Defense Unicorns
Platform Engineer
Platform Engineer deploying and maintaining UDS on secure bare-metal Kubernetes infrastructure, acting as a bridge between app teams and the platform for a U.S. government contractor.
- Compensation
- $123.3K–$166.8K / yr
- Location
- San Antonio, Texas
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Not specified
- Employment
- Contract
- Experience
- Not specified
- Category
- Devops
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- U.S. Citizenship
Nice to have
- Active Secret/Top Secret Security Clearance
- Experience deploying and operating Kubernetes or containerized platforms in bare-metal or on-premises environments
- Experience with infrastructure as code tools (e.g., Terraform, Pulumi, or similar)
- Proficiency with CI/CD tooling, particularly GitLab CI or equivalent pipeline platforms
- Working knowledge of Linux/Unix operating systems and command-line administration
- Experience with cloud platforms, preferably AWS (EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, VPC)
- Experience supporting GPU-enabled infrastructure or workloads
- Ability to read and write YAML fluently for Kubernetes manifests, CRDs, Helm charts, and pipeline configurations
- Strong communication and collaboration skills
- Possess or ability to obtain a DoD 8570 IAT II certification (e.g., Security+ CE)
Full description
EMPLOYER IS A CONTRACTOR FOR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT. THIS POSITION REQUIRES U.S. CITIZENSHIP.
Role Description:
Defense Unicorns is seeking a Platform Engineer to support the deployment and maintenance of UDS within a secure, bare-metal environment. You will serve as a bridge between application teams and the platform, advocating best practices and helping ensure that the platform is reliable, secure, and scalable. The ideal candidate is a strong problem-solver with hands-on experience in Kubernetes, bare-metal or on-premises infrastructure, and deploying applications onto Kubernetes-based platforms.
Responsibilities: The listed responsibilities are not exhaustive and additional responsibilities may be assigned based on the evolving needs of the organization. We are seeking a dynamic individual who is able to adapt and take on new responsibilities as they arise.
- Support the architecture, deployment, configuration, and testing of bare-metal infrastructure, including GPU compute, storage, and networking
- Deploy, configure, maintain, and troubleshoot UDS and Kubernetes-based platform services
- Develop and manage infrastructure as code (IaC) and configuration to enable consistent, repeatable deployments
- Support secure software delivery, including container images, registries, packages, and deployment artifacts
- Collaborate with mission stakeholders, partner organizations, and Defense Unicorns engineering teams to identify technical requirements and resolve deployment challenges
- Collaborate with mission stakeholders, partner organizations, and Defense Unicorns engineering teams to identify technical requirements and resolve platform challenges
Travel Expectations/Requirements: 10%-15%
Preferred Experience and Qualifications:
- Active Secret/Top Secret Security Clearance
- Experience deploying and operating Kubernetes or containerized platforms in bare-metal or on-premises environments (deploying, managing, and troubleshooting clusters and workloads)
- Experience with infrastructure as code tools (e.g., Terraform, Pulumi, or similar)
- Proficiency with CI/CD tooling, particularly GitLab CI or equivalent pipeline platforms
- Working knowledge of Linux/Unix operating systems and command-line administration
- Experience with cloud platforms, preferably AWS (EC2, EKS, IAM, S3, VPC)
- Experience supporting GPU-enabled infrastructure or workloads
- Ability to read and write YAML fluently for Kubernetes manifests, CRDs, Helm charts, and pipeline configurations