Lead, Platform Engineering - Kubernetes

Mastercard • O’Fallon, MO

2d

About The Position

The Kubernetes Platform Engineering team is seeking a Lead Kubernetes Platform Engineer to design, build, and operate secure, reliable, and scalable container platforms across Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) and Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS). As a Lead Engineer, you will take ownership of critical platform capabilities, guide technical decisions, and mentor team members while enabling engineering teams across Mastercard to seamlessly deploy and operate cloud-native applications. You will deliver standardized platform capabilities, automation frameworks, and governance patterns that drive developer experience and operational excellence.

Requirements

• Strong hands-on experience designing and operating Kubernetes in production environments across both AKS and EKS
• Deep understanding of cloud-native concepts including containers, networking, RBAC, autoscaling, workload identity, service mesh (Istio), and admission control
• Proficiency with Infrastructure-as-Code tools (Terraform), GitOps frameworks (Argo CD), Helm, and CI/CD pipelines
• Experience implementing and operating Kubernetes-native add-ons such as Istio, Gateway API, policy engines, and observability tooling
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical initiatives, mentor engineers, and drive adoption of platform standards and best practices
• Strong problem-solving skills with experience troubleshooting complex distributed systems and performing root-cause analysis
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively across engineering, architecture, and security teams
• A mindset focused on automation, reliability, and delivering secure, compliant, and scalable capabilities at enterprise scale

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and implementation of Kubernetes platform components across AKS and EKS, including cluster provisioning, workload identity, networking, ingress, and observability
• Own and enhance GitOps workflows (Argo CD), service mesh (Istio), Gateway API implementations, and admission control policies that enforce security and compliance guardrails
• Develop and maintain Infrastructure-as-Code modules (Terraform), Helm charts, and automation pipelines that enable consistent, repeatable platform operations
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineers, conducting code reviews and fostering engineering best practices within the team
• Collaborate with Cloud Architecture, Security, Product, and engineering teams to define platform standards, validate requirements, and support Kubernetes adoption across the enterprise
• Lead troubleshooting of complex platform issues, perform root-cause analysis, and drive systemic improvements that enhance platform reliability and scalability
• Contribute to platform documentation, runbooks, and knowledge sharing to ensure operational excellence and team enablement

Benefits

• insurance (including medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, disability, life insurance)
• flexible spending account and health savings account
• paid leaves (including 16 weeks of new parent leave and up to 20 days of bereavement leave)
• 80 hours of Paid Sick and Safe Time, 25 days of vacation time and 5 personal days, pro-rated based on date of hire
• 10 annual paid U.S. observed holidays
• 401k with a best-in-class company match
• deferred compensation for eligible roles
• fitness reimbursement or on-site fitness facilities
• eligibility for tuition reimbursement

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed