Principal Platform Engineer | Agentic AI | Identity and Access Management

At IFS, we're building the next generation of AI-native enterprise software, transforming how some of the world's largest organisations manage assets, operations and critical services. This is an opportunity to work at the forefront of modern AI engineering, building intelligent products that combine Large Language Models (LLMs), agentic AI and cloud-native technologies to solve complex, real-world business challenges at enterprise scale.

We're looking for engineers who are passionate about building production AI systems and excited by the opportunity to shape the future of enterprise software. Please note that this role requires demonstrable, hands-on experience designing, building and shipping production AI applications. Candidates whose AI experience is limited to using tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor or GitHub Copilot to assist software development, without demonstrable experience building AI-powered products or systems, will not meet the requirements for this role.

As Principal Platform Engineer - Identity & Access Management, you will be the technical authority on authorisation (AuthZ) and authentication (AuthN) across the Kairos and Nexus platforms. You will architect, engineer, and operate enterprise-scale identity and access solutions that secure the IFS platform while remaining frictionless for the developers and end-users who rely on them.

This is a hands-on engineering role with significant architectural scope. You will design and implement IAM patterns that are adopted as standards across IFS, and you will work closely with platform, product, and security teams to ensure identity and access are enablers, not bottlenecks.

• Architect and engineer the unified, enterprise-scale authorisation platform across Nexus, F1, and LEC, built on SpiceDB
• Design and implement fine-grained authorisation models: relationship-based access control (ReBAC / Zanzibar-inspired), alongside RBAC and ABAC where appropriate
• Model authorisation schemas, relationships, and permission checks that are correct, performant, and maintainable at scale
• Own the operation of the authorisation engine: SpiceDB on PostgreSQL, including the migration to cloud-native Postgres (CNPG) and blue-green deployment support
• Build the authorisation APIs and SDKs that product teams consume, making correct access control the path of least resistance
• Architect and engineer enterprise-scale AuthN solutions, and own the implementation, configuration, and operation of identity provider infrastructure, specifically Curity and/or Keycloak
• Implement and enforce OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect (OIDC), and SAML patterns at scale, including token lifecycle management and claims-based authorisation
• Define IAM patterns, standards, and golden paths for product teams to implement securely and consistently
• Integrate identity and access services with the Internal Developer Platform (IDP) to enable self-service authentication and authorisation configuration
• Provide subject-matter expertise on identity and access security to product teams, architects, and security stakeholders
• Maintain platform identity and access service reliability, performance, and security posture
• Contribute to the broader platform engineering roadmap with an identity-and-access-first perspective

Authorisation (Must Have)

• Architecting and engineering fine-grained authorisation systems at production scale, in distributed, multi-tenant environments
• Hands-on production experience with a relationship-based / policy-based authorisation engine, ideally SpiceDB (or comparable Zanzibar-inspired systems such as OpenFGA, Ory Keto, or equivalent)
• Deep, practical knowledge of authorisation models: relationship-based access control (ReBAC), role-based (RBAC), and attribute-based (ABAC), and knowing when to apply each
• Experience designing authorisation schemas and permission models, and reasoning about correctness, latency, and consistency at scale
• Familiarity with policy-as-code approaches and tooling (OPA / Rego, Cedar, or equivalent)
• Understanding of the operational side: running the authorisation engine in production, backed by PostgreSQL, with observability and traceability of authorisation decisions

Authentication (Must Have)

• Architecting and engineering enterprise-scale AuthN solutions, demonstrated at production scale
• Hands-on production experience with Curity and/or Keycloak: configuration, customisation, operations, and integration
• Deep, practical knowledge of OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect (OIDC), SAML 2.0, and token-based authentication patterns (JWT, opaque tokens, token introspection)
• Experience with enterprise identity federation, SSO, and directory integration (LDAP, Active Directory)
• Strong hands-on engineering capability across the NGA stack, or the ability to get there fast: Backend: Go, Messaging / Streaming: Apache Kafka / RedPanda, Data: PostgreSQL
• Comfortable operating in a cloud-native environment: Kubernetes (AKS), containers, GitOps, Infrastructure as Code
• Event-driven and distributed systems architecture
• Secure coding practices and security-by-design principles

We embrace flexibility and hybrid work opportunities to support diverse needs and lifestyles, while also valuing inclusive workplace experiences. By fostering a sense of community, we drive innovation, strengthen connections, and nurture belonging. Our commitment ensures you can work in a way that suits you best, while also engaging with colleagues to share ideas and build meaningful relationships.