Cloud/DevOps Consultant

What would an average day look like?

A Cloud/DevOps Consultant's daily schedule can vary greatly depending on the individual project they are working on and the demands of the organization. However, here's a broad description of a typical day for a Senior Cloud/DevOps Consultant:

• Morning Briefing:
  • Start the day by reviewing emails, messages, and any critical alerts or updates from the previous night.
  • Prioritize tasks and create a to-do list for the day.
• Client Meetings:
  • Engage in client meetings to discuss project progress, address concerns, and provide updates.
  • Collaborate with the client's team to understand their evolving needs and requirements.
• Architecture and Infrastructure Planning:
  • Evaluate the existing cloud infrastructure and DevOps practices, identifying areas for improvement.
  • Design and plan changes to infrastructure and DevOps pipelines based on the project's goals.
• Automation and Development:
  • Develop and maintain automation scripts, infrastructure as code (IaC) templates, and CI/CD pipelines.
  • Collaborate with development teams to ensure smooth integration of code into the CI/CD pipeline.
• Troubleshooting and Support:
  • Address any ongoing technical issues, outages, or performance problems.
  • Offer expertise and guidance to resolve challenges and minimize downtime.
• Security and Compliance:
  • Review and enhance security measures and compliance practices.
  • Conduct security audits and make necessary adjustments to meet industry standards and regulations.
• Performance Monitoring:
  • Continuously monitor the performance and health of cloud resources and applications.
  • Analyze performance metrics, identify bottlenecks, and implement optimizations as needed.
• Documentation and Reporting:
  • Document changes, configurations, and best practices.
  • Provide regular progress reports to the client and internal teams.
• Training and Knowledge Transfer:
  • Conduct training sessions and knowledge transfer activities for the client's in-house teams.
  • Help team members develop their skills in cloud technologies and DevOps practices.
• Cost Optimization:
  • Analyze cloud cost and usage data to identify areas for optimization.
  • Recommend cost-saving strategies, such as Reserved Instances or Savings Plans.
• Research and Learning:
  • Stay updated on the latest cloud and DevOps technologies, tools, and best practices.
  • Experiment with new technologies to assess their potential for the project.
• Project Management:
  • Manage project timelines, milestones, and deliverables.
  • Coordinate with various stakeholders to ensure project objectives are met.
• Afternoon Meetings and Follow-ups:
  • Attend additional client meetings, stand-ups, or project update meetings as required.
  • Follow up on action items and decisions from earlier meetings.
• Problem-Solving and Decision-Making:
  • Address unforeseen issues and make decisions related to architecture, infrastructure, and DevOps practices.
• Wind Down:
  • As the day concludes, review progress made on the to-do list.
  • Prepare for the next day by identifying critical tasks and priorities.

It's important to note that a Cloud/DevOps Consultant's schedule can be dynamic and may require adapting to urgent issues or changes in project requirements. Flexibility and the ability to balance multiple tasks and responsibilities are essential in this role. Additionally, consultants often work both on-site and remotely, depending on the nature of the project and client preferences.

Who should apply?

This position is great for someone who wants to work with cutting-edge cloud infrastructure at scale while also being part of a team that is always open to new ways of doing things. The ideal candidate will be enthusiastic about automation and improving infrastructure, as well as having a natural talent for explaining complex concepts in a clear and understandable manner.

This all sounds great, what's it going to do for my career?

You will be exposed to new technologies in an environment where they can be used at scale. Because all of our products have a worldwide audience, we must design with this in mind. Our infrastructure is spread across many AWS regions and must always be quick and reliable.

We always strive to tackle problems at the appropriate level of the stack, so you'll have opportunity to hone both your development and operations skills.

You will also be encouraged to invest in yourself and further your education. Friday afternoons, for example, can be spent to work on other topics that interest you. We also conduct hack days to get away from the daily grind and experiment with new technologies and techniques.

Requirements

• Excellent communication abilities
• Extensive experience with large-scale Linux-based distributed systems
• AWS or another cloud provider experience
• Experience with large-scale SQL and/or NoSQL databases
• Experience with the lifetime of services and monitoring
• Knowledge of DevOps practices and culture
• An attitude toward automation
• A thorough knowledge of Kubernetes
• Terraform or other IaC tool experience