Senior Site Reliability Engineer

FutureFit AI

Remote, south-africa

Position Specifications Attribute Details Position Title Senior Site Reliability Engineer (RHEL Specialist) Primary Location Remote Minimum Experience 5+ Years in Systems Engineering, DevOps, or SRE roles Reporting Structure Reports to the Head of Infrastructure & Platform Engineering Language Requirements Portuguese and English 1.3 Role Summary The Senior Site Reliability Engineer (RHEL Specialist) is a critical technical leadership role responsible for ensuring that our production environments are resilient, performant, and highly automated. Unlike traditional systems administration, this role treats infrastructure as a software problem. You will be the primary custodian of our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) ecosystem, applying advanced engineering practices to manage thousands of nodes across on-premise virtualization and public cloud platforms. Your mission is to bridge the gap between software development and systems operations by designing self-healing systems and robust Ansible-based automation frameworks. You will be expected to proactively identify system inefficiencies, optimize kernel performance, and architect CI/CD pipelines that empower development teams while maintaining strict production stability. Core Mission Statement: To engineer a world-class RHEL environment where manual intervention is the exception, not the rule. Through advanced automation and deep observability, you will ensure our services achieve 99.99% availability while enabling rapid, low-risk software delivery. 1.4 Ideal Candidate Profile The ideal candidate is a proactive problem-solver with a "software-first" approach to infrastructure. We are looking for an individual who: Possesses a deep-seated expertise in the RHEL kernel, system internals, and performance tuning. Views Ansible and Python as their primary tools for managing complexity at scale. Demonstrates a proven track record of managing Docker and Kubernetes workloads in high-traffic production settings. Is naturally curious and proactive, often identifying and resolving system bottlenecks before they trigger an alert. Thrives in a collaborative DevOps culture and is comfortable navigating the complexities of hybrid-cloud environments (AWS, Azure, or GCP). 2. Key Responsibilities The Senior Site Reliability Engineer (RHEL Specialist) is responsible for the availability, latency, performance, efficiency, change management, monitoring, emergency response, and capacity planning of our enterprise Linux services. This role demands a unique blend of systems engineering expertise and software development skills to build and run large-scale, distributed, fault-tolerant systems. 2.1 Automation & Infrastructure Orchestration Ansible Framework Design: Architect, implement, and maintain enterprise-grade automation solutions using Ansible for our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) fleet. This includes developing custom Ansible roles, modules, and playbooks to automate system provisioning, configuration management, and patching. Standard Operating Environment (SOE): Maintain and evolve the RHEL SOE across hybrid-cloud environments, ensuring consistency between on-premise virtualization (VMware/KVM) and public cloud instances. Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Transform manual infrastructure workflows into automated code-based processes, ensuring that every component of the RHEL environment is version-controlled and reproducible. 2.2 Development & Toil Reduction Scripting & Tooling: Develop advanced scripts in Python and Bash to automate repetitive operational tasks (toil). You will be expected to build internal tools that enhance the productivity of the entire engineering organization. System Integration: Write code to integrate infrastructure components with internal APIs, monitoring tools, and service management platforms to create seamless, end-to-end automated workflows. Kernel & OS Optimization: Leverage deep Linux knowledge to tune system parameters and develop automated checks for system health and performance bottlenecks. 2.3 CI/CD & Release Engineering Pipeline Construction: Build and optimize robust CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins or GitLab CI to automate the testing and deployment of infrastructure code and application workloads. Deployment Strategies: Implement modern deployment methodologies such as Blue-Green or Canary releases to minimize downtime and risk during system updates. Artifact Management: Oversee the lifecycle of container images and software packages, ensuring they are securely built, scanned, and distributed across the RHEL landscape. Focus on Proactive Optimization: A primary accountability of this role is the continuous identification of system inefficiencies. You will not just react to failures; you will actively hunt for potential failure modes, performance regressions, and architectural weaknesses, proposing and implementing automated fixes before they impact the business. 