Principal DevOps Engineer

Principal DevOps Engineer

Full-Time 60000 - 80000 £ / year (est.) Home office (partial)
Job Search Place Limited

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead the design and operation of AWS/Linux platforms for high availability and scalability.
  • Company: Join IDBS, a leader in AI/ML solutions for BioPharma, with a collaborative culture.
  • Benefits: Flexible work arrangements, competitive salary, and opportunities for professional growth.
  • Other info: Be part of a dynamic team driving innovation in the BioPharma sector.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact in healthcare by optimising cloud infrastructure and mentoring teams.
  • Qualifications: Experience in AWS, Linux, CI/CD pipelines, and a passion for modern engineering practices.

The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.

IDBS helps BioPharma organisations unlock the potential of AI/ML to improve the lives of patients. As a trusted long-term partner to 80% of the top 20 global BioPharma companies, IDBS delivers powerful cloud software and services specifically designed to meet the evolving needs of the BioPharma sector.

IDBS, a Danaher company, leverages 35 years of scientific informatics expertise to help organisations design, execute and orchestrate processes, manage, contextualise and structure data and gain valuable insights throughout the product lifecycle, from R&D through manufacturing. Known for its signature IDBS E WorkBook software, IDBS has extended its flexible, scalable solutions to the IDBS Polar and PIMS cloud platforms to help scientists make smarter decisions with assured confidence in both GxP and non GxP environments.

Do you want to join a DevOps team that keeps our cloud platform running at its best? We manage a high availability Linux environment in AWS and empower development teams with the tools, automation, and CI/CD pipelines they rely on every day. Our DevOps team helps engineers build reliable software fast by providing shared infrastructure and strong SRE practices that ensure consistency, efficiency, and scalability.

As a Principal DevOps Engineer, you'll lead the design and operation of our AWS/Linux platform, improving reliability and scalability, and drive faster, safer deployments. You'll shape the technical roadmap, elevate DevOps standards, and deliver measurable impact from reducing MTTR to increasing deployment frequency and improving consistency across environments.

What you'll get you doing:

  • Lead the technical roadmap by partnering with Architecture and feature teams, influencing key design decisions and driving modern tooling and best practices.
  • Optimise and operate scalable AWS infrastructure, ensuring strong performance, resilience, and cost efficiency through effective AWS Cost Management and FinOps practices.
  • Drive DevOps excellence by building and evolving CI/CD pipelines, automation, and Infrastructure as Code to enable fast, safe, and reliable software delivery.
  • Champion modern engineering practices by evaluating and introducing new technologies, running proofs of concept, and uplifting standards across the organisation.
  • Mentor and support engineering teams, while ensuring platform reliability, compliance, and participating in on call/out of hour support when needed.

Here is what success in this role looks like:

  • Confidently operate and improve AWS/Linux platforms, delivering secure, scalable, and highly available systems while guiding teams on best practices and architectural decisions.
  • Drive cloud cost efficiency through strong FinOps practices, reducing waste and optimising workloads with rightsizing, storage lifecycle policies, and AWS Savings Plans or Reserved Instances.
  • Deliver high quality IaaC using Terraform (and/or Puppet for configuration management), creating modular, reusable, and policy compliant IaaC that enables consistent, multi environment provisioning.
  • Design and run production grade Kubernetes environments covering Helm, RBAC, networking/ingress, secrets management, scaling strategies, and deployment patterns to deliver reliable, scalable, cloud native infrastructure.
  • Build and maintain robust CI/CD workflows using Git and/or Jenkins, including automated testing, security scanning, and environment promotion, resulting in improved deployment frequencies, change failure rates, etc.
  • Automate operational and developer workflows using Bash, Python, or Java, eliminating manual effort and enabling self-service capabilities that empower engineering teams.
  • Elevate engineering capability by mentoring others, improving documentation, and influencing platform wide standards, ensuring best practices are embedded across teams and reflected in everyday development and operations.

It would be a plus if you also possess previous experience in:

  • Hands on experience with enterprise and cloud native databases such as Oracle, MySQL, MongoDB, or PostgreSQL, supporting deeper insight into platform behaviour and performance.
  • A strong passion for open source technologies, with the ability to evaluate, advocate, and introduce community-driven tools that strengthen engineering capabilities.
  • Relevant AWS certifications (e.g., AWS Solutions Architect - Associate/Professional or DevOps Engineer - Professional), demonstrating advanced cloud proficiency and architectural depth.

Flexible Work Arrangement:

At IDBS, we believe in designing a better, more sustainable workforce. We recognise the benefits of flexible working arrangements for eligible roles and are committed to providing enriching careers, no matter the work arrangement. This position is eligible for a flexible work arrangement in which you can work part-time at the Company location identified above and part-time remotely from your home. Additional information about this work arrangement will be provided by your interview team.

Explore the flexibility and challenge that working for IDBS can provide.

Additional Information:

Join our winning team today. Together, we'll accelerate the real-life impact of tomorrow's science and technology. We partner with customers across the globe to help them solve their most complex challenges, architecting solutions that bring the power of science to life.

Principal DevOps Engineer employer: Job Search Place Limited

IDBS is an exceptional employer that empowers its employees to make a meaningful impact in the BioPharma sector through innovative cloud solutions. With a strong commitment to flexible work arrangements, a collaborative culture, and ample opportunities for professional growth, IDBS fosters an environment where talent thrives. Join us to be part of a team that values your contributions and supports your career development while working on cutting-edge technology that improves patient lives.

Job Search Place Limited

Contact Details:

Job Search Place Limited Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Principal DevOps Engineer

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We think you need these skills to ace Principal DevOps Engineer

AWS
Linux
CI/CD Pipelines
Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
Terraform
Kubernetes
Git

Some tips for your application 🫡

Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.

Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Job Search Place Limited.

Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Job Search Place Limited and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!

Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!

How to prepare for a job interview at Job Search Place Limited

Brush Up on Your Coding Skills

For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.

Know Your Tools and Frameworks

Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Job Search Place Limited uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.

Showcase Your Projects

Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.

Prepare for Behavioural Questions

While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.