Automation & AI Engineer

ECS Corporate Services; Fairfax (VA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

ECS Corporate Services seeks an Automation Engineer to support a DoD program in a hybrid AWS GovCloud, Azure Government, and on-prem environment. You will design, build, and maintain automation, infrastructure as code, and CI/CD pipelines to ensure auditable changes.

Responsibilities include patch orchestration, STIG hardening, compliance workflows with Python tools, and integration with Jira, Splunk, and AD. Onsite work required; DoD clearance preferred.

Qualifications

• U.S. citizen with DoD Secret or higher clearance.
• 5+ years in systems engineering, DevOps, SRE, or automation roles.
• Strong Python development for automation and data formats (JSON, YAML, CSV).
• Production Terraform experience with modules, remote state, and cloud providers.
• Onsite work as required by the program.

Responsibilities

• Automate patch orchestration and STIG hardening for Windows and Linux.
• Develop Python tools for compliance workflows and reports.
• Build reusable Terraform modules for AWS GovCloud and Azure Government.
• Version-control infrastructure and bring it under IaC management.
• Integrate data exchange across Jira, Splunk, NetBox, Infoblox, and AD.
• Create GitHub workflows to enforce CI/CD controls.
• Incorporate security scanning into delivery workflows.
• Collaborate with engineering, cybersecurity, operations, and stakeholders.

Skills

Python development

Terraform

Git/GitHub workflows

Windows & Linux administration

DoD cybersecurity compliance

REST API integration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or related field

Tools

Terraform

GitHub

ACAS

Nessus

Jira

Splunk

NetBox

Infoblox

Active Directory

Job description

Job Description ECS is seeking an Automation Engineer to support a Department of Defense (DoD) program. ECS is seeking an experienced, mission-focused Automation Engineer to join an engineering team responsible for a hybrid environment spanning Amazon Web Services (AWS) GovCloud, Microsoft Azure Government, and on-premises data center infrastructure. The Automation Engineer will design, build, and maintain the program's automation capabilities, including infrastructure as code, configuration management, compliance workflow automation, and GitHub-based delivery pipelines. This role will reduce manual effort, improve consistency, and ensure that infrastructure and compliance changes are reviewed, versioned, tested, repeatable, and auditable in accordance with Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIG) and Risk Management Framework (RMF) guidelines.

Primary Responsibilities

• Automate patch orchestration, DISA STIG hardening, configuration validation, and drift remediation for Windows and Linux systems.
• Develop Python tools that automate operational and cybersecurity compliance workflows, including parsing and generating STIG Checklist (CKL) files; consuming ACAS and Nessus exports; tracking IAVM and POA&M status; and producing scheduled reports and dashboards.
• Design, develop, and maintain reusable Terraform modules for AWS GovCloud and Azure Government compute, networking, identity and access management, storage, and monitoring resources.
• Bring existing manually provisioned infrastructure under version control and infrastructure-as-code management without disrupting production operations.
• Use JSON, YAML, CSV, and REST application programming interfaces (API) to exchange data and integrate platforms in the environment, including Jira, Splunk, NetBox, Infoblox, NetApp ONTAP, Active Directory, and cloud-provider services.
• Replace manual runbook steps with idempotent, logged, testable, and auditable automation that supports CCB review and cybersecurity evidence requirements.
• Develop and maintain GitHub workflows and continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines that enforce branching, pull-request, code-review, testing, and release controls.
• Incorporate infrastructure-as-code, configuration, and application security scanning into automated delivery workflows and address identified findings.
• Work from the team backlog in Jira under an Agile/Scrum delivery cadence; participate in asynchronous standups, sprint planning, backlog refinement, reviews, and demonstrations.
• Coordinate with engineering, cybersecurity, operations, and program stakeholders to prioritize automation opportunities and ensure solutions meet mission, security, and operational requirements.
• Other duties, as assigned.

Salary Range: $120,000 - $170,000

Required Skills

• U.S. citizen.
• Active Department of Defense (DoD) Secret or higher security clearance.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field of study, or an equivalent combination of education and hands-on experience.
• 5+ years of professional experience in systems engineering, DevOps, site reliability engineering, or automation engineering roles.
• Strong hands-on Python development experience for automation and integration, including JSON, YAML, and CSV data processing; REST API integration; error handling; logging; and unit testing.
• Production experience with Terraform, including reusable modules, remote state, workspaces, and AWS and/or Azure providers.
• Proficiency with Git and GitHub workflows.
• Working knowledge of Windows Server and Linux administration, Active Directory, and enterprise networking fundamentals.
• Working knowledge of DoD cybersecurity compliance requirements and processes.
• Ability to work onsite as required by the program.