2.4 Service Level Management & Observability Defining SLOs/SLIs: Collaborate with product and development teams to define meaningful Service Level Indicators (SLIs) and Service Level Objectives (SLOs) that accurately represent the user experience. Monitoring & Alerting: Design and implement comprehensive monitoring frameworks that provide deep visibility into RHEL system health and application performance, ensuring alerts are actionable and signal-rich. Capacity Planning: Utilize performance data to forecast future resource requirements and automate scaling actions across the hybrid-cloud estate. 2.5 Incident Response & Reliability Leadership Incident Management: Participate in a tiered on-call rotation and lead the response for critical production incidents. You will be responsible for stabilizing systems under pressure while maintaining clear communication with stakeholders. Post-Mortem Analysis: Conduct blameless post-mortems to identify the root causes of incidents and drive the implementation of automated preventative measures. SRE Evangelism: Act as a champion for reliability engineering. Mentor other engineers on SRE best practices, RHEL optimization, and the cultural shift toward "everything-as-code." 3. Required Technical Skills & Qualifications The Senior Site Reliability Engineer (RHEL Specialist) must possess a deep technical foundation in enterprise Linux systems and modern DevOps methodologies. We are seeking a candidate who has transitioned from traditional systems administration to an automation-first engineering mindset, capable of managing complex, distributed environments. Mandatory Requirement: A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in Site Reliability Engineering, DevOps, or Senior Linux Systems Administration is required. Candidates must demonstrate high-level proficiency in managing production RHEL environments at scale. 3.1 Enterprise Linux Mastery (RHEL Focus) As our primary operating system environment, deep expertise in Red Hat Enterprise Linux is non-negotiable. Requirements include: System Administration: Expert knowledge of RHEL 7, 8, and 9 internals, including LVM, systemd, GRUB, and advanced storage management. Performance Tuning: Proficiency in kernel-level tuning, using tools such as tuned, top, iostat, vmstat, and perf to optimize workloads. Security Hardening: Advanced implementation of SELinux (policy management, context troubleshooting) and system security protocols (Firewalld, IPTables, OpenSCAP). Lifecycle Management: Proven experience with Red Hat Satellite, including Capsule management, Content Views, and automated patch scheduling via Subscription Manager. 3.2 Automation & Configuration Management Ansible Expertise: Expert-level proficiency with Ansible Core and Ansible Automation Platform (Tower). This includes architecting complex roles, utilizing Jinja2 templating, managing dynamic inventories, and developing custom Ansible modules to meet specific infrastructure needs. Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Strong familiarity with managing stateful infrastructure via code, focusing on idempotency and drift detection. 3.3 Programming & Scripting The ability to read, write, and debug code is essential for eliminating toil and integrating systems. Python: Strong proficiency for developing automation tools, API integrations, and monitoring scripts. Bash: Expert shell scripting skills for system-level automation, boot-time scripts, and complex command-line tasks. 3.4 Cloud, Containers & Virtualization Category Technical Requirements Containerization Hands-on experience with Docker/Podman and enterprise orchestration via Kubernetes or Red Hat OpenShift. Virtualization Experience managing RHEL workloads on VMware vSphere and/or KVM (libvirt/QEMU) environments. Cloud Platforms Practical experience managing Linux infrastructure in at least one major cloud provider: AWS, Azure, or GCP. CI/CD Tooling Proficiency in building and managing deployment pipelines using Jenkins or GitLab CI. 3.5 Certifications & Education Education: Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field (or equivalent professional experience). Preferred Certifications: Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE), Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA), or Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) are highly desirable and will be given preference. Professional Knowledge: Familiarity with SRE principles (based on the Google SRE workbook) and ITIL frameworks. 4. Desired Soft Skills While technical proficiency in RHEL and automation is paramount, the effectiveness of a Site Reliability Engineer is heavily dependent on their ability to navigate complex organizational dynamics and maintain a calm, analytical mindset during system failures. We are seeking a candidate who embodies the cultural tenets of SRE: a blend of high empathy, radical transparency, and a relentless drive for efficiency. 