LEAD PLATFORM ENGINEER (DEVSECOPS & AUTOMATION)
JOB SUMMARY
Covalent Solutions, LLC (Covalent) is seeking an innovative and execution-focused Lead Platform Engineer (DevSecOps & Automation) to anchor our federal client’s foundational cloud initiative. Moving beyond traditional operations engineering, we need a "Platform Automation Specialist" who can act as the primary engine driving automated software delivery across the enterprise. In this role, you will design the secure software delivery "assembly lines" (CI/CD pipelines using GitLab SaaS Gov runners) and coded infrastructure modules (IaC templates using Terraform) that developers rely on daily. You will be responsible for driving the DevSecOps workflow, implementing automated security scanning, and establishing monitoring frameworks to replace manual interventions with automated software gates, keeping application deployments fast, secure, and clear of bottlenecks.
Location: Remote eligible; however, candidates local to the Washington, D.C., Maryland, or Virginia (DMV) area are strongly preferred. Personnel must be available to travel to the client’s Washington, D.C. offices as needed and as directed by leadership to attend critical meetings, technical exchanges, or collaborative sessions.
Security: Must be a US Citizen or permanent resident and prepared to undergo a US Government background check for Public Trust clearance.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Lead Platform Engineer (DevSecOps & Automation) will focus on automated execution and technical enablement, providing the modern deployment engineering patterns necessary to scale the enterprise platform. Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- CI/CD Pipeline Architecture: Design, implement, and maintain secure CI/CD pipelines utilizing secure GitLab SaaS Gov runners to enable frictionless, deployment-on-demand capabilities across all participating systems and stakeholders.
- Automation & IaC Engineering: Develop and enforce Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) best practices, workflow standards, and reusable building blocks via enterprise-approved, secure-by-default Terraform modules covering common use cases.
- Automated Security Gates: Partner with security stakeholders to build automated policy validation, static/dynamic vulnerability scanning, compliance enforcement, and stage-gating directly into delivery pipelines to ensure all reference implementations align with federal compliance standards (NIST, FedRAMP, FISMA).
- Enterprise Observability & Telemetry: Drive the end-to-end cloud platform observability strategy, creating architectural blueprints and operational dashboards for centralized logging, infrastructure metrics, usage telemetry, alerting, and cloud cost-metering/optimization.
- Developer & Vendor Enablement: Work directly alongside application development teams, external infrastructure vendors, and system owners to provide documented self-service patterns, reference examples, and implementation playbooks that reduce onboarding timelines and accelerate standards adoption.
- Legacy System Modernization Support: Develop and operationalize standardized monitoring, logging, and observability integration patterns capable of pulling legacy systems safely into unified enterprise monitoring views.
- Collaboration & Platform Health: Support a culture of performance transparency and design thinking. Actively participate in cross-vendor governance meetings and integrated planning sessions to review tool updates, mitigate operational risks, and maintain steady project velocity.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or a related technical discipline (Master’s degree preferred).
- Years of Experience: Minimum of 8+ years of progressive experience in software development, DevSecOps engineering, or cloud infrastructure development.
- Cloud Platform Expertise: At least 3+ years of hands-on experience designing, scaling, and maintaining automated pipelines within a production federal cloud platform environment.
- GitLab CI/CD Expert: Advanced, direct experience scaling enterprise pipelines using GitLab SaaS Gov runners within an overarching Zero-Trust architecture framework.
- DevSecOps & Security Automation: Practical track record integrating automated unit testing, static/dynamic vulnerability identification (SAST/DAST), code-based policy enforcement, and compliance scanning tools natively into CI/CD tracks.
- Terraform Module Automation: Strong, verifiable capability in writing clean, reusable, multi-account, and secure-by-default Terraform templates across cloud providers.
- Accessibility Awareness: Familiarity with ensuring that developed reference implementations, automated deployment tooling, and internal-facing dashboards align with applicable Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards.
- Agile Environment: Proven experience working within an outcome-driven, fast-paced Agile software development environment using capacity-based team models.
- Product-Centric Delivery Alignment: Demonstrated success collaborating directly with product managers and cross-functional teams to continuously align technical infrastructure delivery with user needs, strategic product backlogs, and operational priorities
COMPETENCIES
- Accountability: Takes full ownership of all automated pipeline and platform delivery commitments, consistently producing high-quality outputs within prescribed standards while ensuring personal responsibility for all operational outcomes.
- Multi-Project Management: Exceptional organizational and coordination skills with the technical ability to manage multiple moving configuration pieces across various pipeline implementations simultaneously without losing sight of architectural detail.
- Communication & Coaching: Strong verbal and written communication skills, with a natural ability to teach, mentor, and guide other developer squads on how to build atop the core platform automation layers.
- Judgment & Problem Solving: Ability to work independently, exercise sound automated deployment judgment, and proactively resolve complex technical or pipeline roadblocks with minimal oversight.
- Mission-First Mindset: A service-oriented, customer-responsive approach to supporting federal partners, external vendors, and integration teams to optimize long-term system health and delivery velocity.
Pay: $155,000.00 - $165,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Vision insurance
Application Question(s):
- Are you a US Citizen or US permanent resident?
- Are you willing to undergo the process of obtaining a US Public Trust Clearance?
- Do you have 4+ years of cloud automation production professional experience?
- Do you have 8+ years of professional progressive experience in software development, DevSecOps engineering, or cloud infrastructure development?
- Do you have 3+ years of professional hands-on experience designing, scaling, and maintaining automated pipelines within a production federal cloud platform environment?
- Do you have 6+ years of professional hands-on experience of advanced, direct experience scaling enterprise pipelines using GitLab SaaS Gov runners within an overarching Zero-Trust architecture framework?
- Do you have 6+ years of practical track record integrating automated unit testing, static/dynamic vulnerability identification (SAST/DAST), code-based policy enforcement, and compliance scanning tools natively into CI/CD tracks?
- Do you have 6+ years of professional hands-on experience of strong, verifiable capability in writing clean, reusable, multi-account, and secure-by-default Terraform templates across cloud providers?
- Do you have 6+ years of professional hands-on experience of ensuring that developed reference implementations, automated deployment tooling, and internal-facing dashboards align with applicable Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards?
- Do you have 6+ years of professional hands-on experience of proven experience working within an outcome-driven, fast-paced Agile software development environment using capacity-based team models?
- Do you have 6+ years of professional hands-on experience of demonstrated success collaborating directly with product managers and cross-functional teams to continuously align technical infrastructure delivery with user needs, strategic product backlogs, and operational priorities?
Education:
Language:
Ability to Commute:
- Washington, DC 20250 (Required)
Work Location: In person
