Principal Engineer – Azure Cloud Platform

Walgreens; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Walgreens Co. in Deerfield, IL seeks a Principal Engineer to drive the Azure Cloud Platform across enterprise cloud environments. Lead hands-on design, architecture, and implementation of scalable, secure infrastructure for Azure and private clouds.

You will mentor engineers, define standards, and coordinate with Architecture, Security, and business teams to deliver resilient cloud solutions while influencing decisions across the organization. Hybrid work schedule applies.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science required, with 6+ years in engineering or software engineering.
• Experience designing and implementing highly complex cloud solutions on Microsoft Azure and private clouds.
• Strong knowledge of distributed systems, architecture, and security in cloud environments.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as Python, Java, or similar.
• Ability to lead technical direction and mentor engineers without direct people management responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical direction and solution design for complex cloud initiatives across multiple systems and teams.
• Design reusable infrastructure for deployment into Azure and Walgreens’ private cloud.
• Hands-on work with Azure infrastructure, Kubernetes (AKS), IAC, cloud networking, and deployment automation.
• Develop cloud deployment capabilities using Terraform and Harness.
• Collaborate with Enterprise Architecture, Security, and business teams to translate requirements into secure platform solutions.
• Establish technical standards and ensure alignment with architecture, security, and operations.
• Offer technical guidance and mentorship to junior/mid engineers.

Skills

Azure

Kubernetes

Terraform

Cloud Security

CI/CD

Cloud Architecture

Python

Leadership through influence

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering or Computer Science

Master’s Degree in Computer Science or IT

Tools

AKS

Terraform

Harness

Azure CLI

Job description

Principal Engineer – Azure Cloud Platform

The Principal Engineer – Azure Cloud Platform is a hands‑on individual contributor and technical leader responsible for designing, developing, and enhancing Walgreens’ enterprise cloud platform across Microsoft Azure and the company’s private cloud environment. This role creates scalable, resilient, and secure infrastructure solutions that enable application and business teams to deploy services effectively across cloud environments.

What You’ll Do

• Lead the technical direction and solution design for highly complex cloud initiatives spanning multiple systems, processes, and teams.
• Design reusable infrastructure solutions for application and business teams deploying into Microsoft Azure and Walgreens’ private cloud environment.
• Work hands‑on with Azure infrastructure, Kubernetes, Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), infrastructure‑as‑code, cloud networking, deployment automation, and containerized environments.
• Help develop and enhance cloud deployment capabilities using technologies such as Terraform and Harness.
• Partner with Enterprise Architecture, Information Security, engineering teams, and business stakeholders to translate requirements into secure, scalable platform solutions.
• Establish technical standards and help ensure cloud solutions align with architecture, security, compliance, and operational expectations.
• Evaluate technical options, communicate tradeoffs, and influence decisions across the organization.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior and mid‑level engineers without formal people‑management responsibility.

What Makes This Role Unique

This position combines hands‑on engineering, solution design, and enterprise‑level technical influence. The Principal Engineer will help shape the future of Walgreens’ cloud platform while serving as a trusted technical partner to architecture, security, engineering, and business teams.

The strongest candidate will bring a solid cloud infrastructure foundation, sound technical judgment, and the ability to communicate clearly, navigate change, and lead through influence.

Location and work arrangement

Deerfield, Illinois — hybrid, with four days in the office and one day remote.

Sponsorship

Work visa sponsorship is not available for this role.

Job Responsibilities

Plans designs develops and Cloud and Non Cloud systems or new products including cloud based or internet related tools for highly strategic and complex high risk undertakings. Plays a leading role in modern platform design and development.

Writes code that establishes coding specifications typically for cloud services and systems that have no precedent. Leads in developing the technical vision and design specifications for assigned projects and oversees implementation.

Develops or may lead in developing technical business approaches and new or enhanced technical tools. Breaks barriers and challenges legacy thought where applicable and adapts legacy design as needed.