4.1 Proactive Problem-Solving & Strategic Thinking The ideal candidate does not wait for an alert to trigger before acting. You should possess the ability to look at complex systems holistically and identify latent defects or architectural weaknesses. We value engineers who think strategically about "toil" and can justify automation efforts based on long-term reliability gains rather than short-term fixes. 4.2 Radical Ownership & Accountability Sense of Ownership: You treat the production environment as your own, taking personal pride in its uptime and performance. Accountability: When systems fail, you focus on remediation and long-term prevention. You are comfortable standing by your technical decisions while remaining open to constructive feedback during blameless post-mortems. 4.3 Communication & Cross-Functional Collaboration SREs sit at the intersection of Development and Operations. Success in this role requires: Bridging the Gap: The ability to translate deep technical RHEL issues into business impact for stakeholders and actionable requirements for developers. Active Listening: Working closely with software engineers to understand their deployment pain points and designing automation that solves real-world development hurdles. Documentation: A commitment to maintaining clear, concise, and accurate runbooks and architectural diagrams to ensure knowledge is shared across the team. The SRE Mindset: We are looking for an individual who remains "calm under fire." The ability to maintain focus and lead a technical team through a high-pressure P1 incident is just as important as the code you write. 4.4 Methodical Troubleshooting & Crisis Management When faced with an "unknown-unknown" error, you employ a scientific and methodical approach. You should be able to: Isolate variables systematically to identify root causes in distributed systems. Utilize observability data (logs, metrics, traces) to build a narrative of system failure. Prioritize restoration of service over finding the "perfect" fix during an active outage. 4.5 Passion for Continuous Improvement & Learning The technology landscapeespecially within the Red Hat and Cloud Native ecosystemsis constantly evolving. We value candidates who: Are self-driven learners who keep pace with new Ansible modules, RHEL features, and SRE methodologies. Actively seek out ways to improve not just the systems, but also the team's internal processes and culture. Enjoy mentoring junior engineers and fostering an environment of technical excellence. 5. Reporting Structure The Senior Site Reliability Engineer (RHEL Specialist) occupies a pivotal position within the technology organization, serving as a bridge between core infrastructure management and modern software delivery. This role is designed for a technical leader who can influence architectural decisions while remaining deeply embedded in daily operational excellence. 5.1 Direct Reporting Line This position reports directly to the Head of Site Reliability Engineering (or the Director of Cloud & Platform Infrastructure). This reporting line is structured to provide the SRE team with the necessary mandate to prioritize reliability, automation, and performance tuning over feature velocity when system stability is at risk. Regular engagements with leadership will involve: Weekly strategic updates on infrastructure health and Error Budget consumption. Participation in quarterly planning sessions to align automation roadmaps with business objectives. Direct involvement in "Post-Mortem" reviews with executive stakeholders for high-priority incidents. 5.2 Team Environment & The Squad Model While reporting into the centralized SRE leadership, the candidate will function within a cross-functional "Squad" or "Chapter" environment. This model emphasizes high-touch collaboration across various technical disciplines: Software Development Teams: Collaborating as a "Reliability Consultant" to help developers architect RHEL-friendly applications, optimize container workloads, and refine deployment strategies. Quality Assurance (QA): Working together to integrate automated reliability testing and performance benchmarking into the CI/CD pipeline. Cybersecurity: Partnering with the SecOps team to automate RHEL hardening, manage SELinux policies, and ensure rapid, automated vulnerability patching. Cloud Architects: Assisting in the design of hybrid-cloud solutions that ensure RHEL workloads move seamlessly between on-premise virtualization and public cloud platforms. Collaboration Philosophy: Our organization operates on a "You Build It, You Run It" (with SRE support) philosophy. As a Senior SRE, you are not a siloed gatekeeper; you are an enabler who empowers other teams through the creation of self-service automation and reliable platform abstractions. 5.3 Internal & External Stakeholders Stakeholder Group Nature of Interaction Junior/Mid-level SREs Mentorship, code review of Ansible playbooks, and guiding technical troubleshooting. Product Owners Negotiating SLOs and providing data-driven insights on how system reliability impacts user experience. External Partners (e.g., Red Hat) Managing technical support escalations and staying informed on upcoming RHEL roadmap features. Originally posted on Himalayas

