Senior Platform Engineer - Pathogen

Ellison Institute of Technology; Oxford; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A research institute is seeking a Senior Platform Engineer to manage a cloud-based data platform utilized in pathogen research. Responsibilities include optimizing cloud infrastructure, automating deployments, and ensuring data security. The ideal candidate will have hands-on Oracle Cloud experience, strong skills in automation using Terraform, and a solid understanding of security best practices.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Enhanced holiday pay

Pension

Life Assurance

Income Protection

Private Medical Insurance

Hospital Cash Plan

Therapy Services

Perk Box

Electrical Car Scheme

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with Oracle Cloud and its services.
• Ability to automate processes using Terraform.
• Understanding of IAM and encryption best practices.

Responsibilities

• Manage object data storage designs and access controls.
• Build and manage compute environments for bioinformatics.
• Ensure cloud resources are secure and managed.

Skills

Cloud infrastructure experience

Terraform automation

Containerization (Docker)

Kubernetes orchestration

Cloud security practices

Version control (Git)

Tools

Oracle Cloud

Jira

Confluence

Job description

The Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) tackles humanity’s greatest challenges by turning science and technology into impactful global solutions. Focused on areas like health, food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, clean energy, and robotics in an era of artificial intelligence. EIT blends groundbreaking research with practical applications to deliver lasting results.

A cornerstone of EIT mission is its upcoming 300,000-square-foot research facility at the Oxford Science Park, set to open in 2027. This cutting-edge campus will feature advanced labs, an oncology and preventative care clinic, and collaborative spaces to strengthen its partnership with the University of Oxford. It will also host the Ellison Scholars, driving innovation for societal benefit.

The Pathogen Mission highlights EIT’s transformative approach, using Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) and Oracle’s cloud technology to create a global pathogen metagenomics system. This initiative aims to improve diagnostics, provide early epidemic warnings, and guide treatments by profiling antimicrobial resistance. The goal is to deliver certified diagnostic tools for widespread use in labs, hospitals, and public health.

EIT fosters a culture of collaboration, innovation, and resilience, valuing diverse expertise to drive sustainable solutions to humanity’s enduring challenges.

We are seeking a Senior Platform Engineer to join and support the EIT Pathogen Programme. In this critical role, you will take ownership of the full lifecycle and infrastructure that powers our cutting-edge data platform. Working closely with data engineers and DevSecOps teams, you will ensure our platforms are efficient, secure, scalable, and fully aligned with the evolving needs of our research teams and scientists driving global pathogen research.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage our object data storage, ensuring efficient design, tiering, and access controls.
• Build and manage our research compute environment for running bioinformatics pipelines and interactive analytics.
• Ensure the data platform meets disaster recovery standards.
• Ensure cloud resources are managed according to set standards and that deployments are automated.
• Collaborate with the AI and Robotics team to contribute to and reuse modular assets using Terraform code models.
• Automate the deployment of tooling within the research environment.
• Monitor all platform components for availability, cost, and performance.
• Support R&D activities to test novel approaches and use of Oracle Cloud.
• Support data ingest services from the global distributed sequencing devices network.
• Ensure our platform is secure and aligned with EIT standards.
• Collaborate with architects and engineers to build optimized data platform components, including genomic variant stores, sequence stores, and databases tailored for pathogen analytics.
• Work with the DevSecOps engineer to ensure all deployments are automated using a standard toolchain.
• Enable engineers to perform common tasks using automated self-service scripts.
• Lead the systems administration and operations of our data platform across environments.
• Work with engineers to learn from incidents and follow through on opportunities for improvement.

Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience:

• Strong hands-on experience with cloud infrastructure, ideally Oracle Cloud and its portfolio, including provisioning, configuration, and management of services.
• Ability to automate everything using Terraform and appropriate toolchains.
• In-depth knowledge of containerisation technologies (e.g. Docker) and orchestration tools like Kubernetes.
• Solid understanding of cloud security best practices, including identity and access management (IAM), network security, and encryption.
• Experience with Git or other version control systems.

Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience:

• Certifications in Oracle Cloud (OCI) or other cloud platforms (AWS, GCP).
• Experience with Jira, Confluence, or similar project management tools.
• Knowledge of compliance frameworks and standards (e.g. GDPR, HIPAA, ISO27001, ISO13485).

Key Attributes:

• Collaborative mindset.
• Willingness to learn, cross-train, and upskill in new technology.
• Hands-on approach to exploring new technologies and developing proofs of concept (POCs).
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to think critically about security challenges.
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills, especially within cross-functional teams.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and meet deadlines in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Attention to detail and a strong commitment to security and quality assurance.
• Flexibility to adapt and contribute in a rapidly scaling organisation.

We offer the following salary and benefits:

• Salary: Competitive salary on offer
• Enhanced holiday pay
• Pension
• Life Assurance
• Income Protection
• Private Medical Insurance
• Hospital Cash Plan
• Therapy Services
• Perk Box
• Electrical Car Scheme

Why work for EIT:

At the Ellison Institute, we believe a collaborative, inclusive team is key to our success. We are building a supportive environment where creative risks are encouraged, and everyone feels heard. Valuing emotional intelligence, empathy, respect, and resilience, we encourage people to be curious and to have a shared commitment to excellence. Join us and make an impact!

Terms of Appointment:

• You must have the right to work permanently in the UK with a willingness to travel as necessary.
• You will live in, or within easy commuting distance of, Oxford.
• During peak periods, some longer hours may be required and some working across multiple time zones due to the global nature of the programme.