Senior Kubernetes Administrator

Role Overview
We are seeking a Sr. Kubernetes Administrator with a strong background in automation infrastructure-as-code and cloud-native technologies. The ideal candidate will be responsible for managing scaling and optimizing Kubernetes clusters while implementing automation frameworks to reduce manual effort and improve system reliability. As a member of the Test and Engineering Infrastructure team this role is critical in ensuring our containerized workloads run securely efficiently and consistently across environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Cluster Management: Deploy configure upgrade and maintain Kubernetes clusters across on-prem and cloud environments.
• Automation & Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Design and implement automated workflows for provisioning scaling and monitoring using tools like Terraform Ansible Helm or FluxCD.
• Monitoring & Observability: Implement and maintain logging monitoring and alerting solutions (e.g. Prometheus Grafana EFK stack).
• Security & Compliance: Apply best practices for cluster security RBAC secrets management/SOPS-encrypted secrets and vulnerability scanning.
• CI/CD Integration: Collaborate with DevOps and development teams to optimize Kubernetes for continuous delivery pipelines.
• Performance Optimization: Proactively monitor resource utilization troubleshoot bottlenecks and ensure high availability and disaster recovery.
• Documentation & Knowledge Sharing: Maintain clear operational documentation and mentor team members on Kubernetes best practices.

Required Qualifications

• 7-10 years of software development and/or *nix Administration experience with 3 years of hands-on experience managing Kubernetes clusters in production.
• Strong background in automation and scripting (Python Go or Bash).
• On-prem and cloud OS administration experience to include but not be limited to Talos Ubuntu and Debian.
• Expertise with IaC tools such as Terraform Ansible or Pulumi.
• Practical experience with container orchestration and packaging (Docker Helm and/or Kustomize).
• Solid knowledge of CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins GitLab CI and/or GitHub Actions).
• Proficiency in cloud platforms (AWS GCP or Azure).
• Strong understanding of networking load balancing and ingress controllers in Kubernetes.
• Debugging of large multi-layered systems including network troubleshooting application tracing alerting systems and logging from both hardware and software sources
• Excellent problem-solving troubleshooting and analytical skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• CKA/CKAD/CKS certification.
• Experience with service mesh technologies (Istio Linkerd).
• Familiarity with policy enforcement frameworks (OPA/Gatekeeper Kyverno).
• Background in GitOps practices.
• Experience supporting hybrid systems involving embedded devices custom hardware or real-time control systems.
• Knowledge of secure software deployment in mixed cloud/on-prem environments.
• Experience with hardware-in-the-loop pipelines or distributed lab/test automation environments.
• Exposure to scientific computing HPC or quantum software stacks a plus.
• Creation of container images from base images (especially Debian and Ubuntu)
• Ability to thrive in fast-moving interdisciplinary R&D teams.
• Network and Element Management/Application implementation experience.

Salary range is $180000-$220000. We consistently monitor external market data and update base salary ranges accordingly. We determine base compensation decisions on several factors including as geographic placement role-specific knowledge skills and/or addition to our base salary offerings we also provide equity grants for all new hires.

QuEra is committed to cultivating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We highly value diversity in our current and future employees and do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) based on race religion color national origin gender gender expression sexual orientation age marital status veteran status disability status or any other characteristic protected by law.

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