Cloud Principal Engineer

About the Role We are building a new Cloud Engineering function to modernize our platform, improve infrastructure economics, and increase delivery reliability across AWS, Azure, and limited GCP workloads. The Cloud Principal Engineer will define cloud strategy, build the initial team, and deliver measurable business outcomes across cost optimization, platform standardization, observability modernization, and application modernization. What You'll Do

• Define the cloud engineering operating model and role boundaries across DevOps, Cloud Ops, and R&D teams.
• Build and mentor the initial cloud engineering team and hire pipeline.
• Prioritize roadmap initiatives into quarterly execution plans with clear owners and milestones.
• Establish platform and automation standards for infrastructure provisioning, CI/CD integration, security controls, and reliability.
• Lead cross-functional programs that require coordinated cloud, platform, and application changes.
• Ensure decisions are evidence-driven with transparent measurement and reporting. What We're Looking For
• 5+ years in cloud/platform engineering, SRE, or infrastructure leadership roles.
• 3+ years leading cross-functional technical programs with direct business impact.
• Strong hands-on depth in at least two of the following: Kubernetes platforms, cloud infrastructure automation, cost optimization, observability, CI/CD systems.
• Experience across AWS and Azure in production environments.
• Proven ability to translate business goals into technical roadmap execution.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for technical and non-technical stakeholders. Nice to Have
• Configuration management and systems automation (Ansible or equivalent).
• Experience evaluating or migrating monitoring stacks (Datadog alternatives).
• Kafka platform migrations, including Kafka-as-a-Service adoption.
• ARM64 migration and multi-arch build/deployment practices.
• Driving stateless architecture transitions and config externalization patterns.
• Experience leading cloud transformation in multi-tenant or regulated environments.
• FinOps practices and cost governance operating models.
• Platform migration programs (KaaS, ARM, stateless modernization).
• Experience hiring and developing high-performing platform teams. Compensation & Benefits
• The US base salary range for this full-time position is Negotiable. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level and location. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience and relevant education or training.