4 hours ago

Cloud Architect

FutureFit AI

Remote, south-africa

Full Time

The Cloud Architect (RHEL & Hybrid Cloud Specialist)is a senior-level technical leadership role designed for a visionary engineer who excels at the intersection of enterprise Linux stability and modern cloud agility. As organizations in 2026 increasingly move toward sophisticated hybrid-cloud models to balance performance, cost, and data sovereignty, this role serves as the primary architect and governor of our foundational technology stacks. 1.1 Position Specifications Attribute Details Official Job Title Cloud Architect (RHEL & Hybrid Cloud Specialist) Location Remote Required Experience Minimum 5+ years in Cloud Architecture or Senior Systems Engineering Language Requirements Portuguese and English Key Technology Focus RHEL, Ansible, Kubernetes, Hybrid Cloud (AWS/Azure/GCP) 1.2 Strategic Role Mission The core mission of the Cloud Architect is to design, implement, and govern a world-class hybrid-cloud infrastructure that prioritizes the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)ecosystem as its operational backbone. In the current landscape, where financial and technological sectors demand extreme reliability and automated scalability, this role is responsible for ensuring that our infrastructure is not just a collection of servers, but a cohesive, self-healing platform. By treating infrastructure as code (IaC) and leveraging high-level automation via Ansible, the Cloud Architect will bridge the gap between legacy virtualization (KVM/VMware) and public cloud hyperscalers. The incumbent is expected to move the organization away from manual interventions toward an autonomous, policy-driven environment that supports rapid product iterations without compromising security or performance. Strategic Importance: In 2026, Cloud Architecture is defined by the ability to manage complexity through automation. This role is pivotal in reducing "Toil" across engineering teams, optimizing cloud spend through intelligent resource orchestration, and maintaining compliance with data privacy regulations through strict RHEL-based security hardening. 1.3 Key Objectives The successful candidate will be evaluated on their ability to achieve the following high-level objectives: Architectural Governance: Establish and enforce best practices for RHEL deployments across hybrid-cloud environments (AWS, Azure, and GCP). Automation Leadership: Drive the 100% automation goal for server provisioning, configuration management, and patching using Ansible. Modernization Orchestration: Lead the transition of legacy workloads into containerized environments (Docker/Kubernetes) while maintaining deep-level OS integrity. Efficiency Optimization: Proactively identify and resolve system inefficiencies, performance bottlenecks, and resource waste to drive a lean infrastructure culture. DevOps Integration: Seamlessly integrate infrastructure pipelines with application CI/CD workflows (Jenkins/GitLab) to facilitate a true DevSecOps model. 1.4 Candidate Profile We are seeking a proactive technologist who refuses to accept manual work as the status quo. The ideal candidate possesses the analytical depth to troubleshoot a kernel panic on a RHEL instance and the architectural breadth to design a multi-region failover strategy. As a senior member of the team, you will act as a mentor to engineers and a strategic advisor to leadership, ensuring our technology choices align with the long-term scalability requirements of the target markets. 2. Key Responsibilities The Cloud Architect (RHEL & Hybrid Cloud Specialist) is tasked with the strategic design and technical oversight of the organization's infrastructure. This role requires a blend of high-level architectural vision and deep-dive technical implementation to ensure that our cloud ecosystems are resilient, automated, and high-performing. The responsibilities are categorized into the following strategic domains: 2.1 Hybrid-Cloud Infrastructure Design & Strategy The Architect is responsible for the end-to-end design of scalable and secure hybrid-cloud solutions across major hyperscalers (AWS, Azure, or GCP). Architectural Blueprints: Develop and document robust high-level and low-level designs (HLD/LLD) that integrate on-premise data centers with public cloud environments. Security by Design: Implement rigorous security architectures, including VPC/VNet segmentation, IAM policy governance, and encryption standards, ensuring compliance with global and local (POPIA) security frameworks. Multi-Cloud Orchestration: Evaluate business requirements to determine the optimal placement of workloads, facilitating seamless portability between different cloud providers and on-premise virtualization stacks. Disaster Recovery: Design high-availability and disaster recovery (DR) strategies that leverage cloud-native services to ensure business continuity for mission-critical RHEL workloads. 2.2 Enterprise Automation & RHEL Orchestration A primary focus of this role is the elimination of manual configuration through enterprise-grade automation solutions, specifically optimized for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Ansible Framework Development: Architect and maintain a scalable Ansible automation framework to handle provisioning, configuration management, and application deployment across the RHEL estate. RHEL Lifecycle Management: Design automated workflows for OS patching, kernel tuning, and security hardening (STIG/CIS benchmarks) to ensure all RHEL instances remain performant and compliant. Self-Healing Infrastructure: Implement automated remediation scripts using Python and Ansible to detect and fix common system issues without manual intervention. Standardization: Establish "Golden Image" pipelines for RHEL, ensuring consistency across development, staging, and production environments. 2.3 Systems Optimization & Proactive Problem Resolution: Beyond standard maintenance, the Cloud Architect is expected to be a proactive agent of change. You must continuously monitor the ecosystem to identify systemic inefficiencies and performance bottlenecks. This involves designing architectural interventionssuch as right-sizing cloud resources, optimizing network latency, or re-architecting underperforming componentsbefore they impact business operations. 