Senior Platform Engineer - Kubernetes

Radiance Technologies is an employee-owned company with benefits that are unmatched by most companies in the Huntsville, AL or Dayton, OH areas. Employee ownership, generous 401K, full health, dental, life, and vision insurance benefits, interesting assignments, educational reimbursement, competitive salaries, and a collaborative work environment combine to make Radiance Technologies a great place to work and succeed.

Program Overview

This position supports the development of a next-generation modeling and simulation (M&S) framework for the Department of Defense. The program is an experimental effort with rapidly evolving requirements, demanding adaptability and innovation from the engineering team. It provides a flexible environment for wargaming and analysis across domains, from the seafloor to space. The mission is to deliver scalable, cloud-enabled solutions that enhance decision-making, accelerate capability development, and strengthen national security. The team is building a modern platform that leverages Infrastructure as Code, Kubernetes, and advanced automation practices to ensure security, resiliency, and mission impact.

Position Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled Platform Engineer with strong Kubernetes experience to lead the deployment, operation, and lifecycle management of a complex application ecosystem consisting of 30+ containerized services across multiple environments. This role is responsible for designing and maintaining scalable, secure, and repeatable deployment patterns using Helm across both self-hosted and cloud-based Kubernetes clusters.

This position operates in a security-conscious environment and requires a strong emphasis on compliance, reliability, automation, and direct support of stakeholders and customers.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain Kubernetes-based deployment strategies for a multi-service application
• Develop, manage, and version Helm charts supporting multiple environments (dev, test, staging, production)
• Ensure consistent deployments across on-prem (self-hosted) and cloud Kubernetes platforms
• Implement secure configuration management (secrets, certificates, RBAC, network policies)
• Troubleshoot complex deployment, integration, and runtime issues across distributed systems
• Serve as a primary escalation point for production issues, driving root cause analysis and resolution
• Provide direct support to internal teams and/or customers, including issue triage, communication, and resolution tracking
• Optimize cluster performance, resource utilization, and cost efficiency
• Collaborate with development teams to improve containerization and deployment practices
• Maintain system observability (logging, monitoring, alerting)
• Support compliance requirements (e.g., FIPS, STIG, hardened images, restricted networks)

Required Skills and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field.
• US citizenship and ability to obtain a Top-Secret SCI clearance.
• Linux/SELinux system administration background.
• 5+ years of experience with containerized applications and Kubernetes
• Strong hands-on experience with:
  • Kubernetes (cluster operations, deployments, networking)
  • Helm (chart development, templating, multi-env strategies)
  • Docker / OCI containers
• Experience managing complex microservice architectures (20+ services)
• Experience deploying to both:
  • Self-hosted Kubernetes (bare metal or VM-based)
  • Cloud platforms (e.g., AWS EKS, Azure AKS, or similar)
• Demonstrated expertise in troubleshooting distributed systems under pressure
• Experience supporting production environments and handling escalations
• Solid understanding of:
  • Kubernetes security (RBAC, Pod Security, Network Policies)
  • Secrets management
• Experience with CI/CD tools (GitLab CI, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or similar)
• Strong troubleshooting skills across infrastructure and application layers
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain technical issues to non-technical stakeholders
• Experience working in restricted or secure environments

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with service meshes (Istio, Linkerd)
• Familiarity with GitOps tools (Argo CD, Flux)
• Experience with infrastructure as code (Terraform, Ansible)
• Knowledge of compliance frameworks (FIPS, STIG, NIST, CMMC)
• Experience with private registries (e.g., Artifactory, Harbor)
• Scripting skills (Bash, Python, or Go)
• Familiarity with ingress controllers and API gateways
• Experience scaling and tuning high-availability systems

Work Style & Expectations

• Ability to work independently on complex infrastructure problems
• Comfortable operating in high-pressure situations and driving issues to resolution
• Customer-focused mindset with a strong sense of ownership and accountability
• Strong collaboration with developers, security, and operations teams
• Detail-oriented with a focus on reliability and repeatability
• Documentation-first mindset

What Success Looks Like

• Reliable, repeatable deployments across all environments
• Rapid diagnosis and resolution of production issues
• Clear communication during incidents and escalations
• Secure, compliant Kubernetes platform
• Reduced manual intervention through automation
• Clear, maintainable Helm charts and deployment processes

What We Offer

• Employee ownership with profit-sharing opportunities.
• Excellent compensation and an unmatched benefits package.
• Educational reimbursement and professional certification support.
• Opportunities for growth on high-impact DoD programs.
• A culture of innovation and collaboration.

Radiance Technologies 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, disability, or protected veteran status.