Senior Platform Engineer – TS/SCI

TENICA; Chantilly (VA); On-site; USD 137,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

TENICA is seeking an experienced Senior Platform Engineer to lead the design, deployment, and security of enterprise Kubernetes platforms in on-premises, isolated environments with air-gapped requirements. The role emphasizes hands-on Linux administration, high-availability architectures, and platform automation in a government context.

Ideal candidates have active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility and a willingness to obtain a CI polygraph, plus strong automation, scripting, and GitOps

Qualifications

• Master's degree in STEM with 6+ years of relevant experience or a Bachelor's with 8+ years.
• Minimum of two years of hands-on experience deploying and managing production Kubernetes clusters on-premises or in non-cloud environments.
• Experience building Kubernetes clusters with Kubespray, kubeadm, or equivalent technologies.
• Strong experience administering enterprise Linux systems in production environments.
• Knowledge of Kubernetes architecture, cluster lifecycle management, container runtimes, and infrastructure troubleshooting.
• Experience developing automation scripts and playbooks using Ansible, Bash, Python, or comparable technologies.
• Experience implementing GitOps workflows using ArgoCD or comparable CD tools.
• Experience supporting air-gapped, isolated, or offline deployment environments.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, configure, and maintain enterprise Kubernetes platforms in on-premises and isolated environments.
• Perform advanced Linux systems administration including systemd, kernel optimization, and SSH configuration.
• Install, configure, and troubleshoot container runtimes such as containerd and CRI-O.
• Manage Linux namespaces, cgroups, and OS isolation mechanisms.
• Implement Linux security hardening using SELinux, AppArmor, and security profiles.
• Design and implement software-defined storage solutions and persistent volumes.
• Configure CSI drivers for dynamic storage provisioning and monitor storage performance.
• Build and maintain production Kubernetes clusters using kubeadm, Kubespray, or similar tools.
• Design HA Kubernetes control planes, load balancing, and resilient architectures.
• Manage etcd operations, backups, snapshots, and cluster maintenance.
• Perform Kubernetes upgrades, node maintenance, and disaster recovery procedures.
• Implement Kubernetes monitoring, logging, observability, and security controls.
• Configure RBAC, network policies, admission controllers, and container security standards.
• Support certificate lifecycle management, vulnerability remediation, and security assessments.
• Develop infrastructure automation using Ansible, Bash, Python, and IaC practices.
• Implement GitOps workflows with ArgoCD and CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure testing and deployment.
• Support container image management and deployment in air-gapped environments.
• Troubleshoot Kubernetes workloads using kubectl, k9s, and crictl.
• Collaborate with engineers, cybersecurity, and DoD stakeholders to ensure reliability and operations.
• Develop and maintain technical documentation and architecture diagrams.

Skills

Kubernetes

Linux administration

Automation scripting

CI/CD practices

Security best practices

Education

Master's degree in STEM (6+ years)

Bachelor's degree with 8+ years experience

Tools

Kubespray

kubeadm

Ansible

Bash

Python

ArgoCD

kubectl

crictl

Job description

If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact this employer to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Chantilly, VA, US

2 days ago Requisition ID: 1118

Salary Range: $137,000.00 To $160,000.00 Annually

Department: Government Customer – Chantilly
Location: Chantilly, VA

ACTIVE TOP SECRET CLEARANCE REQUIRED. MUST BE ELIGIBLE FOR SCI ACCESS AND WILLING TO OBTAIN A CI POLYGRAPH.

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Senior Platform Engineer specializing in enterprise Linux infrastructure, Kubernetes, container orchestration, and platform automation.

This position supports the design, deployment, security, and sustainment of mission-critical Kubernetes platforms operating within on-premises, isolated, and air-gapped environments. The ideal candidate will possess hands-on experience building Kubernetes clusters without cloud-managed services, implementing high-availability architectures, and managing infrastructure from physical hardware through containerized application workloads.

Job Responsibilities

Design, deploy, configure, and maintain enterprise Kubernetes platforms operating within on-premises and isolated environments.

Perform advanced Linux systems administration, including systemd service management, kernel optimization, and SSH configuration.

Install, configure, and troubleshoot container runtimes such as containerd and CRI-O.

Manage Linux namespaces, cgroups, and operating system isolation mechanisms.

Implement Linux security hardening using SELinux, AppArmor, and applicable security profiles.

Design and implement software-defined storage solutions, distributed storage clusters, and persistent volume management.

Configure Container Storage Interface (CSI) drivers to support dynamic storage provisioning.

Monitor storage performance, resource utilization, capacity planning, and data replication.

Build and maintain production Kubernetes clusters using kubeadm, Kubespray, or comparable deployment technologies.

Design high-availability Kubernetes control planes, load balancing configurations, and resilient cluster architectures.

Manage etcd operations, including backup, restoration, snapshots, and cluster maintenance.

Perform Kubernetes upgrades, node maintenance, troubleshooting, and disaster recovery procedures.

Implement Kubernetes monitoring, logging, observability, and security controls.

Configure role-based access control (RBAC), network policies, admission controllers, and container security standards.

Support cluster certificate lifecycle management, vulnerability remediation, and infrastructure security assessments.

Develop infrastructure automation using Ansible, Bash, Python, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices.

Implement GitOps workflows using ArgoCD or comparable continuous deployment platforms.

Develop and maintain CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure testing, validation, and deployment.

Support container image management and deployment within air-gapped environments.

Troubleshoot Kubernetes workloads, pod events, container logs, and cluster infrastructure using tools such as kubectl, k9s, and crictl.

Collaborate with infrastructure engineers, software developers, cybersecurity personnel, and government stakeholders to support platform reliability and operational requirements.

Develop and maintain technical documentation, architecture diagrams, configuration procedures, and operational support materials.

Required Qualifications

Master's degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) field with 6 or more years of relevant experience, or a Bachelor's degree with 8 or more years of relevant professional experience.

Minimum of two years of hands-on experience deploying and managing production Kubernetes clusters in on-premises or non-cloud environments.

Demonstrated experience building Kubernetes clusters using Kubespray, kubeadm, or equivalent technologies.

Strong experience administering enterprise Linux systems in production environments.

Knowledge of Kubernetes architecture, cluster lifecycle management, container runtimes, and infrastructure troubleshooting.

Experience developing automation scripts and playbooks using Ansible, Bash, Python, or comparable technologies.

Demonstrated experience designing and implementing high-availability infrastructure architectures.

Experience implementing GitOps workflows using ArgoCD or comparable continuous deployment tools.

Experience supporting air-gapped, isolated, or offline infrastructure deployment environments.

Understanding of container networking, software-defined storage, infrastructure security, and system performance optimization.

Strong analytical, troubleshooting, technical documentation, and communication skills.

Active Top Secret clearance with eligibility for SCI access and willingness to obtain a polygraph.

Desired Qualifications

Active TS/SCI clearance with CI Polygraph.

Experience supporting Department of Defense (DoD), Intelligence Community (IC), or other federal government infrastructure programs.

Expertise in enterprise identity and authorization standards, including X.509, SAML, OAuth 2.0, OIDC, and LDAP.

Experience integrating Kubernetes platforms with enterprise Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) solutions.

Familiarity with Oracle or comparable enterprise identity management technologies.

Experience implementing Kubernetes security policies, cluster auditing, and runtime security controls.

Knowledge of enterprise container networking, distributed storage, and infrastructure observability solutions.

Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS) certification or comparable Kubernetes security credentials.

TENICA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.