Sr. Kubernetes Engineer

Position Overview

The Sr Kubernetes Engineer is a hands-on technical role responsible for designing, building, and operating Zelis’ Kubernetes platform(s). This role is central to our cloud modernization efforts and requires deep experience running Kubernetes in production.
You will act as the technical authority for Kubernetes, directly contributing to platform architecture, security, reliability, developer experience, and cost optimization. The role is expected to be highly hands-on, including implementation and operational support.
The position also offers a future path into people management for those who are interested, though it may remain a primarily technical role.
You will partner closely with engineering, security, and infrastructure teams to deliver a secure, scalable, and reliable Kubernetes platform.

Key Responsibilities

🧭 Platform Ownership & Strategy

• Architect and operationalize a Kubernetes platform(s) on AWS supporting multi-account, multi-region deployments aligned with AWS Well-Architected principles.

• Define platform capabilities including compute autoscaling, pod networking, network policies, load balancing, and storage drivers.

• Define paved path container standards and support consumption of those standards.

• Lead platform roadmap development and cross-functional alignment with architecture, security, FinOps, and product engineering.

🔐 Operational Responsibilities

• Operating System, Kubelet, CRI & AMI Configuration: Define and own lifecycle management, patching, and performance tuning of worker nodes.

• Worker Node Scaling: Design and manage autoscaling groups, node pools, and lifecycle automation.

• VPC Configuration: Architect secure and scalable VPCs, subnets, route tables, NAT gateways, and security groups.

• EKS Cluster Configuration: Manage cluster-level settings including version upgrades, endpoint access, audit logging, and control plane integrations.

• Add-ons Management: Deploy and maintain cluster add-ons such as CoreDNS, kube-proxy, metrics server, and custom controllers.

• Policies & Governance: Define and enforce RBAC, network policies, pod security standards, and IAM roles for service accounts.

• Quotas & Budgets: Implement resource quotas, tagging strategies, and budget controls to support chargeback models and cost transparency.

⚙️ Operational Excellence

• Drive standardization in tooling, automation, patching, and observability across Kubernetes clusters.

• Own SLAs, SLOs, incident response playbooks, and platform reliability engineering practices.

🚀 Developer Enablement

• Develop templates and automation to empower developers to build and run Kubernetes platform(s).

• Build and maintain reusable service catalog products, CDK with Python, and CI/CD pipelines to support self-service infrastructure provisioning.

• Champion developer experience through clear interfaces, documentation, and onboarding support.

🤝 Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with architecture, security, FinOps, DevOps, and product teams to align platform capabilities with business outcomes.

• Influence enterprise-wide infrastructure strategy through technical leadership and thought partnership.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in cloud-native infrastructure, with deep expertise in Kubernetes (e.g., Native, Amazon EKS and Amazon ECS).

• Proven track record of designing and operating production-grade Kubernetes platforms in multi-account AWS environments.

• Strong proficiency in infrastructure-as-code (CDK with Python), AWS DevOps native CI/CD tooling, and observability stacks (e.g. CloudWatch).

• Experience implementing security controls, RBAC, and compliance frameworks (e.g., CIS Benchmarks).

• Demonstrated ability to influence technical direction across multiple teams and domains.

Preferred Experience

• Familiarity with GitOps workflows, and container security.

• Exposure to platform engineering and internal developer platforms.

• Experience with Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Container Apps, Azure Container Instances (ACI), and Azure App Service for Containers is a plus.

• Experience in regulated industries (e.g., healthcare, finance) is a plus.

Base Salary Range

$139,000.00 - $186,000.00

At Zelis we are committed to providing fair and equitable compensation packages. The base salary range allows us to make an offer that considers multiple individualized factors, including experience, education, qualifications, as well as job-related and industry-related knowledge and skills, etc. Base pay is just one part of our Total Rewards package, which may also include discretionary bonus plans, commissions, or other incentives depending on the role.

Zelis’ full-time associates are eligible for a highly competitive benefits package as well, which demonstrates our commitment to our employees’ health, well-being, and financial protection. The US-based benefits include a 401k plan with employer match, flexible paid time off, holidays, parental leaves, life and disability insurance, and health benefits including medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage.

Equal Employment Opportunity  
Zelis is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. 
 
We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet 100% of the qualifications for the role. We believe in the value of diverse perspectives and experiences and are committed to building an inclusive workplace for all. 

Accessibility Support 
We are dedicated to ensuring our application process is accessible to all candidates. If you are a qualified individual with a disability or a disabled veteran and require a reasonable accommodation with any part of the application and/or interview process, please email [email protected]. 

  

Disclaimer 

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. All personnel may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities, duties, and skills from time to time.