2.4 CI/CD Strategy & Pipeline Governance The Architect bridges the gap between infrastructure and application development by designing robust delivery pipelines. Pipeline Architecture: Design end-to-end CI/CD strategies using Jenkins or GitLab CI, focusing on Infrastructure as Code (IaC) deployment workflows. Deployment Guardrails: Integrate automated security scanning, unit testing, and compliance checks into the deployment pipelines to "shift-left" security and quality. Release Orchestration: Architect advanced deployment patterns such as Blue-Green, Canary, and Rolling updates to minimize downtime during application releases. 2.5 Technical Governance & Organizational Leadership As a senior leader, the Cloud Architect provides the necessary governance to ensure all technology initiatives align with the broader organizational strategy. Mentorship: Provide technical leadership and hands-on guidance to DevOps and Infrastructure teams, uplifting the organization's overall RHEL and cloud competency. Architectural Standards: Define and enforce the organization's cloud and automation standards, participating in Architectural Review Boards (ARB) to vet new technologies. Vendor Management: Collaborate with partners like Red Hat and public cloud providers to stay ahead of technical roadmaps and leverage new features for competitive advantage. Cost Governance: Monitor cloud consumption metrics and architect cost-optimization strategies to ensure efficient utilization of the organizations technology budget. Strategic Objective Expected Outcome Cloud Adoption maturity Transition from siloed infrastructure to a unified hybrid-cloud model. Automation coverage Reduction of manual deployment errors by >90% through Ansible. System Resiliency Achieving 99.99% uptime for RHEL-based core services. 3. Required Technical Skills & Qualifications The successful candidate must possess a deep and diverse technical background, combining traditional systems engineering excellence with modern cloud-native architectural patterns. This role requires the ability to navigate the entire stack, from low-level kernel tuning to high-level cloud service orchestration. 3.1 Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Mastery As the foundational operating system for our hybrid-cloud strategy, expert-level knowledge of the RHEL ecosystem is mandatory. The architect must demonstrate: Advanced Administration: Expert proficiency in RHEL 7, 8, and 9, including lifecycle management, software packaging (RPM/DNF), and systemd orchestration. Enterprise Security & Compliance:In-depth experience with SELinux (policy management, troubleshooting, and enforcement), firewalld, and implementing OpenSCAP for automated compliance auditing. Performance Analysis & Tuning:Ability to diagnose and resolve complex system bottlenecks using tools such as top, iostat, vmstat, sar, and perf, alongside managing tunedprofiles for specific workloads. Infrastructure Services: Strong experience with Red Hat Satellite for content management and Red Hat Identity Management (IdM) / FreeIPA for centralized authentication. 3.2 Automation, Scripting & Infrastructure as Code (IaC) The architect must be an automation-first professional, capable of abstracting complex manual tasks into repeatable, version-controlled code. Ansible Expertise: Expert-level capability in developing modular Ansible Playbooks, Roles, and Collections. Experience with Ansible Automation Platform (AAP) or AWX is highly desired. Advanced Scripting: Mastery of Python(3.x) for custom tooling and API integrations, and Bash for rapid system-level automation and diagnostic scripts. Terraform: Practical experience using Terraform for multi-cloud resource provisioning and managing state files across distributed teams. 3.3 Cloud Platforms & Virtualization Architecture Domain Mandatory Technical Proficiency Public Cloud Architectural experience with AWS (VPC, EC2, Transit Gateway, IAM), Azure (VNets, ExpressRoute, Entra ID), or GCP (Shared VPC, Cloud IAM). Must understand cloud-native networking and security primitives. Virtualization Hands-on experience with KVM/Libvirt for open-source virtualization and VMware vSphere (ESXi/vCenter) for enterprise-grade on-premise infrastructure. Containerization Deep understanding of Docker/Podman container runtimes and Kubernetes (K8s) architecture. Specific experience with Red Hat OpenShift is a significant advantage. 3.4 CI/CD & DevOps Tooling Experience in designing and maintaining enterprise-scale CI/CD pipelines is critical for modern delivery cycles: Jenkins: Experience with Pipeline-as-Code (Groovy), shared libraries, and managing distributed build agents. GitLab CI: Proficiency in designing YAML-based pipelines, utilizing runners, and managing container registries. Version Control: Advanced knowledge of Git (branching strategies, merge requests, and hook management). 3.5 Education and Professional Certifications While we value hands-on experience and a proven track record, the following qualifications are considered highly advantageous in our evaluation process: Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field. Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA) or Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE). Cloud Provider Professional Certifications: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional, Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, or Google Professional Cloud Architect. Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) or Red Hat Certified Specialist in OpenShift Administration. 3.6 Minimum Years of Experience Candidates must have a minimum of five (5) years of demonstrable experience in a Cloud Architect, Solutions Architect, or Senior Systems Engineering role, with a clear focus on enterprise Linux and multi-cloud environments. 4. Desired Soft Skills Technical prowess in RHEL and automation is only one half of the requirement for a Cloud Architect. To be successful in this role, the candidate must possess the professional maturity and interpersonal acumen required to navigate complex organizational structures, mentor diverse engineering teams, and translate high-level business goals into actionable technical roadmaps. 4.1 Strategic Thinking & Visionary Leadership The Cloud Architect must look beyond immediate technical "firefighting" to anticipate the long-term needs of the organization. This involves: Developing and maintaining a three-year hybrid-cloud roadmap that aligns with the rapid evolution of the technology landscape. Assessing the long-term implications of choosing specific tools or architectural patterns over others (e.g., proprietary vs. open-source RHEL-based solutions). Balancing the desire for technical perfection with the pragmatic need for timely business delivery. 