/job/platform-engineer

Senior/Staff Platform Engineer

Developer platforms, Kubernetes, infrastructure as code, reliability, and self-service people do not need a ticket to use.

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The mandate.

Own the outcome, stay close to the implementation, and improve the system around the work.

Build and evolve an internal developer platform that turns cloud, Kubernetes, delivery, security, and observability capabilities into paved roads teams actively choose.

This is a staff-shaped individual-contributor role: own ambiguous cross-team problems, set technical direction, stay hands-on in APIs and tooling, and treat developers as users rather than ticket submitters.

Impact
Material
Agency
High
Management
Context, then space
Bureaucracy
Low

What this role owns.

Responsibilities written as outcomes and systems, not a shopping list of meetings.

  1. OWN-01

    Own the platform architecture and roadmap with a product mindset, balancing developer experience, reliability, security, and cost.

  2. OWN-02

    Build self-service APIs, CLIs, templates, and golden paths for provisioning environments, shipping software, and operating services.

  3. OWN-03

    Standardize infrastructure as code, GitOps, CI/CD, secrets, policy, observability, and Kubernetes lifecycle practices without hiding useful escape hatches.

  4. OWN-04

    Interview platform users, measure adoption and lead time, and remove friction based on evidence rather than platform-team intuition.

  5. OWN-05

    Mentor engineers and influence application, security, SRE, and product teams without relying on hierarchy.

What this needs.

  • Deep production experience with Kubernetes and at least one major public cloud; multi-cloud experience is useful when it comes with restraint.
  • Strong software engineering in Go, Python, TypeScript, or Java, including API and distributed-system design.
  • Hands-on experience with Terraform or OpenTofu, GitOps, CI/CD, observability, and secure software supply chains.
  • A record of building platforms for other engineers and improving adoption, not only operating infrastructure.
  • Clear technical writing, architecture communication, and the ability to lead decisions across teams.

What success looks like.

  • New services and environments can be created safely without queueing for a platform ticket.
  • Developer onboarding and deployment lead time drop while platform adoption and user satisfaction rise.
  • Reliability, security, and cost improve without turning the platform into a mandatory abstraction tax.
  • Teams understand the paved road, the escape hatches, and the trade-offs behind both.

Compensation target.

Top-quartile ranges for this scope. Ranges are base salary; equity and bonus may be additional. The cash/stock split is negotiable.

EMEA
€185k–€250kBase salaryTop-quartile EMEA target
US remote
$220k–$290kBase salaryRemote US target
US major hubs
$270k–$325kBase salarySan Francisco, Seattle, New York, and comparable markets

Who you need to be

  • At least 7+ years of software, platform, infrastructure, or reliability engineering experience.

  • Built platform APIs, self-service workflows, and automation used by multiple engineering teams.

  • Deep production experience with Kubernetes, cloud infrastructure, infrastructure as code, GitOps, and CI/CD.

  • Strong programming skills, with a preference for Go, Python, or TypeScript.

  • Led cross-team platform initiatives and improved developer adoption without relying on mandates.

Looks compatible.

Real impact, useful autonomy, and enough technical depth to finish the job.

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