Lead DevOps (Platform Tooling) Engineer

Summary

Join Upwork's Platform Engineering team as a Senior Platform Tooling Engineer and contribute to the development and maintenance of their platform, supporting both their core Marketplace business and their rapidly expanding AI and Machine Learning business unit, Umami. You will be responsible for designing and implementing CI/CD pipelines, migrating pipelines and microservices to GitHub Actions, providing on-call support, developing automation workflows, and engaging with internal stakeholders to understand their needs and deliver solutions. This role offers the opportunity to work at scale, manage thousands of microservices and tens of thousands of builds per week, and shape the next generation of Upwork's platform using the latest Cloud Native technologies.

Requirements

• Extensive DevOps Experience : Minimum of 5 years in DevOps or Platform Engineering roles, with a strong focus on CI/CD pipelines and automation
• AWS Expertise : Deep understanding and hands-on experience with AWS services, including IAM, ECR, S3, RDS, and EKS
• Docker and Kubernetes Proficiency : Proven experience deploying and managing applications in Kubernetes environments, especially using AWS EKS
• CI/CD Tools Mastery : Hands-on experience with Jenkins, Tekton, and GitHub Actions; ability to design and maintain complex CI/CD pipelines
• Infrastructure as Code : Proficient with Terraform for infrastructure automation and management
• Programming Skills : Proficiency in Python and at least one of Java or JavaScript/TypeScript for automation scripting and workflow development
• Problem-Solving Mindset : Ability to think in terms of system design and integration, envisioning how components interact and impact each other
• Excellent Communication : Strong customer-centric approach with the ability to communicate effectively, set expectations, and collaborate with internal teams
• Time Zone Availability : Must be available to work 9 AM - 6 PM Pacific Time to support teams located on the US West Coast

Responsibilities

• Design and Implement CI/CD Pipelines : Collaborate with cross-functional teams to design, implement, and maintain CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins, Tekton, and GitHub Actions
• Migration to GitHub Actions : Lead the migration of thousands of pipelines and microservices to GitHub Actions, ensuring minimal disruption and enhanced efficiency
• On-Call Support : Provide on-call support during Pacific Time Zone business hours (9 AM - 6 PM PT) to address incidents, troubleshoot issues, and assist our AI/ML business unit with their unique technical requirements
• Automation and Integration : Develop automation workflows using Argo Workflows and Kubernetes, integrating various technologies to create cohesive and efficient systems
• Customer-Centric Engineering : Engage with internal stakeholders to understand their needs, set expectations, and deliver solutions with empathy and clear communication
• Platform Development : Contribute to both the maintenance of our existing platform and the development of our new platform based on modern Cloud Native principles
• Best Practices and Compliance : Uphold best practices in DevOps, ensure security compliance, and promote infrastructure as code using Terraform

Preferred Qualifications

• Argo Workflows and ArgoCD : Experience designing and implementing workflows using Argo technologies
• Backstage Knowledge : Familiarity with extending or integrating Backstage developer portals
• HashiCorp Vault and JFrog Artifactory : Experience with secrets management and artifact repositories
• Crossplane Experience : Knowledge of Crossplane for infrastructure management
• Monitoring Tools : Experience with Grafana, Prometheus, and other monitoring and logging tools
• Large-Scale Environment Experience : Previous work in environments with similar scale and complexity

Benefits

• Impact at Scale: Work on an infrastructure that supports over 40,000 builds per week, hundreds of microservices and a large engineering community
• Innovation and Freedom : An open environment where your ideas can drive real change without unnecessary bureaucracy
• Complex Challenges : Tackle interesting technical challenges that require integrating multiple technologies and thinking creatively to find effective solutions
• Collaborative Culture : Join a team of experienced engineers who are passionate about what they do and are always willing to help
• Transformative Contributions: Your efforts will directly enhance the productivity of hundreds of engineers and support the growth of Upwork's business units, including cutting-edge AI/ML projects