Senior Platform Architect

Hatch IT•Washington, DC

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Expression is seeking a Senior Platform Architect to shape the direction of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Federal Spectrum Data Systems (FSDS) platform within the U.S. Department of Commerce. The role plans architecture and integration across platform components in partnership with Expression engineering teams and NTIA stakeholders, treating the platform as a product that evolves with the needs of its users. FSDS supports the modernization of federal spectrum management through improved technology, automation, data integration, and interoperability. It consists of multiple applications, data services, and shared infrastructure operating across unclassified and classified environments. Its core is a data lakehouse in Azure Government that ingests, governs, and serves federal spectrum data. The architect will guide shared cloud platforms used to develop, deploy, and run applications, data services, and analytics across Azure Commercial and Azure Government, including classified Azure Government Secret environments. The role works closely with DevOps, security, and operations teams, making architecture decisions, weighing technical tradeoffs, and turning one-off solutions into reusable capabilities. An active Secret clearance or higher is required. The position is based in Washington, DC, with three days per week on-site at an Expression office or customer site. Expression, founded in 1997 and headquartered in Washington, DC, provides data fusion, data analytics, software engineering, information technology, and electromagnetic spectrum management solutions to the U.S. Department of Defense, Department of State, and national security community. Its “Perpetual Innovation” culture focuses on creating immediate and sustainable client value through agile delivery of tailored solutions and continuous client engagement. The technology environment includes Apache Iceberg, Apache Polaris, and Trino on Azure Data Lake Storage; PostgreSQL, OpenMetadata, and Elasticsearch; Azure Data Factory, containerized Spark jobs, and Python Azure Functions; Microsoft Entra ID, managed identities, Azure Key Vault, and private networking; Bicep with Azure Verified Modules, GitLab CI, hardened container images, vulnerability scanning, and SBOMs; and Tableau.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field and five or more years of relevant platform, DevOps, or cloud engineering experience, or eight or more years of relevant experience in lieu of a degree.
Experience defining architecture for multi-component platforms or programs, including integration patterns, target-state designs, and technical roadmaps.
Experience working directly with government customers or program stakeholders to gather requirements, present technical options, and drive decisions.
Experience designing infrastructure in Azure Commercial and Azure Government.
Experience with platforms in classified or similarly restricted federal environments.
Working knowledge of Infrastructure as Code, Kubernetes, and CI/CD practices sufficient to guide and review DevOps implementations.
Working knowledge of cloud networking, identity and access management, secrets management, and observability.
Ability to make sound architecture decisions, document solutions, and collaborate with developers, DevOps engineers, security personnel, and customer stakeholders.
Active Secret clearance or higher.

Nice To Haves

Experience operating Azure Government Secret platforms.
Experience building internal developer platforms or self-service provisioning portals.
Familiarity with NIST SP 800-53 controls, RMF, ATO processes, and STIG implementation.
Familiarity with platform security tools such as Nessus, SonarQube, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Aqua Security, or comparable products.
Hands-on experience with Terraform, Bicep, Docker, Kubernetes, or Helm.
Experience with data lakehouse architectures using Apache Iceberg, Trino, or comparable table formats and query engines.
Experience with data catalog and governance tools such as OpenMetadata.
Experience designing for disconnected or air-gapped deployments.
Experience with Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Application Insights, Prometheus, or Grafana.
Experience supporting shared database or search services such as SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Elasticsearch, or OpenSearch.
Experience enabling data engineering or machine learning workloads on platforms such as Apache Spark, Azure Data Factory, or related technologies.
Experience with GitOps, policy as code, Kubernetes operators, or service mesh technologies.
Relevant Azure, Kubernetes, or cloud security certifications.

Responsibilities

Own the FSDS platform roadmap across component systems, aligning priorities with NTIA program goals, application team needs, and security requirements.
Define target-state architecture and integration patterns connecting FSDS applications, data services, and external federal systems.
Lead architecture as the platform matures and expands to new environments.
Weigh architecture tradeoffs across cost, security, operability, and federal-environment constraints.
Lead technical planning for new FSDS capabilities, migrations, and environment expansions, including scope, dependencies, sequencing, and estimates.
Serve as the platform’s technical lead with NTIA and partner government teams, presenting architecture options, tradeoffs, and recommendations.
Coordinate with Expression application, data, and security teams so platform decisions support delivery across FSDS.
Document architecture decisions and design rationale for teams and stakeholders.
Define Azure platform architecture for unclassified and classified FSDS environments.
Set direction for shared platform services, including networking, identity, secrets management, container platforms, and configuration management.
Establish platform standards for consistency, scalability, security, and cost across development, test, and production.
Review Infrastructure as Code and Kubernetes designs with DevOps engineers to keep implementations aligned with target architecture.
Work with DevOps engineers on delivery pipelines, deployment patterns, and restricted-environment constraints, providing architecture direction rather than performing day-to-day implementation.
Partner with security teams to incorporate Commerce, NTIA, and federal requirements into the architecture and provide design input to RMF and ATO activities.
Support operations teams on observability, resilience, and recovery approaches, and provide architecture guidance during major incidents.
Work with developers and data engineers to identify delivery bottlenecks and prioritize platform improvements.
Maintain architecture diagrams, design documents, and platform lifecycle plans.
Guide platform upgrades, capacity planning, and production transitions.
Mentor engineers and communicate technical tradeoffs to stakeholders.