Senior Cloud Platform Engineer

Zaizi; Greater London; On-site; GBP 95,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay

Loyalty pension

Life assurance

Job summary

Zaizi is seeking a Senior Cloud Platform Engineer to design, deploy, and maintain sovereign cloud infrastructure in UK defence environments. You will work with GCP, Kubernetes, and air-gapped GDC/GKE Enterprise platforms to support edge analytics and offline workloads.

Responsibilities include implementing Sovereign IaC, secure CI/CD pipelines, and policy-based controls while ensuring data sovereignty and compliance with NCSC and JSP 604 standards.

Qualifications

• Active UK SC Clearance, ideally DV or eligibility for DV.
• 3+ years of production experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
• Experience delivering cloud platforms in Defence/National Security environments.

Responsibilities

• Sovereign IaC: Design and maintain GCP environments and landing zones.
• Kubernetes orchestration: Manage GKE/GKE Enterprise clusters in air-gapped or low-bandwidth setups.
• Security architecture: Implement Zero-Trust, Private Google Access, and IAM controls per NCSC/DoD frameworks.
• Air-gapped & edge deployments: Manage disconnected sovereign cloud nodes and offline artifact management.
• DevSecOps & policy-as-code: CI/CD with container scanning, signing, and policy enforcement (OPA/Gatekeeper).
• Data sovereignty: Configure private interconnects and outbound proxies to prevent exfiltration.

Skills

GCP

Kubernetes

Terraform

Ansible

GKE

Istio

OPA/Gatekeeper

SbD/NCSC

Security Clearances

Tools

Terraform

Ansible

GKE

Kubernetes

Istio

Vault/GCP KMS

OPA/Gatekeeper

Job description

Role Overview

We are seeking a Senior Cloud Platform Engineer with deep expertise in Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Kubernetes, and High-Assurance UK Defence environments.
In this role, you will design, deploy, and maintain mission-critical, sovereign cloud infrastructure for sensitive national security operations. You will operate at the intersection of modern cloud-native software engineering and strict defense compliance—building automated, air-gapped platforms using Google Distributed Cloud air-gapped (GDC air-gapped) and GKE Enterprise capable of supporting tactical edge analytics and disconnected containerised workloads.

Key Responsibilities

• Sovereign Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Design, build, and maintain enterprise-grade GCP environments and Sovereign Landing Zones using Terraform and Ansible.
• Kubernetes Orchestration: Manage, scale, and secure production GKE and GKE Enterprise clusters in air-gapped or low-bandwidth environments.
• High-Assurance Security Architecture: Implement Zero-Trust network topologies, Private Google Access, Service Controls, and IAM policies aligned with NCSC Cloud Security Principles, JSP 604, and MoD Secure by Design (SbD) frameworks.
• Air-Gapped & Edge Deployments: Operate fully disconnected, sovereign cloud nodes (GDC air-gapped) and handle offline artifact management (e.g., container image mirroring, local Helm repositories, offline Terraform providers).
• DevSecOps & Policy-as-Code: Build secure CI/CD pipelines incorporating container scanning, cryptographic image signing, secret management (Vault/GCP KMS), and automated policy enforcement (OPA/Gatekeeper).
• Data Sovereignty & Isolation: Configure private interconnects, network firewalls, and outbound-only proxies to guarantee strict data sovereignty and prevent data exfiltration.

Required Experience

1. Defence & High-Assurance Context

• Active UK SC Clearance, ideally MoD Developed Vetting or eligibility for DV.
• Proven experience delivering cloud platforms within UK Defence (MoD, CSOC, DE&S), Intelligence, or National Security environments.
• Working knowledge of UK Government Security Classifications (OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE / SECRET / TOP SECRET), NCSC guidelines, and JSP 604 accreditation loops.

2. GCP & Infrastructure Automation

• 3+ years of production experience operating Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
• Expertise in Terraform for declarative infrastructure management.
• Deep understanding of GCP networking (VPC Service Controls, Cloud Interconnect, Private Service Connect, Cloud NAT, DNS).

3. Containerisation & Kubernetes

• Production experience administering GKE / GKE Enterprise.
• Hands‑on experience with container security, Service Mesh (Istio), and admission controllers (OPA/Gatekeeper or Kyverno).
• Experience managing air-gapped software deployments where continuous internet connectivity is absent.

Desirable Qualifications

• Certifications: GCP Professional Cloud Architect, GCP Professional Cloud Security Engineer, or Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA).
• Experience with Google Distributed Cloud air-gapped (GDC air-gapped) hardware appliances or edge deployments.
• Familiarity with event streaming (Kafka, Cloud Pub/Sub) in low-bandwidth, intermittent, or limited (DIL) connectivity scenarios.
• Background in Armed Forces technical branches, tactical C4ISR systems, or specialised defence consultancies.

• Competitive Pay: Salaries reviewed annually to ensure they reflect your performance and market value.
• Loyalty Pension: We invest in your future. Starting at a 5% employer contribution, we increase this by 0.5% every year after your third anniversary, up to amaximum of 8%.
• Protection: Comprehensive Group Life Assurance for peace of mind.

Purpose & Culture

• Real Impact: Work on mission-critical projects that secure and improve the UK's digital infrastructure.
• Autonomy: A culture that empowers you to make decisions, prototype rapidly, and iterate towards success.
• Service & Community: We support those who serve.10 paid daysfor Reservist Military Service.

Work / Life Balance

• Time Off: 25 days annual leave+ Bank Holidays, with the flexibility to Buy/Sell additional days to suit your lifestyle.
• Giving back:2 paid volunteering days per year.

Development & Growth

• Master Your Craft: Fully funded professional certifications (AWS, GCP, Agile, etc.) supported by5 days paid study leave.
• Expand Your Horizons: An additional £500 annual "Personal Choice" fund to learn whatever inspires you—work-related or not.
• Support: Access to 1-2-1 professional coaching and team training to accelerate your career.

Health & Balance

• Premium Health: Vitality Private Medical Insurance (includes Apple Watch, gym discounts, and rewards).
• Flexibility: Genuine hybrid working with a WFH equipment allowance to perfect your home setup.

Wellbeing

• Wellbeing: Cycle to Work scheme and a commitment to sustainable, healthy working practices.