Cloud Computing Engineer Principal

Syms Strategic Group, LLC (SSG)•Towson, MD

23h•$109,623 - $126,790•Remote

About The Position

Syms Strategic Group (SSG) is hiring a Principal Cloud Computing Engineer to support Veterans Affairs healthcare systems. This is a full-time, 100% U.S.-based remote W-2 position supporting the VA. The role requires a Public Trust (MBI) or eligibility to obtain one, and U.S. citizenship is required. Candidates residing in California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, or Washington will not be considered. The engineer will design, deploy, operate, and support secure, scalable Azure cloud infrastructure and services in VA Enterprise Cloud (VAEC) Azure GovCloud environments. The role includes architecture and data-flow documentation, CI/CD and automation, access and permission management, monitoring and compliance, cloud security documentation, customer-focused environment provisioning, and cloud-readiness assessment. The position calls for senior technical leadership, mentoring, and leading cloud modernization, migration, and transformation work across teams. On-call support may be required. The formal education requirement is a bachelor's degree in computer science, systems engineering, cloud engineering, or a related technical discipline with 20 years of experience, or a master's degree in one of those fields with 10 years of experience. The posting also lists 20+ years of professional experience. Desired experience includes hands-on Edifecs and healthcare X.12 EDI transaction workflows, as well as advanced Azure certifications.

Requirements

A proven track record of designing, deploying, and managing Azure infrastructure and services.
Experience with large-scale, highly available, and scalable cloud architecture.
Expertise in Azure Virtual Machines, Azure Blob Storage, Azure SQL Database, Azure Virtual Network, Azure Functions, Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Resource Manager, 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 infrastructure.
Experience establishing and governing multi-subscription Azure environments using Management Groups, Azure Policy, and Azure Landing Zones.
Knowledge of cloud cost management, FinOps, budgeting, tagging strategies, and resource optimization using Azure Cost Management.
Proficiency in scripting languages such as Python, PowerShell, Bash, or JavaScript/Node.js.
Experience with infrastructure-as-code tools such as Azure Resource Manager templates and Ansible, and with GitOps methodologies.
Proficiency with monitoring, logging, and observability tools, including Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Application Insights, Azure Activity Log, and tools such as Prometheus, Grafana, and New Relic.
Experience optimizing the performance, availability, and resiliency of Azure resources and services.
Strong 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 strategies.
Familiarity with CI/CD tools and practices, including Azure DevOps Pipelines, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, and GitLab CI.
Experience with Docker, Azure Kubernetes Service, Azure Container Apps, and Kubernetes.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to troubleshoot complex cloud issues and explain technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
Ability to prioritize tasks, manage competing priorities and time effectively, and meet deadlines.
Strong attention to detail to support system stability, security, operational excellence, and data integrity.
Ability to mentor engineers, provide technical leadership, and contribute to cloud architecture governance.
Experience leading technical projects and collaborating across cross-functional teams.
Strong verbal and written communication and documentation skills.
Ability to manage and contribute to multiple projects simultaneously while ensuring timely, high-quality deliverables.
Willingness to provide on-call support and emergency maintenance when required.
Commitment to staying current with Azure technologies, cloud-native architectures, tools, and industry best practices.
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 one of those fields and 10 years of experience.
20+ years of professional experience.
U.S. citizenship is required.
Must possess or qualify for a Public Trust (MBI).

Nice To Haves

Deep hands-on Edifecs experience with healthcare 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-provider permissions for hosted applications, storage, and services.
Design, implement, manage, and monitor 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 environments.
Provide cloud support for systems and applications in VAEC Azure GovCloud environments, ensuring compliance with Veterans Independence Program development, release, and documentation requirements.
Apply a DevOps mindset and CI/CD practices and tooling.
Provide cloud security provider documentation.
Design VAEC and cloud-hosted solutions and address cloud-readiness gaps.
Lead complex cloud modernization, migration, and transformation initiatives in collaboration with cross-functional teams.
Mentor engineers and provide technical leadership, guidance, and contributions to cloud architecture governance.
Provide on-call support and participate in operational response activities when required.
Document architecture, operational procedures, security controls, system configurations, processes, and procedures.
Manage and contribute to multiple projects while meeting deadlines and delivering quality results.