Lead Automation Engineer

UICGS / Bowhead Family of Companies; Arlington (VA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

In-office role

Travel stipend

Job summary

Bowhead Family of Companies seeks a Lead Automation Engineer in Rosslyn, VA to architect, implement, and secure modern IaC and scripting solutions. You will drive the shift from legacy on-prem to cloud-enabled environments, optimize resources, and mentor sub-teams on DevSecOps and security best practices.

You will design CI/CD pipelines with GitLab, manage AWS infrastructure with Terraform, and ensure compliance with DoD STIGs while coordinating with security and governance teams.

Qualifications

• Ten (10+) years of relevant technical experience, with at least four (4+) years focused on cloud automation and DevSecOps.
• Expertise with DoD security standards, hardening baselines, and compliance frameworks (e.g., STIGs, RMF).
• Experience developing and implementing robust automation solutions in AWS using Terraform.
• Strong leadership skills with mentoring and guiding technical teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead design, development, and security of IaC and scripting across the full system lifecycle.
• Develop automation to replace manual, repetitive tasks and improve efficiency.
• Define and enforce standards, patterns, and design principles for automation and IaC.
• Lead cloud transition and CI/CD initiatives using GitLab and Terraform.

Skills

Leadership

DevSecOps

Terraform

GitLab CI/CD

AWS

Kubernetes

VMware

Security STIGs

DoD standards

Automation

Education

BA/BS in a relevant technical field

Tools

Terraform

GitLab

Kubernetes

VMware

AWS

Flux

Packer

Terragrunt

Job description

LEAD AUTOMATION ENGINEER (NAUT): Bowhead seeks a high-performing Lead Automation Engineer to join our team in Rosslyn, VA. The Lead Automation Engineer will act as the technical specialist responsible for developing, securing, and implementing robust Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and scripting solutions to drive the transition of a legacy on-premises infrastructure to a modern, cloud-enabled environment. This role will focus on maximizing efficiency through automation, optimizing resource utilization, and mentoring sub-teams on DevSecOps practices. This position is located near a metro station and a travel stipend may be provided if necessary.

Automation Engineering & Leadership:

• Serve as the lead technical engineer for the design, development, and securing of various IaC and scripting technologies across the full system lifecycle.
• Pro-actively identify manual, repetitive, or cross-functional tasks and develop automation solutions to improve team efficiency and operational quality.
• Define and enforce technical standards, architecture patterns, and design principles for all automation and IaC solutions.
• Lead the development and implementation of the new target cloud solution, ensuring alignment with engineering and security best practices.

Cloud & DevSecOps Implementation:

• Design, implement, and maintain robust Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines utilizing tools like GitLab for source control and automation.
• Manage and provision cloud infrastructure on AWS using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, primarily Terraform.
• Implement containerization and orchestration strategies for cloud-native workloads.
• Responsible for monitoring and optimizing cloud spend by implementing cost-aware designs and automated governance tools.
• Ensure all cloud deployments and operational practices adhere to security baselines, including DoD security requirements and Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs).

Mentorship & Governance:

• Coach and train sub-teams on new automation technologies, cloud best practices, DevSecOps methodologies, and security compliance.
• Collaborate with security and governance teams to ensure the environment meets all required federal and DoD standards.
• Assist with documentation related to automation architecture, security controls, and operational procedures.
• BA/S in a relevant technical field preferred. Years of experience may substitute the education requirement.
• Ten (10+) years of relevant technical experience, with at least four (4+) years focused on cloud automation and DevSecOps, and at least six (6+) years focused on DoD aligned problem sets.
• Expertise in developing and implementing robust automation solutions within a major public cloud platform, specifically AWS.
• Strong proficiency with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using Terraform.
• Extensive experience with CI/CD implementation and management using tools like GitLab.
• Deep understanding of DoD security standards, hardening baselines, and compliance frameworks (e.g., STIGs, RMF).
• Ability to design scalable, secure, and highly available enterprise-level cloud solutions.
• Experience with container orchestration technologies (e.g., Kubernetes), virtualization technologies (VMWare)
• Strong communication and leadership skills, with proven experience mentoring and leading technical teams.

Nice to Have:

• Experience with advanced IaC tooling like Flux, Packer and Terragrunt.
• Familiarity with secrets management platforms such as HashiCorp Vault.
• AWS Certified DevOps Engineer - Professional or AWS Certified Advanced Networking - Specialty certification.

Physical Demands:

• Must be able to lift up to 25 pounds
• Must be able to stand and walk for prolonged amounts of time
• Must be able to twist, bend and squat periodically

This position is an ‘in office’ position, based out of Rosslyn, VA, with occasional travel to Herndon, VA, Joint Base Anacostia Bolling, and the Pentagon. The pay scale for this position is between $140,000 - $160,000.

Please note that the salary information is a general guideline only. Bowhead considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, as well as, market and business considerations when extending an offer.

SECURITY CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS: Must be able to maintain a security clearance at the Top Secret level with SCI eligibility and maintain SAP eligibility. Due to work requirements, this position will not entertain work from home capabilities. US Citizenship is a requirement for this contract.