Principal AWS Cloud Engineer

LIGHTFEATHER IO LLC • Washington, DC

125d

About The Position

LightFeather is seeking a Principal AWS Cloud Engineer to spearhead AWS architecture and engineering efforts for federal clients. This position combines hands-on technical depth with leadership, ensuring secure, scalable, and compliant AWS platforms while mentoring teams and shaping long-term cloud transformation strategies. This role provides the opportunity to lead high-impact cloud transformation initiatives in the federal sector, ensuring secure, efficient, and scalable AWS platform solutions.

Requirements

• US Citizenship.
• Active Secret or higher clearance.
• Minimum 7+ years of experience in cloud engineering, DevOps, or technical leadership, with a strong focus on AWS cloud environments.
• Certifications: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional (or equivalent AWS certification preferred).
• Deep understanding of AWS security tools, IAM best practices, encryption standards, and DoD/Federal compliance frameworks (FedRAMP, NIST, RMF, Zero Trust Architecture).
• Strong expertise in Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes, AWS Lambda, and AWS DevOps services.
• Experience integrating AWS solutions with Azure and GCP environments.
• Strong proficiency in Python, PowerShell, Bash, and YAML/JSON for automation and cloud management.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working with federal agencies or DoD cloud modernization projects.
• Knowledge of AWS AI/ML services, container orchestration (EKS), and serverless architectures.
• Expertise in cloud cost optimization and performance tuning strategies.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement scalable, resilient, and high-performance AWS environments for enterprise applications.
• Lead a team of cloud engineers, providing guidance on AWS best practices, DevOps strategies, and cloud security frameworks.
• Develop and manage AWS infrastructure using Terraform, CloudFormation, and Ansible to automate provisioning and configuration.
• Enforce AWS security best practices, including IAM policies, AWS Shield, AWS Macie, encryption, and FedRAMP compliance.
• Oversee CI/CD processes using GitLab, Jenkins, AWS CodePipeline, and AWS CodeDeploy for automated deployments.
• Utilize AWS CloudWatch, CloudTrail, and AWS Security Hub to track system health, optimize performance, and detect anomalies.
• Support hybrid and cross-cloud environments, ensuring seamless integration between AWS, Azure, and on-premise systems.
• Configure VPCs, Route 53, Elastic Load Balancers (ELB), and AWS Direct Connect for secure, high-performance cloud networking.
• Implement AWS backup, disaster recovery, and multi-region failover strategies to enhance system resilience.
• Work closely with government agencies, security teams, and cloud engineers to ensure alignment with business and security objectives.
• Develop and implement automated security monitoring, logging, and compliance reporting solutions.

Benefits

• Join a purpose-driven team that delivers innovative, mission-critical solutions.
• Work on diverse, meaningful projects that challenge and inspire you.
• Collaborate with some of the best minds in the industry.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal
• Number of Employees: 51-100 employees