Cloud Architect

GoIntellects Inc.; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

OCTO seeks a hands‑on Azure Cloud Architect to lead its cloud build‑out centered on Microsoft Azure with supporting AWS workloads. You will design secure, well‑governed environments, deliver infrastructure as code via Terraform, and manage migrations and Azure Virtual Desktop oversight.

You will collaborate with agency CIOs, security teams, and partner vendors, mentor the Azure Cloud Engineer, and ensure documentation and runbooks are maintained while tracking spend and supporting government

Qualifications

• 8+ years in infrastructure engineering with 5+ years on Azure.
• Design and delivery of an enterprise Azure landing zone with RBAC, policy, and hub‑and‑spoke networking.
• Hands‑on Terraform production experience with modules and remote state management.
• Experience building CI/CD pipelines in Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions.

Responsibilities

• Lead the cloud build‑out on Azure with AWS workloads.
• Translate agency requirements into clear designs and drive options, costs, and tradeoffs.
• Define and enforce Azure Well‑Architected Framework, landing zone standards, and RBAC policies.
• Provide architectural oversight for Azure Virtual Desktop and Nexus with Nerdio/Azure.
• Mentor the Azure Cloud Engineer and ensure runbooks and diagrams are up to date.
• Track cloud spend and support cost reporting for agency chargeback.

Skills

Azure architecture

Terraform

Azure DevOps / GitHub Actions

Entra ID / IAM

Cost management

Education

Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ‑305)

Tools

Azure DevOps

GitHub Actions

Nerdio Manager

Azure Policy

Job description

Cloud Architect-Long-Term Contract (Government) Position

Title: Cloud Architect

Worksite Address: Washington, DC

Interviews: Webcam Only

Short Description

Client seeks a hands‑on Azure Cloud Architect to lead its cloud build‑out (Azure primary, AWS Comm & GovCloud). Design secure environments for client and partner agencies, delivers Terraform‑based infrastructure, leads cloud migrations, and supports AVD.

CONTRACT JOB DESCRIPTION

Overview

client is seeking a hands‑on Azure Cloud Architect to lead the continued build‑out of its multi‑cloud environment, centered on Microsoft Azure with supporting AWS workloads. This position serves as the technical lead for OCTO's cloud team and the subject matter expert for cloud architecture across DC government. The architect designs secure, well‑governed environments for OCTO and partner agencies, delivers infrastructure through code, plans and executes workload migrations, and provides architectural oversight for Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) deployments. The role works closely with agency IT leaders, OCTO security, and the on‑premises virtualization team, and provides technical direction to an Azure Cloud Engineer.

Responsibilities

• 1. Demonstrates expertise in conveying technical and functional concepts for cloud architecture, translating agency business requirements into clear solution designs, and presenting options, costs, and tradeoffs to technical and non‑technical audiences.
• 2. Identifies improvements to project standards to achieve high quality services and products, including Infrastructure as Code practices, change management, and documentation standards for all cloud work.
• 3. Identifies best practices and standards for the use of Microsoft Azure, including the Azure Cloud Adoption Framework and Well‑Architected Framework, landing zone design, naming and tagging, Azure Policy, and role‑based access control (RBAC).
• 4. Delivers support and design for cloud technologies that require integration with on‑premises systems and networks, including hybrid connectivity to OCTO data centers, hub‑and‑spoke networking, private endpoints, firewall integration, and identity integration with Microsoft Entra ID.
• 5. Interacts with executive level business users and technical experts, including agency CIOs, OCTO leadership, OCTO security, and vendor partners, to scope requirements, communicate status, and support decision‑making.
• 6. Functions as the cloud architecture SME for OCTO, providing authoritative guidance on Azure services, security baselines, cost management, and AWS operations.
• 7. Leads large, complex cloud implementations, including assessment, design, and migration of on‑premises virtualized workloads to Azure, from discovery and dependency mapping through target design, sizing, cost modeling, and migration waves.
• 8. Designs, matures, and owns the Azure landing zone, including management groups, subscriptions, policy, RBAC, and security baselines using Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
• 9. Ensures production changes are delivered through code and pull requests rather than manual portal changes.
• 10. Provides architectural oversight of Azure Virtual Desktop environments, including the boundary between Terraform‑managed infrastructure and the Nerdio management platform.
• 11. Defines monitoring, backup, and disaster recovery standards for Azure workloads, and tracks and optimizes cloud spend to support agency chargeback reporting.
• 12. Supports existing AWS workloads at an operational level.
• 13. Provides technical direction, code review, and mentoring to the Azure Cloud Engineer, and ensures every critical system has a primary and backup owner.
• 14. Maintains current architecture diagrams, design decisions, and runbooks. Documentation is a reviewed deliverable.
• 15. Tracks work in Azure DevOps boards and incidents and changes in ServiceNow.

Minimum Qualifications

• 1. 8+ years in infrastructure engineering, with at least 5 years designing and building in Microsoft Azure.
• 2. Demonstrated design and delivery of an enterprise Azure landing zone, including management groups, Azure Policy, RBAC, and hub‑and‑spoke networking.
• 3. Hands‑on Terraform experience in production, including reusable modules and remote state management.
• 4. Experience building infrastructure CI/CD pipelines in Azure DevOps (or GitHub Actions with transferable skills).
• 5. Strong knowledge of Microsoft Entra ID, conditional access, and identity governance.
• 6. Experience planning or leading migrations of on‑premises virtualized workloads (VMware or similar) to Azure.
• 7. Working knowledge of AWS, sufficient to operate and troubleshoot existing workloads (EC2, VPC, IAM, S3).
• 8. Experience leading or mentoring engineers, including code review.
• 9. Strong written communication, with a track record of clear architecture documentation and runbooks.

Preferred Qualifications

• 1. Experience in state, local, or federal government IT environments.
• 2. Hands‑on experience with Azure Virtual Desktop and/or Nerdio Manager for Enterprise.
• 3. Experience with Azure.
• 4. Familiarity with compliance frameworks such as NIST 800‑53, CJIS, or FedRAMP.
• 5. Experience with Azure cost management, reservations, and chargeback models.
• 6. Familiarity with ServiceNow for incident and change management.

Minimum Education/Certification Requirements

• Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ‑305), or ability to obtain within 6 months of start.

Preferred: AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate or higher; HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate.