Principal Kubernetes Engineer

Leidos; Virginia (IL); Hybrid; USD 154,000 - 278,000; Full time

Job summary

Leidos seeks a Principal Kubernetes Engineer to lead the secure PaaS design and evolution for Space Force platforms. You will shepherd Kubernetes environments across hybrid cloud and on-premises, driving secure, scalable services and strong observability.

The role requires deep Azure cloud engineering skills, IaC/CI/CD proficiency, and a track record of delivering mission-critical infrastructure with security at the forefront.

Qualifications

• Masters with 15+ years of relevant experience, or Doctorate with 13+ years.
• Minimum 8+ years designing, building, and operating production Kubernetes platforms.
• Strong expertise in Azure Cloud Engineering and Cloud Infrastructure.
• Experience designing, building, securing, and operating enterprise Kubernetes platforms for highly available workloads.
• Experience implementing Infrastructure as Code, automation, and CI/CD practices.
• Active Secret security clearance.
• CKA certification and CompTIA Security+ are required.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and operate enterprise Kubernetes platforms supporting secure hybrid cloud and on-premises environments.
• Architect scalable, highly available, and resilient platform services for secure software delivery across mission environments.
• Develop reusable platform capabilities to simplify deployment, operations, and lifecycle management for dev teams.
• Implement Infrastructure as Code, automation, and CI/CD to improve reliability and efficiency.
• Engineer secure Kubernetes services with identity management, policy enforcement, and workload isolation.
• Improve observability with metrics, logging, tracing, and dashboards; enhance platform security and resilience.
• Lead architecture reviews, provide mentoring, and establish engineering best practices.

Skills

Kubernetes engineering

Azure cloud

Platform security

Cloud infrastructure

Education

Master's degree

Doctorate

Tools

CKA certification

CompTIA Security+

Job description

Description

Leidos is seeking a Principal Kubernetes Engineer to support the design, development, and continuous evolution of a secure Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) solution for the U.S. Space Force's Space Systems Command. In this role, you will serve as the senior technical lead for one of four Kubernetes platform environments, driving the engineering of secure, scalable, and highly available platform services that enable rapid software delivery across hybrid cloud environments. Working alongside cloud engineers, software developers, cybersecurity professionals, and product managers, you will architect, automate, and optimize enterprise Kubernetes capabilities that improve developer productivity, strengthen platform security, and enhance operational resilience. This is a hands-on technical leadership role ideal for an experienced engineer who thrives on solving complex infrastructure challenges, advancing cloud-native technologies, and building reliable platforms that power mission-critical applications.

This position requires 25% travel

Key Responsibilities Include:

• Design, build, and operate enterprise Kubernetes platforms supporting secure hybrid cloud and on-premises environments.
• Architect scalable, highly available, and resilient platform services that enable secure software delivery across multiple mission environments.
• Develop reusable platform capabilities that simplify application deployment, operations, and lifecycle management for software development teams.
• Implement Infrastructure as Code, automation, and continuous delivery practices that improve platform consistency, reliability, and operational efficiency.
• Engineer secure Kubernetes services by implementing identity management, policy enforcement, workload isolation, secrets management, and platform hardening.
• Optimize platform performance, scalability, networking, storage, resource utilization, and overall operational health.
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex production issues spanning Kubernetes, Linux, networking, storage, and distributed systems.
• Collaborate with platform engineers, cloud engineers, cybersecurity specialists, and software development teams to design and implement integrated platform solutions.
• Improve platform observability through metrics, logging, tracing, dashboards, and proactive monitoring.
• Evaluate emerging platform technologies and recommend improvements that enhance platform capabilities, developer experience, security, and operational excellence.
• Develop engineering standards, technical documentation, and architectural guidance that promote consistency and long-term maintainability.
• Provide technical leadership through architecture reviews, design discussions, mentoring, and engineering best practices.

Expected Outcomes:

• Deliver secure, scalable, and highly available platform capabilities that accelerate software delivery and improve developer productivity.
• Increase platform reliability and operational efficiency through automation, standardization, and engineering best practices.
• Improve platform security, resilience, and observability while reducing operational complexity.
• Enable software development teams to successfully build, deploy, and operate mission applications using standardized platform services.
• Serve as the organization’s trusted technical authority for Kubernetes and platform engineering.

About the Must Haves

• Requires Masters with 15+ years of prior relevant experience or Doctorate with 13+ years of prior relevant experience, additional years of experience will be accepted in lieu of a degree.
• Minimum 8+ years of progressively responsible experience designing, building, and operating production Kubernetes platforms.
• Strong expertise in Azure Cloud Engineering and Cloud Infrastructure.
• Demonstrated expertise designing, building, securing, and operating enterprise Kubernetes platforms supporting highly available production workloads.
• Experience engineering platforms and cloud-native infrastructure across hybrid cloud and on-premises environments.
• Experience implementing Infrastructure as Code, automation, and continuous integration and continuous delivery practices to provision, manage, and operate platform services.
• Strong understanding of Linux, networking, container technologies, distributed systems, platform security, and observability required to diagnose and resolve complex production issues.
• Demonstrated ability to architect platform solutions, drive engineering best practices, and collaborate effectively across multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Must have an active Secret security clearance.
• Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
• Current CompTIA Security+ certification or equivalent Department of Defense approved Information Assurance certification

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:

August 5, 2026

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

Pay Range:

Pay Range $154,050.00 - $278,475.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit www.Leidos.com.

Pay and Benefits

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement. More details are available at www.leidos.com/careers/pay-benefits.

Securing Your Data

Beware of fake employment opportunities using Leidos’ name. Leidos will never ask you to provide payment-related information during any part of the employment application process (i.e., ask you for money), nor will Leidos ever advance money as part of the hiring process (i.e., send you a check or money order before doing any work). Further, Leidos will only communicate with you through emails that are generated by the Leidos.com automated system – never from free commercial services (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) or via WhatsApp, Telegram, etc. If you received an email purporting to be from Leidos that asks for payment-related information or any other personal information (e.g., about you or your previous employer), and you are concerned about its legitimacy, please make us aware immediately by emailing us at [e-mail].

If you believe you are the victim of a scam, contact your local law enforcement and report the incident to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.

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