4.2 Exceptional Communication & Stakeholder Engagement A significant portion of this role involves acting as a bridge between the engineering trenches and the executive suite. Mandatory communication skills include: Verbal: Ability to articulate complex architectural concepts clearly during stand-ups, town halls, and executive briefings. Written: Proficiency in drafting comprehensive architectural decision records (ADRs), technical whitepapers, and operational runbooks that are accessible to various skill levels. Presentation: Skilled at creating visual representations of cloud topologies and automation workflows to gain "buy-in" from stakeholders during review boards. 4.3 Influencing Without Direct Authority In our matrixed organization, the Cloud Architect often leads cross-functional DevOps and Infrastructure squads. You must demonstrate the ability to drive technical adoption, enforce RHEL standards, and steer teams toward best practices using technical credibility, empathy, and negotiation skills rather than formal management power. 4.4 Advanced Analytical Problem-Solving We are looking for an architect who is not content with simply fixing a symptom but is driven to find the root cause of systemic inefficiencies. Ability to synthesize data from multiple sources (logs, cloud metrics, financial reports) to identify performance or cost bottlenecks. A proactive "detective" mindset that seeks out technical debt and designs structured plans to pay it down before it impacts stability. Resilience and methodical thinking during high-pressure troubleshooting scenarios. 4.5 Business Acumen & Value Alignment Technology at this scale is a significant investment. The Cloud Architect must understand the business behind the bytes: Understanding Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) when comparing RHEL on-premise vs. public cloud services. Aligning infrastructure scaling policies with business growth cycles and seasonal peaks. Identifying opportunities for technology to provide a competitive advantage, such as faster time-to-market through automated CI/CD pipelines. Soft Skill Pillar Expected Behavioral Indicator Conflict Resolution Mediates technical disagreements between Dev and Ops teams to reach a stable consensus. Mentorship Actively uplifts junior and mid-level engineers through code reviews and design feedback. Adaptability Remains open to new methodologies and shifts in cloud provider strategies without rigid adherence to legacy patterns. 5. Reporting Structure & Collaboration The Cloud Architect (RHEL & Hybrid Cloud Specialist) occupies a high-impact, senior-level position within the global technology organization. This role is designed to transcend siloed technical functions, acting as a strategic pivot point between executive leadership, architectural governance, and hands-on engineering execution. 5.1 Organizational Hierarchy The Cloud Architect operates within the Group Enterprise Architecture division. This positioning ensures that infrastructure decisions are made with a holistic view of the company's long-term digital transformation goals. Direct Reporting Line: This position reports directly to the Head of Cloud Architecture or the Chief Enterprise Architect. Functional Oversight: While this is an individual contributor role in terms of direct HR reports, the Architect maintains dotted-line functional authorityover technical leads within specific project squads to ensure architectural compliance. Executive Interaction: The incumbent will periodically present infrastructure roadmaps and cost-optimization strategies to the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) and CISO (Chief Information Security Officer). Architectural Governance: The Cloud Architect serves as a permanent member of the Architectural Review Board (ARB) , responsible for vetting all major infrastructure changes, RHEL configuration standards, and cloud service adoption across the business units. 5.2 Key Collaborative Relationships Successful delivery in this role is contingent upon high-frequency, high-quality collaboration across multiple technical and business domains. The Architect does not operate in isolation but serves as a facilitator of technical excellence. Stakeholder Group Nature of Collaboration DevOps & Platform Engineering Partnering to implement automated RHEL provisioning workflows and Ansible-based configuration management. Ensuring Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) standards are strictly followed. Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) Collaborating on system observability, defining Service Level Objectives (SLOs), and architecting self-healing mechanisms within the RHEL environment to minimize manual intervention. Cybersecurity & Risk Teams Working closely to ensure SELinux policies, kernel hardening, and cloud IAM frameworks meet enterprise security standards and local POPIA regulatory requirements. Product Managers Translating product feature requirements into infrastructure capacity plans. Advising on the feasibility and cost-implications of new technical initiatives. External Vendors (Red Hat/Cloud Providers) Managing technical relationships with Red Hat and hyperscalers (AWS/Azure/GCP) to escalate complex issues and influence product roadmaps in favor of the organizations needs. 5.3 Team Integration and Mentorship While the Cloud Architect focuses on high-level strategy, they are expected to remain "plugged into" the engineering squads. This is achieved through: Participation in Agile Ceremonies: Attending sprint planning and retrospectives for core infrastructure squads to provide real-time architectural guidance. Cross-Skilling Initiatives: Leading internal "Communities of Practice" focused on Linux excellence and automation to uplift the skills of junior and mid-level administrators. Incident Escalation: Acting as the Level 4 architectural escalation point for complex, systemic outages that require deep-level RHEL or cloud networking expertise. 5.4 Geographical & Working Model Synergy Given the remote nature of the role in the 2026 global market, the Architect must be proficient in asynchronous collaboration. This includes leveraging digital whiteboarding tools, Slack/Teams for rapid coordination, and robust documentation in Confluence or similar knowledge-sharing platforms to ensure that architectural alignment is maintained across distributed time zones and regions. Originally posted on Himalayas

