Principal Platform Architecture - Kubernetes Architecture

Request Technology, LLC; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Request Technology, LLC is seeking a hands-on Platform Architect in Chicago to own enterprise-scale platform decisions across Kubernetes, Kafka, Flink, and AWS.

The role emphasizes building reference architectures, GitOps pipelines, and cloud-native patterns with a focus on availability, scalability, and security for the full enterprise stack.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in infrastructure, platform, or systems architecture with ownership of enterprise-scale platform decisions.
• Deep hands-on Kubernetes — cluster architecture, workload design, networking, security at scale.
• Kafka deployments — topics, partitions, consumer groups, schema management, operational concerns.
• Flink or equivalent stream processing — job design, state management, and Kubernetes deployment.
• Strong AWS architecture — VPCs, EC2, EKS, MSK, S3, IAM, KMS, networking and security services.
• GitOps pipelines — IaC, environment promotion, secrets management, release automation with Flux/ArgoCD/Terraform/Helm.
• Experience with brownfield/legacy environments alongside cloud-native programs.
• Ability to produce architecture artifacts: diagrams, ADRs, reference architectures, transition plans.
• Excellent communication to executives and engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and own core platform capabilities: container orchestration, streaming infra, cloud architecture, CI/CD, and observability.
• Lead GitOps pipelines and define transition plans from current state.
• Create reference architectures for Kubernetes workloads and AWS infrastructure patterns.
• Drive cloud modernization by migrating workloads to cloud-native patterns on AWS.
• Establish platform standards and guardrails for reliability, performance, and security.

Skills

Kubernetes

Kafka

Flink

AWS

GitOps

Architecture

Cloud-native

Observability

Networking

Security

Tools

Flux

ArgoCD

Terraform

Helm

Job description

Seeking a candidate with strong hands-on technical experience in”:

Kubernetes Architecture

LOCATION: Chicago, IL

Hybrid 3 days onsite

Open to h1b

Platform architecture- infrastructure, cloud, networking, storage, observability tooling, Kubernetes.

This is a hands-on architecture role with enterprise-wide impact.

Define and Own Platform Architecture

• Lead architecture design and decision-making for core platform capabilities: container orchestration, streaming infrastructure, cloud architecture, CI/CD and
• GitOps pipelines, and observability
• Develop and maintain target-state platform architectures with clear transition plans from current state
• Own reference architectures for Kubernetes-based workloads, Kafka streaming topologies, Flink stream processing, and AWS infrastructure patterns
• Establish platform architecture standards and guardrails that application teams can build against reliably
• Ensure non-functional requirements — availability, latency, throughput, recoverability — are addressed at the platform level, not delegated to individual application teams

Drive Platform Modernization

• Architect and guide migration of workloads to cloud-native patterns on AWS, including compute, networking, storage, and security services
• Define GitOps model — infrastructure-as-code practices, pipeline standards, environment promotion, and configuration management at scale
• Evaluate and recommend platform technologies and tooling; lead proof-of-concept efforts to validate architectural decisions before commitment
• Identify and reduce platform risk across the portfolio — single points of failure, unsupported dependencies, capacity constraints, and operational gaps

Qualifications

Required

• 10+ years of experience in infrastructure, platform, or systems architecture roles with demonstrated ownership of enterprise-scale platform decisions
• Deep, hands-on expertise with Kubernetes — cluster architecture, workload design, networking, security, and operational patterns at scale
• Hands-on experience architecting Apache Kafka deployments — topic design, partitioning strategy, consumer group patterns, schema management, and operational concerns
• Practical experience with Apache Flink or equivalent stream processing frameworks — job design, state management, and deployment on Kubernetes
• Strong AWS architecture experience — VPCs, EC2, EKS,MSK, S3, IAM, KMS, networking, and security services
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing GitOps pipelines — infrastructure-as-code, environment promotion, secrets management, and release automation using tools such as Flux, ArgoCD, Terraform, or Helm
• Experience with brownfield/legacy environments alongside cloud-native programs
• Ability to produce clear, comprehensive architecture artifacts: diagrams, ADRs, reference architectures, and transition plans
• Strong communication skills — able to present platform decisions to executive audiences and work through technical trade-offs with engineering teams