Plans designs develops and tests software systems or applications for software enhancements and new products including cloud based or internet related tools for highly strategic and complex high risk undertakings

Owns the development and rollout for entire products or large projects as assigned. Champions process (Scrum TDD etc). Writes tech specs and identifies risks before starting major projects. Sets standards. Goes out of their way to reduce complexity. As needed takes on additional tech lead responsibilities for driving an initiative to completion.

Use technical expertise in infrastructure design software design architecture and software system interrelationships.

Designs solutions that will provide a high level of resiliency LAN WAN Information Systems

Designs Multi Cloud solutions

Plans designs configures and installs network hardware in support of customer requirements.

Interacts with internal and external peers and management to share highly complex information solutions related to areas of expertise and or to gain acceptance of new or enhanced technology business solutions.

May lead teams projects

About Walgreens

Founded in 1901, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) has a storied heritage of caring for communities for generations, and proudly serves nearly 9 million customers and patients each day across its approximately 8,500 stores throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico, and leading omni-channel platforms. Walgreens has approximately 220,000 team members, including nearly 90,000 healthcare service providers, and is committed to being the first choice for retail pharmacy and health services, building trusted relationships that create healthier futures for customers, patients, team members and communities.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree and at least 6 years experience in Engineering, Software Engineering or similar OR, High School Diploma/GED and at least 9 years experience in Engineering, Software Engineering or similar.
• Experience writing code for highly complex and strategic applications of major importance
• Experience in algorithms, systems, architecture and bits-and-bytes
• Experience with programming languages, such as C, C++; UNIX, XML, Python, Perl and/or Java.
• Experience managing or implementing systems on OSI model in large and distributed Environments
• At least 2 years of experience contributing to financial decisions in the workplace.
• At least 3 years of direct leadership, indirect leadership and/or cross-functional team leadership.
• Willing to travel up to/at least 10% of the time for business purposes (within state and out of state)

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree Computer Science, Information Technology
• Master’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology
• Experience working in an Agile environment.
• Cisco, CCNP, CCIE, or similar vendor cert along with Cloud Network engineer certs
• DevOps
• 9+ years of experience in leading a group of automation/DevOps engineering team.
• Hands‑on experience is Deployment automation for various applications IaaS, PaaS platforms on a large complex system.
• Hands‑on experience in automation software like Chef, Puppet, Ansible, Terraform or equivalent.
• Experience in implementation of CI/CD pipelines for Cloud deployments using containers/Docker for a large ecosystem
• Experience in GIT Workflows, Pipelines, and code repository management for agile development
• Experience in working on Kubernetes platform on a microservices architecture and other DevOps tooling on high traffic applications.
• Strong understanding of infrastructure components (e.g. databases, networking, DNS, cloud services, orchestration tools, containerization)
• Experience in operationalization high traffic Web applications through monitoring and alerting for a polyglot application stack
• Infrastructure
• 8+ years of experience leading Infrastructure and Automation Teams and hands‑on expertise in migrating and optimizing on-premises infrastructure to Cloud8+ years of experience with Azure based PaaS & SaaS services (ASE, Azure Databricks, Azure Datalake, Azure AD, Azure ADDS, etc.)
• 8+ years of experience with Azure Infrastructure services (VM’s, VNETS, Subnets, NSG’s, Resource Groups, etc ) deployment.
• 8+ years Of experience in scripting and automation with Azure CLI, PowerShell, Bash, Ruby, Terraform, Pulumi, Bicep, JSON templates, etc.
• 8+ years of experience working with Private endpoints, Expressroute, VNET Gateway, ASR, DNS, load balancing, etc.
• Experience working with Linux, Windows, Azure Active Directory, Roles, and Policies
• Experience troubleshooting network procedures and best practices; experience with network challenges associated with systems integration, including COTS integration, capacity analysis and system architecture design
• Experience in the use of network analysis toolsing list of duties
• The Salary below is being provided to promote pay transparency and equal employment opportunities at Walgreens.
• The actual hourly salary within this range that you will be offered will depend on a variety of factors including geography, skills and abilities, education, experience and other relevant factors.
• This role will remain open until filled.

We will consider employment of qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.