Principal Platform Engineer

Role overview Join a platform engineering function serving onboard operational technology across defense, aerospace, and commercial transportation fleets. As the senior-most individual contributor, you will anchor architecture for release infrastructure, supply chain security, OS lifecycle, and AI enablement, while mentoring engineers and stepping into team leadership as needed.

Responsibilities - Architect and operate end-to-end release infrastructure and GitOps delivery pipelines using Kubernetes, ArgoCD, GitHub Enterprise, and GitHub Actions. - Lead artifact security, container signing, and compliance-by-default CI/CD with automated SBOM generation and NIST-aligned controls. - Support hardware OS image builds with embedded Linux tooling and productionize AI orchestration, RAG gateways, and developer AI workflows. - Author RFCs and design docs, run architecture reviews, plan roadmaps, and mentor mid-to-staff level engineers. - Step into direct people management (1:1s, hiring, performance reviews) during transitions or growth phases. - Partner with security, embedded, and field teams to deliver seamlessly across airgapped and edge environments.

Requirements - 10+ years in software or platform engineering with 5+ years managing production infrastructure at scale. - Proven technical leadership, mentoring experience, and readiness for direct people management. - Hands-on mastery of Kubernetes, ArgoCD, GitHub Actions or Earthly, and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform or OpenTofu) on AWS or GovCloud. - Strong background in artifact registries, container signing (Cosign or Sigstore), Vault, and SBOM generation. - U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Security Clearance.

Nice to have - Background in defense, aerospace, or regulated environments (NIST 800-53, IL4/IL5, CMMC). - Embedded Linux or OS experience (Yocto, SLE Micro) and airgapped or edge deployment models. - Experience deploying internal AI/LLM infrastructure such as RAG, model gateways, and governance. - Scripting proficiency in Go, Python, and Bash.

Benefits and work setup - Base salary range of $255,000 to $280,000, plus bonus program and equity. - Competitive medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and families, HSA with employer contributions, and employer-paid life and disability insurance. - Uncapped paid time off and a flexible remote work policy. - Tax-deferred public transit benefits for the DC/MD/VA metro area.