4 hours ago

Kafka Specialist

Datonomy Solutions

Sandton, Gauteng, south-africa

FULL_TIME

We are seeking an experienced Technology Specialist - Kafka to design, administer, automate, secure, and optimise enterprise Kafka platforms supporting mission-critical banking applications. This role is responsible for ensuring the stability, scalability, resilience, and security of Kafka environments while driving automation, DevOps best practices, and cloud adoption. The successful candidate will combine deep Kafka platform engineering expertise with Linux administration, Infrastructure-as-Code, observability, and cloud engineering to deliver highly available event streaming infrastructure that supports modern banking systems and real-time data integration. Key Responsibilities Kafka Platform Administration Install, configure, upgrade, patch and maintain enterprise Kafka clusters. Administer Confluent Platform and/or Confluent Cloud environments. Manage brokers, topics, partitions, replication and consumer groups. Optimise Kafka cluster performance, throughput and latency. Perform capacity planning and scaling of Kafka infrastructure. Troubleshoot broker failures, replication issues and performance bottlenecks. Support production incidents and perform root cause analysis. Platform Engineering Design highly available Kafka platforms across multiple environments. Implement resilient architectures for business-critical messaging workloads. Configure multi-broker clusters with appropriate replication and fault tolerance. Support disaster recovery and high availability strategies. Maintain platform documentation and operational runbooks. DevOps & Automation Develop and maintain automation to reduce manual operational effort. Responsibilities include: Infrastructure as Code Platform provisioning Automated deployments Configuration management CI/CD integration Environment standardisation Typical technologies include: Terraform Ansible Python Bash Azure DevOps Git Linux Platform Administration Provide specialist Linux administration supporting Kafka infrastructure. Responsibilities include:

a day ago

Kafka Specialist

Datonomy Solutions (Cape Town)

Sandton, south-africa

Default

We are seeking an experienced Technology Specialist – Kafka to design, administer, automate, secure, and optimise enterprise Kafka platforms supporting mission-critical banking applications.This role is responsible for ensuring the stability, scalability, resilience, and security of Kafka environments while driving automation, DevOps best practices, and cloud adoption.The successful candidate will combine deep Kafka platform engineering expertise with Linux administration, Infrastructure-as-Code, observability, and cloud engineering to deliver highly available event streaming infrastructure that supports modern banking systems and real-time data integration.Key ResponsibilitiesKafka Platform Administration Install, configure, upgrade, patch and maintain enterprise Kafka clusters. Administer Confluent Platform and/or Confluent Cloud environments. Manage brokers, topics, partitions, replication and consumer groups. Optimise Kafka cluster performance, throughput and latency. Perform capacity planning and scaling of Kafka infrastructure. Troubleshoot broker failures, replication issues and performance bottlenecks. Support production incidents and perform root cause analysis. Design highly available Kafka platforms across multiple environments. Implement resilient architectures for business-critical messaging workloads. Configure multi-broker clusters with appropriate replication and fault tolerance. Support disaster recovery and high availability strategies. Maintain platform documentation and operational runbooks. Infrastructure as Code Platform provisioning Automated deployments Configuration management CI/CD integration Environment standardisation Terraform Ansible Python Bash Azure DevOps Git Performance tuning Storage optimisation Network troubleshooting Service management Operating system maintenance Capacity management Log analysis TLS/SSL encryption SASL authentication ACL administration Certificate lifecycle management Identity integration Secure client connectivity Compliance with enterprise security standards Azure networking Virtual Machines Managed services Storage Identity integration Hybrid deployments Cloud security Platform optimisation Health monitoring Performance dashboards Alerting Capacity monitoring Log aggregation Distributed tracing Incident diagnostics Prometheus Grafana ELK Stack Splunk Azure Monitor Support production platforms within SLA. Lead technical investigations. Perform root cause analysis. Recommend permanent fixes. Participate in major incident resolution. Drive platform stability improvements. Platform Engineers DevOps Engineers Infrastructure Teams Cloud Engineers Security Teams Application Developers Architecture Teams Operations Teams 6+ years' experience in Systems Engineering, Platform Engineering or Infrastructure Engineering. 4+ years' hands-on Kafka administration. Enterprise production support experience. Experience supporting highly available distributed systems. Experience automating infrastructure and operational processes. Experience working within DevOps environments. Apache Kafka Confluent Platform Confluent Cloud Broker administration Topic management Consumer groups Partition management Replication Cluster upgrades Performance tuning Capacity planning Python Bash Terraform Ansible CI/CD Pipelines Azure DevOps Git Linux Administration Shell scripting Performance tuning System troubleshooting Microsoft Azure Azure networking Azure infrastructure Azure Monitor Hybrid cloud environments TLS/SSL SASL ACLs Certificates Encryption Authentication Authorisation Prometheus Grafana ELK Stack Splunk Azure Monitor Log analysis Alerting Performance monitoring Banking or Financial Services experience. Confluent Cloud implementation experience. Enterprise messaging platforms. Event-driven architecture. Kubernetes or container platforms. Docker. Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). Platform Engineering. Infrastructure as Code at enterprise scale. Confluent Certified Developer or Administrator Microsoft Azure Administrator Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Azure DevOps Engineer Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) Terraform Associate Kubernetes Certifications (CKA/CKAD) Desired Skills: Kafka Operations Kafka Platform Engineering Event Streaming

a day ago

It Graduate (december Vacation Work Programmer)

