Lead Cloud Architect (2026-0135)
About The Position
Acclaim Technical Services is seeking a Cloud Architect with a TS/SCI clearance and polygraph to support a program in Chantilly, VA. The role involves designing, building, and evolving a large-scale, globally distributed mission system across AWS cloud environments and on-premises virtualised infrastructure. The architect will lead the design and implementation of secure, repeatable Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) patterns for deploying and operating compute fleets, network connectivity, and platform services across multiple environments. This position requires close collaboration with engineering, operations, security, and networking teams to enhance reliability, standardize deployments, and accelerate delivery through automation.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in related field. 4 additional years of experience will substitute in lieu of degree.
- 10-15+ years of experience in cloud architecture, systems engineering, or infrastructure engineering, including 3+ years as a hands-on AWS architect/lead.
- Deep expertise with AWS core services and secure architectures (networking, IAM, logging, compute, storage).
- Hands-on expertise with Terraform for production-grade IaC (modules, state management, promotion strategies, drift detection).
- Experience designing and operating hybrid environments (cloud + on-prem virtualization).
- Ability to translate requirements into scalable, maintainable, and secure architectures while providing implementation guidance.
- Ability to travel internationally up to 10%.
- Must possess an active Passport or obtain one upon hire.
Nice To Haves
- AWS certifications (Solutions Architect Professional preferred).
- Experience with VMware/vSphere architecture and operations (templates, clusters, networking, storage).
- Familiarity with configuration automation tools (Ansible, Packer) and GitOps-style workflows.
- Experience with observability patterns (metrics/logs/traces) and integrating monitoring into operations.
- Experience implementing multi-account AWS governance (Organizations, SCPs) and cost controls (tagging, budgets).
Responsibilities
- Design and implement reference architectures for AWS and hybrid environments (cloud + on-prem virtualization).
- Define deployment patterns for multi-account and multi-environment separation, network segmentation, and scalable compute/storage stacks.
- Establish standardized “landing zone” practices, including account structure, guardrails, logging, tagging, and cost controls.
- Build and maintain Terraform modules and reusable IaC patterns for AWS infrastructure, including VPCs, IAM roles/policies, load balancing, and logging foundations.
- Architect and support virtualised compute fleets using VMware/vSphere patterns for on-prem environments, including golden images, patching baselines, and provisioning workflows.
- Partner with security teams to implement secure-by-design architectures, including least privilege IAM, encryption, and centralized audit logging.
- Design for resilience and continuity with backup/restore strategies, disaster recovery considerations, and multi-AZ patterns.
- Support CI/CD enablement for infrastructure deployments using Git-based workflows integrated with Terraform plans/applies.
- Collaborate with application teams to provide standardized environments and deployment blueprints.
- Produce clear architecture documentation, including logical/physical diagrams, environment definitions, and “as-built” artifacts.
Benefits
- Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
