Lead Site Reliability Engineer

Lumen is the trusted network for the AI‑powered world, connecting people, data, and applications through our expansive fiber network and connected ecosystem. We enable secure, high‑performance connectivity across cloud, edge, and AI workloads for enterprises, governments, and communities.

At Lumen, you’ll work on infrastructure customers rely on today and build for what’s next, where performance, security, and resilience matter.

This is a high accountability environment where bold ideas drive real innovation for our customers, partners, and industry. The work is challenging, expectations are clear, and trust is built into how we operate. If you’re ready to take ownership, deliver meaningful impact, and help shape the future of AI‑ready connectivity, join us today.

The Role

Lumen is seeking a Lead Site Reliability Engineer (SRE) who will be a catalyst for transformational change and operational excellence. The ideal candidate not only builds and operates systems but proactively identifies gaps, challenges legacy approaches, and delivers high-impact changes that improve customer experience.

You will own platform engineering standards across Azure Public and Azure Government clouds, lead the design of CI/CD and observability systems, and partner closely with development teams to deliver scalable, secure, and compliant high-availability services.

Location

This role is designated as a fully remote position within the United States.

The Main Responsibilities

Design, build, and operate AKS clusters with enterprise guardrails (RBAC, pod security policies, node pools, autoscaling, upgrade strategies).

Implement GitOps with Flux CD; define Helm chart standards and manage lifecycle via Helm 3.

Own container platform best practices: Docker image standards, multi-stage builds, SBOM, vulnerability scanning, and base image governance.

Configure Nginx (ingress controller) and Kong (API gateway) including routing, rate limiting, mutual TLS, JWT/OAuth2 auth, and WAF integration.

Stand up Prometheus for metrics scraping, alert rules, and exporters; integrate Grafana for dashboards and SLO/SLA visualization.

Lead Jenkins pipeline automation and GitHub Actions workflows for build/test/deploy, with reusable templates and environment promotion strategies.

Build infrastructure-as-code and policy-as-code pipelines using Terraform (or similar tools like Bicep), with automated validations, PR gates, and compliance checks.

Architect and enforce secure integration with Azure Key Vault for secret, key, and certificate management; automate cert-manager/issuer (ACME/PFX).

Design and implement Azure Networking: VNets, NSGs, route tables, Private Link, Firewall rules, egress control, and traffic segregation in hub-spoke models.

Operate and integrate Azure Blob Storage, Azure Redis Cache, PostgreSQL, Azure Cosmos DB (Mongo API), and Azure Service Bus.

What We Look For in a Candidate

Required Qualifications

8+ years in DevOps/Platform/SRE roles; 2+ years leading teams or cross-functional initiatives.

Deep expertise in Azure (Public/Gov) cloud services and resource management.

Hands-on with AKS, Helm 3, Flux CD (GitOps), Docker.

Experience with Prometheus & Grafana (metrics, alerting, dashboards).

Proficiency in Nginx and Kong (ingress/API gateway).

CI/CD automation using Jenkins and GitHub Actions.

Strong development skills for automation & debugging (Python, Go, or TypeScript; Bash/PowerShell).

Proven experience with IaC using Terraform (or similar tools like Bicep), policy-as-code, and secure SDLC integrations.

Ability to obtain GSA Tier 2 Suitability Clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in Azure Government with FedRAMP controls and ATO support.

Certifications: AZ-104, AZ-305, AZ-400, CKA/CKAD, Terraform Associate.

Clearance Requirement

Must be willing to go through GSA Tier 2 Suitability Clearance process post onboarding.

Compensation

This information reflects the anticipated base salary range for this position based on current national data. Minimums and maximums may vary based on location. Individual pay is based on skills, experience and other relevant factors.

Location Based Pay Ranges

$105,786 - $141,047 in these states: AL AR AZ FL GA IA ID IN KS KY LA ME MO MS MT ND NE NM OH OK PA SC SD TN UT VT WI WV WY $111,074 - $148,099 in these states: CO HI MI MN NC NH NV OR RI $116,364 - $155,152 in these states: AK CA CT DC DE IL MA MD NJ NY TX VA WA

Lumen offers a comprehensive package featuring a broad range of Health, Life, Voluntary Lifestyle benefits and other perks that enhance your physical, mental, emotional and financial wellbeing. We're able to answer any additional questions you may have about our bonus structure (short-term incentives, long-term incentives and/or sales compensation) as you move through the selection process.

Life at Lumen is human and connected, even in a fast moving, AI‑focused organization. We set clear expectations and trust people to meet them. With real support and shared accountability, teams collaborate better, move faster, and deliver meaningful outcomes.

Our Lumen 8 behaviors guide how we interact, make decisions, and work together, shaping a culture built to perform and win.

To learn more about Life at Lumen and how we live the Lumen 8, please visit:

https://jobs.lumen.com/global/en/life-at-lumen

Background Screening

If you are selected for a position, there will be a background screen, which may include checks for criminal records and/or motor vehicle reports and/or drug screening, depending on the position requirements. For more information on these checks, please refer to the Post Offer section of our FAQ page.

Job-related concerns identified during the background screening may disqualify you from the new position or your current role. Background results will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Equal Employment Opportunities

We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all persons regardless of race, color, ancestry, citizenship, national origin, religion, veteran status, disability, genetic characteristic or information, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, family status, pregnancy, or other legally protected status (collectively, “protected statuses”).

We do not tolerate unlawful discrimination in any employment decisions, including recruiting, hiring, compensation, promotion, benefits, discipline, termination, job assignments or training.