Ansible Automation Platform Engineer

Kestrel Eight; Canberra; Hybrid; AUD 166,000 - 221,000; Full time

Job summary

Kestrel Eight is recruiting a senior Ansible Automation Platform Engineer to build and operate Ansible Automation Platform for an Australian Government agency. The role is a 12‑month contract starting 1 December 2026, with Canberra strongly preferred and hybrid work options.

You will oversee day-2 operations, patching, and standardisation of playbooks, delivering reusable automation and ensuring ISM alignment and Essential Eight compliance.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of enterprise Ansible experience and Ansible Automation Platform (or Tower/AWX) experience.
• Experience delivering automation that survives an audit and changes in staff.
• Red Hat Certified Specialist in Developing Automation or equivalent competence.

Responsibilities

• Run platform day 2 operations, patch and release management, and recommend currency maintenance.
• Establish and maintain playbook management for the agency’s infrastructure teams.
• Review existing playbooks for usage, quality and reusability ahead of migration to the new Ansible Automation Platform service.
• Establish templates that encourage reuse and standardisation of playbooks.
• Help the midrange and other infrastructure teams write new playbooks to good practice.
• Design patching automation for RHEL 8.x and RHEL 9.x on x86-64.
• Record requirements, design decisions, the solution overview and diagrams in a High-Level Design document.
• Develop automation as required.
• Establish the technical capability to support Essential Eight Maturity Level 1 compliance for operating system patching.

Skills

Ansible

Automation

Auditable automation

Education

Red Hat Certified Specialist in Developing Automation

Tools

Ansible Automation Platform

Tower/AWX

Job description

Location

Canberra

Work Site

Hybrid

Employment Type

12 Months (Initial Contract)

Closing Date

20 Nov, 2026

Job Title

Ansible Automation Platform Engineer

Role Description

A senior automation engineer to build and run Ansible Automation Platform for an Australian Government agency.

Kestrel Eight is looking for a senior engineer to build and operate Ansible Automation Platform for an Australian Government agency’s infrastructure team, for 12 months from 1 December 2026. Canberra is strongly preferred.

The Role

You will build and operate Ansible Automation Platform so that RHEL, OpenShift day 2 operations, patching and repeatable landing zone work are automated, aligned to the ISM and reusable by the agency’s own staff.

What You Will Do

• Run platform day 2 operations, patch and release management, and recommend how to maintain currency.
• Establish and maintain playbook management for the agency’s infrastructure teams.
• Review existing playbooks for usage, quality and reusability ahead of migration to the new Ansible Automation Platform service.
• Establish templates that encourage reuse and standardisation of playbooks.
• Help the midrange and other infrastructure teams write new playbooks to good practice.
• Design patching automation for RHEL 8.x and RHEL 9.x on x86-64.
• Record requirements, design decisions, the solution overview and diagrams in a High-Level Design document.
• Develop automation as required.
• Establish the technical capability to support Essential Eight Maturity Level 1 compliance for operating system patching.

What You Will Bring

• 5+ years of enterprise Ansible experience, including Ansible Automation Platform (or Tower or AWX at equivalent scale).
• Red Hat Certified Specialist in Developing Automation, or equivalent competence.
• Experience delivering automation that survives an audit and changes in staff.

Contract Details

Detail Value Rate Competitive daily rate

Term 12 Months (Initial Contract). Extension not yet confirmed.

Location Canberra strongly preferred

Start 1 December 2026, subject to client onboarding

Clearance Active Australian Government NV1 clearance, or one that can be readily reinstated

About the Employer

Kestrel Eight is an Australian IT advisory and delivery firm. We place senior, locally based practitioners into enterprise and government programs across delivery, architecture, integration and platform modernisation.