Network Recruitment

Pretoria, Gauteng, south-africa

FULL_TIME

Requirements: Currently in the final year of a Bachelor's Degree : Information Technology Computer Science Software Development Informatics Information Systems Electronic Engineering (Software-related) Or a related IT qualification Strong academic record and passion for technology. Basic understanding of programming concepts and software development principles. A proactive attitude and eagerness to gain practical industry experience. Important Application Requirements: To be considered for this opportunity, applicants must submit the following documentation together with their CV: Updated CV Matric Certificate Latest Academic Transcript What You'll Gain: Practical exposure to a professional software development environment. Experience working on real-world projects. Mentorship from experienced IT professionals. Exposure to industry best practices, tools, and methodologies. The opportunity to build valuable experience and expand your professional network. Application Note: If you have not received feedback within two weeks, please consider your application unsuccessful. Your profile will remain in our database for consideration for future opportunities. For more exciting IT vacancies, explore opportunities in: Software Development (Back-End, Front-End, Full Stack) Mobile Development Business & Systems Analysis BI, SQL & Data Engineering UI/UX Design Data Science & Analytics Big Data Engineering Cloud Engineering Infrastructure & Platform Engineering DevOps & SecOps Cybersecurity Software Testing & QA Location: Lynnwood, Pretoria For more information, contact: Reinie Du Preez Senior Specialist Recruitment Consultant

a day ago

Senior Data Scientist (ml Engineer)

Paracon

Edenburg, south-africa

Default

Job Purpose To design, prototype, and build next-generation analytic engines and services by applying strong expertise in Artificial Intelligence (AI) Build, deploy, scale and support machine learning, AI and GenAI solutions in production. The role focuses on operationalising models, developing AI applications and agents, and creating the platforms and services required to deliver business value at scale. Key Responsibilities Productionise, deploy and monitor machine learning models and data science pipelines on Databricks. Build, deploy and support AI Agents, GenAI applications and RAG solutions on Databricks. Develop and maintain reusable ML pipelines using MLOps principles, including CI/CD, automated testing, monitoring and governance. Deploy, optimise and manage open source AI and machine learning models on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). Design, develop and support custom APIs and microservices on AKS to expose AI and machine learning capabilities to business applications. Implement containerised solutions using Docker and Kubernetes to ensure scalable, secure and resilient deployments. Monitor model performance, drift, reliability and operational health in production environments. Partner with Data Scientists to productionise prototypes and enable business-ready solutions. Collaborate with platform, security, cloud and infrastructure teams to ensure compliance with enterprise standards. Troubleshoot and resolve production issues related to models, pipelines, APIs and AI applications. Optimise AI and ML solutions for performance, scalability, cost and reliability. Contribute to engineering standards, reusable frameworks and best practices across the AI and ML ecosystem. Mentor junior engineers and promote knowledge sharing across the team. Stay current with advancements in AI, GenAI, MLOps, Databricks, Kubernetes and cloud technologies. Production-ready ML models and pipelines running on Databricks. AI Agents and business applications deployed on Databricks. Open source LLMs and AI services deployed on AKS. Secure and scalable APIs exposing AI capabilities to consuming systems. Automated deployment, monitoring and governance processes. Reliable, scalable and compliant AI platforms supporting business outcomes. Databricks Workflows, Model Serving, MLflow and Mosaic AI Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) Python, SQL and REST APIs Docker and Kubernetes CI/CD and MLOps practices Machine Learning and Generative AI LLM deployment and optimisation Cloud engineering and infrastructure automation Monitoring, observability and troubleshooting Microsoft Azure certifications (AZ-104, AZ-305, AI-102 or equivalent) Databricks certifications (Data Engineer, Machine Learning Engineer, Generative AI Engineer) Kubernetes and containerisation certifications (CKA, CKAD or equivalent) DevOps, MLOps or Platform Engineering certifications AWS or Google Cloud certifications will be advantageous Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence or Data Science certifications from recognised providers such as Microsoft, Databricks, SAS, Coursera or [URL Removed] will be an added advantage Strong understanding of MLOps, DevOps and software engineering practices for machine learning platforms. Experience building, deploying and supporting machine learning solutions in production environments. Proficiency in Python and experience with SQL and API development. Experience with Databricks, MLflow, Model Serving and cloud-native AI/ML platforms. Hands-on experience with Kubernetes, Docker and containerised application deployment. Experience deploying and supporting machine learning and Generative AI solutions on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). Knowledge of CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure automation and platform monitoring. Experience with distributed computing technologies such as Spark and large-scale data processing frameworks. Understanding of machine learning, large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and AI agents. Ability to productionise data science solutions and collaborate effectively with Data Scientists. Experience delivering end-to-end AI and machine learning use cases from development to production. Ability to translate technical concepts into business outcomes and communicate effectively with stakeholders. Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to work across cross-functional teams. Self-driven, adaptable and capable of thriving in a fast-paced, technology-driven environment. Desired Skills: ML pipelines using MLOps principles AI Azure Kubernetes Service

a day ago

Platform Engineer

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