Certified: DevOps Engineer Expert certification.
Azure Administrator Associate certification.
Azure Security Engineer Associate certification.

Responsibilities

Create data flow, cloud, transition, and high-level architecture diagrams for cloud infrastructure, applications, and systems.
Design, develop, deploy, and operate automation technologies for continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD).
Manage and control cloud service provider permissions for hosted applications, storage, and services.
Design, implement, and manage monitoring capabilities for cloud architecture and hosted systems and applications to support performance and compliance with VA and federal policies.
Provide customer-focused support for product lines and services, including setup, configuration, and provisioning of VA Enterprise Cloud (VAEC) environments.
Support systems and applications in VAEC Azure GovCloud environments and ensure compliance with Veterans Independence Program (VIP) development, release, and documentation requirements.
Apply DevOps practices and CI/CD tooling.
Provide cloud security provider documentation.
Design VAEC and cloud-hosted solutions and address cloud-readiness gaps.
Design, deploy, and manage secure, scalable, and highly available Azure infrastructure and services.
Establish and govern multi-subscription Azure environments using Management Groups, Azure Policy, and Azure Landing Zones.
Apply cloud cost management and FinOps practices, including budgeting, tagging, and resource optimization.
Use scripting and Infrastructure as Code tools and methodologies to automate cloud operations.
Monitor and optimize Azure resource performance, availability, resiliency, security, and compliance.
Implement encryption, key management, secrets management, and identity solutions.
Manage database performance, backup and recovery, high availability, and disaster recovery strategies.
Lead complex cloud modernization, migration, and transformation initiatives in collaboration with cross-functional teams.
Mentor engineers and provide technical leadership and guidance; contribute to cloud architecture governance.
Troubleshoot complex cloud-related issues and communicate technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
Prioritize competing work, manage multiple projects, and deliver high-quality work on schedule.
Provide on-call support and participate in operational response activities when required.
Create and maintain architecture, operational, security, system configuration, process, and procedure documentation.
Stay current with emerging Azure technologies, cloud-native architectures, tools, and industry best practices.