Senior Platform Engineer (OpAI)

Job ID: 2610319

Location: San Diego, CA, US

Date Posted: 2026-03-16

Category: Software

Subcategory: SW Engineer

Schedule: Full-Time

Shift: Day Job

Travel: Yes - 10% of the time

Minimum Clearance Required: Top\_Secret

Clearance Level Must Be Able to Obtain: TS/SCI

Potential for Remote Work: ORA\_ON\_SITE

Description

SAIC is seeking a Senior Platform Engineer. As a Senior Platform Engineer with an Active Top Secret Clearance supporting Naval Operational Architecture (NOA) program in San Diego, CA. The Senior Platform Engineer will play a critical role in operationalizing AI for next-generation naval platforms and systems. You’ll focus on building and managing secure, scalable cloud-based environments to support advanced analytics, AI/ML workloads, and autonomous systems. This position involves hands-on engineering with cutting-edge technologies, close collaboration with cross-functional teams, and direct support of mission-critical DoD capabilities. Your work will directly enhance the warfighter’s ability to execute distributed maritime operations and maintain tactical superiority.

Work is performed ON-SITE in San Diego, CA. There will be under 15% of travel required

JOB DUTIES:

• Design, build, and maintain secure cloud infrastructure within AWS GovCloud environments.
• Configure and manage container orchestration platforms such as Kubernetes and OpenShift.
• Implement Infrastructure as Code (IaC) solutions using Ansible, Terraform, or CloudFormation.
• Support secure data flow across multiple systems, ensuring compliance with DoD cybersecurity standards and STIG requirements.
• Collaborate with DevSecOps teams to streamline deployment pipelines and container management.
• Optimize cloud resources for performance, scalability, and cost-effectiveness.
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex issues within cloud, networking, and containerized environments.
• Partner with AI/ML engineers and software developers to deploy and integrate advanced analytics platforms and tools.
• Maintain detailed technical documentation to support system operations and compliance.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior engineers and team members.

Qualifications

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND CERTIFICATION:

• Bachelors and fourteen (14) years or more experience; Masters and twelve (12) years or more experience; PhD or JD and nine (9) years or more experience. Years of experience in lieu of degree will be taken into consideration.

CITIZENSHIP AND CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• No Dual Citizenship
• Must have an Active Top Secret Clearance at start
• Must be able to obtain a TS/SCI after start

REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Experience working as a cloud engineer, cloud administrator, cloud architecture, DevOps engineer, IT Specialist, platform engineer, site reliability engineer, release engineer, systems administrator, systems engineer, or similar role.
• Strong knowledge of either cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure) or containerization technologies (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes).
• Some proficiency in scripting languages (e.g., Python, Bash) for automation tasks.
• Some experience with Infrastructure as Code (e.g., Terraform, Ansible) for configuration management.
• Some proficiency with Linux system administration.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to collaborate in a team environment.
• Familiarity with cybersecurity principles and best practices for platform security.
• Ability to transport/move heavy equipment (50lbs) on planes and ships.

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Relevant certifications such as AWS Solutions Architect, Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), or Security+ strongly preferred.
• Knowledge of advanced networking topics, e.g, VPCs, TCP/IP, TLS, etc.
• Knowledge of DevOps practices and continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, e.g., GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or Jenkins.
• Experience with monitoring and logging tools for platform health and performance, e.g,. CloudWatch, Grafana, or Elasticsearch.
• OpenShift or Kubernetes
• Airflow
• Kafka
• RabbitMQ
• Apache
• Kibana
• Adapting open-source products to work with GovCloud
• Domino Data Labs
• Tobias
• Fiddler
• Experience with monitoring/logging tools such as CloudWatch or Grafana
• Experience supporting government or military organizations

Target salary range: $160,001 - $200,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.