Senior Azure Cloud Engineer (AKS Specialist)

Role Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled Senior Azure Cloud Engineer with deep, hands-on expertise in Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). This role is designed for a platform-focused engineer who takes true ownership of the container ecosystem from initial cluster deployment and complex networking to long-term operational excellence.

You will be a key player in managing our cloud infrastructure, with a specific focus on supporting high-demand AI/ML workloads running within Kubernetes. The ideal candidate is a Dallas-based professional who thrives on optimizing performance, ensuring seamless scaling, and maintaining the "day-to-day" health of a mission-critical Azure environment.

Key Responsibilities

• AKS Lifecycle Management: Lead the end-to-end deployment, configuration, and management of production-grade AKS clusters.
• Networking & Ingress: Design and maintain robust Azure networking architectures, including VNet integration, Azure CNI, and sophisticated Ingress controllers (Nginx, AGIC).
• Scaling & Optimization: Implement and manage auto-scaling strategies (HPA, VPA, and Cluster Autoscaler) to handle fluctuating workloads efficiently.
• AI/ML Support: Provide platform-level support for AI/ML workloads, ensuring GPU node pools and specialized compute resources are optimized for model training and inference.
• Operational Excellence: Drive "Day 2" operations, including patch management, cluster upgrades, observability (Azure Monitor/Log Analytics), and proactive troubleshooting.
• Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Automate all infrastructure provisioning using Terraform or Bicep to ensure repeatable and consistent environments.
• Security & Governance: Enforce Azure Policy, RBAC, and Secret Management (Azure Key Vault) to maintain a secure and compliant container platform.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• Azure Mastery: Extensive experience with the Azure ecosystem (Compute, Storage, Networking, Identity).
• AKS Specialist: Deep technical knowledge of Kubernetes internals, including scheduling, storage classes, and service mesh (Istio/Linkerd).
• Advanced Networking: Hands-on experience with Azure Load Balancers, Application Gateways, Private Links, and DNS resolution within AKS.
• Automation: Strong proficiency in Terraform and CI/CD workflows (GitHub Actions or Azure DevOps).
• Scripting: Fluent in Python or Bash for operational automation and custom tooling.
• Education: Bachelor s Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technology field.

Preferred / Nice To Have

• AI/ML Exposure: Familiarity with running MLOps frameworks or AI platforms (like Azure Machine Learning) on Kubernetes.
• Certifications: Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert or CKA (Certified Kubernetes Administrator).
• Monitoring: Experience with Prometheus, Grafana, or Azure Managed Grafana.