Senior Systems Engineer - Secure Cloud & Infrastructure in Reading

Senior Systems Engineer - Secure Cloud & Infrastructure in Reading

Reading Temporary 71 - 71 £ / hour (est.) Home office (partial)
CBSbutler Ltd.

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Design and support secure cloud infrastructure in a dynamic defence environment.
  • Company: Join a leading firm in the defence and aerospace sector.
  • Benefits: Competitive hourly rate, flexible work options, and opportunities for professional growth.
  • Other info: Work in a collaborative team with excellent career advancement potential.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact on critical projects while enhancing your technical skills.
  • Qualifications: 5+ years in systems engineering with strong Azure and Kubernetes experience.

The predicted salary is between 71 - 71 £ per hour.

Senior Systems Engineer - Secure Digital Platform (SDP) Data & Integration

Location

Reading - 3 days onsite / 2 days remote

Rate

£65-£71 per hour, inside IR35

Security Clearance

Active SC Clearance required

Nationality

Sole British National required

Contract

6 Months +

The Role

We are seeking an experienced

Senior Systems Engineer to support a secure digital platform within a highly regulated defence and aerospace environment.

You will be responsible for the design, implementation, operation, support and continuous improvement of enterprise infrastructure, cloud platforms and hosting services.

The role provides technical leadership across hybrid environments, ensuring systems are secure, resilient, scalable and aligned with business and programme objectives .

You will work across Microsoft Azure, on-premises infrastructure, virtualisation, storage, networking and container platforms including

Kubernetes and Red Hat Open Shift .

Working closely with security, architecture, application and service delivery teams, you will support business-critical services while driving automation, modernisation and operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities

  • Design, deploy and support enterprise infrastructure across cloud and on-premises environments.
  • Administer and optimise Microsoft Azure services and cloud-native infrastructure.
  • Manage and maintain Windows Server and Linux environments.
  • Deploy, configure and support Kubernetes and Open Shift platforms.
  • Implement Infrastructure as Code (Ia C) and automation solutions.
  • Ensure infrastructure meets security, compliance, resilience and availability requirements.
  • Monitor system performance, capacity and operational health.
  • Support backup, disaster recovery and business continuity capabilities.
  • Work with security teams to implement secure-by-design infrastructure solutions.
  • Troubleshoot and resolve complex incidents, problems and technical issues.
  • Maintain technical documentation, standards and operational procedures.
  • Mentor junior engineers and contribute to knowledge sharing.
  • Support infrastructure transformation, cloud migration and technology refresh programmes.
  • Key Objectives
  • Cloud & Infrastructure Engineering
  • Deliver reliable, scalable infrastructure solutions.
  • Support the adoption and governance of cloud services.
  • Maintain high levels of platform availability, performance and resilience.
  • Drive infrastructure modernisation initiatives.
  • Platform & Container Services
  • Design and support Kubernetes and Open Shift hosting platforms.
  • Enable secure deployment of containerised workloads.
  • Improve automation, observability and operational efficiency.
  • Support platform scalability and lifecycle management.
  • Operational Excellence
  • Maintain infrastructure services against agreed service level objectives.
  • Identify and resolve recurring operational issues.
  • Improve monitoring, alerting and performance management.
  • Ensure operational processes follow industry best practice.
  • Automation & Continuous Improvement
  • Promote Infrastructure as Code and automation-first approaches.
  • Develop and maintain automation using scripting and orchestration tools.
  • Reduce manual operational overhead through process improvement.
  • Drive continuous service improvement and innovation.
  • Planning & Technical Assurance
  • Support infrastructure roadmaps and strategic plans.
  • Manage technical risks, dependencies and operational challenges.
  • Participate in capacity planning and technology lifecycle management.
  • Provide technical assurance and delivery confidence across programmes and projects.
  • Escalate issues and risks appropriately.

Essential Skills & Experience

5+ years' experience in systems engineering, infrastructure engineering, platform engineering or a similar role.

  • Demonstrable experience delivering infrastructure within defence, aerospace or highly regulated environments .

Active SC Clearance .

Sole British National .

  • Strong experience administering

Microsoft Azure services and infrastructure.

  • Experience supporting hybrid cloud and on-premises environments.
  • Experience working within classified or secure environments.
  • Strong knowledge of Windows Server and Linux operating systems.
  • Experience with enterprise virtualisation platforms such as VMware or Hyper-V.
  • Strong understanding of networking technologies, including TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VPNs, load balancing, firewalls and routing.
  • Hands-on experience administering Kubernetes clusters.
  • Practical experience supporting

Red Hat Open Shift environments.

  • Experience supporting large-scale enterprise container platforms.
  • Experience with Infrastructure as Code tools such as

Terraform, Bicep, ARM Templates or Ansible .

  • Strong scripting and automation skills using

Power Shell, Bash, Python or similar .

  • Experience with monitoring, logging and observability platforms.
  • Experience with backup, recovery and disaster recovery solutions.
  • Strong troubleshooting, root cause analysis and problem-solving skills.
  • Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
  • Ability to mentor and support junior engineers.
  • Experience working within

Agile, Dev Ops or Platform Engineering environments.

Desirable Experience

  • Azure Solutions Architect or Azure Administrator certification.
  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate.
  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert.
  • Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA).
  • Red Hat Open Shift Administration certification.
  • VMware VCP certification.
  • ITIL Foundation or equivalent service management certification.
  • Knowledge of Azure Arc and hybrid cloud management technologies.
  • Experience with Software Defined Networking (SDN).
  • Knowledge of Zero Trust Architecture principles.
  • Experience with service mesh technologies such as Istio. Knowledge of cloud cost optimisation and Fin Ops principles.
  • Experience with edge or distributed computing architectures.
  • Experience supporting infrastructure transformation and cloud migration programmes.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Systems Engineering or a related discipline is desirable, alongside significant professional experience in infrastructure, systems, cloud or platform engineering.

This is an excellent opportunity for a Senior Systems Engineer with strong

Azure, Kubernetes/Open Shift and secure infrastructure experience to work on technically challenging programmes within a critical UK defence and aerospace environment.

#J-18808-Ljbffr

Senior Systems Engineer - Secure Cloud & Infrastructure in Reading employer: CBSbutler Ltd.

As a Senior Commercial Officer at our innovative engineering and manufacturing organisation in Kidderminster, you'll thrive in a dynamic work culture that values collaboration and creativity. We offer excellent benefits, including hybrid working options, and a commitment to employee growth through exposure to high-value programmes and professional development opportunities. Join us to be part of a team that is not only shaping the future of engineering but also fostering meaningful relationships and driving business success.

CBSbutler Ltd.

Contact Details:

CBSbutler Ltd. Recruitment Team

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We think you need these skills to ace Senior Systems Engineer - Secure Cloud & Infrastructure in Reading

Systems Engineering
Infrastructure Engineering
Platform Engineering
Microsoft Azure Administration
Hybrid Cloud Management
Windows Server Administration
Linux Operating Systems

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