Senior Platform Architect

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field and five or more years of relevant platform, DevOps, or cloud engineering experience, or eight or more years of relevant experience in lieu of a degree.
• Experience defining architecture for multi-component platforms or programs, including integration patterns, target-state designs, and technical roadmaps.
• Experience working directly with government customers or program stakeholders to gather requirements, present technical options, and drive decisions.
• Experience designing infrastructure in Azure Commercial and Azure Government.
• Experience with platforms in classified or similarly restricted federal environments.
• Working knowledge of Infrastructure as Code, Kubernetes, and CI/CD practices, enough to guide and review DevOps implementations.
• Working knowledge of cloud networking, identity and access management, secrets management, and observability.
• Ability to make sound architecture decisions, document solutions, and collaborate with developers, DevOps engineers, security personnel, and customer stakeholders.

• Experience operating Azure Government Secret platforms.
• Experience building internal developer platforms or self-service provisioning portals.
• Familiarity with NIST SP 800-53 controls, RMF, ATO processes, and STIG implementation.
• Familiarity with platform security tools such as Nessus, SonarQube, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Aqua Security, or comparable products.
• Hands-on experience with Terraform, Bicep, Docker, Kubernetes, or Helm.
• Experience with data lakehouse architectures using Apache Iceberg, Trino, or comparable table formats and query engines.
• Experience with data catalog and governance tools such as OpenMetadata.
• Experience designing for disconnected or air-gapped deployments.
• Experience with Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Application Insights, Prometheus, or Grafana.
• Experience supporting shared database or search services such as SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Elasticsearch, or OpenSearch.
• Experience enabling data engineering or machine learning workloads on platforms such as Apache Spark, Azure Data Factory, or related technologies.
• Experience with GitOps, policy as code, Kubernetes operators, or service mesh technologies.
• Relevant Azure, Kubernetes, or cloud security certifications.

• Clearance: Active Secret clearance or higher is required
• Location: Washington, DC (3 days/week on-site at Expression office or customer site)

• Own the FSDS platform roadmap across its component systems, aligning priorities with NTIA program goals, application team needs, and security requirements.
• Define target-state architecture and integration patterns that connect FSDS applications, data services, and external federal systems.
• Lead architecture as the platform matures and expands to new environments.
• Weigh architecture tradeoffs across cost, security, operability, and the constraints of federal environments.
• Lead technical planning for new FSDS capabilities, migrations, and environment expansions, including scope, dependencies, sequencing, and estimates.
• Serve as the platform’s technical lead with NTIA and partner government teams, presenting architecture options, tradeoffs, and recommendations.
• Coordinate with Expression application, data, and security teams so platform decisions support delivery across all parts of FSDS.
• Document architecture decisions and design rationale so teams and stakeholders understand why the platform works the way it does.

• Define the Azure platform architecture for unclassified and classified FSDS environments.
• Set direction for shared platform services, including networking, identity, secrets management, container platforms, and configuration management.
• Establish platform standards for consistency, scalability, security, and cost across development, test, and production.
• Review Infrastructure as Code and Kubernetes designs with DevOps engineers so implementations stay aligned with the target architecture.

• Work closely with DevOps engineers on delivery pipelines, deployment patterns, and restricted-environment constraints, giving architecture direction rather than doing day-to-day implementation.
• Partner with security teams so Commerce, NTIA, and federal requirements shape the architecture from the start, and give design input to RMF and ATO activities.
• Support operations teams on observability, resilience, and recovery approaches, and give architecture guidance during major incidents.
• Work with developers and data engineers to identify delivery bottlenecks and prioritize platform improvements.

• Maintain architecture diagrams, design documents, and platform lifecycle plans.
• Guide platform upgrades, capacity planning, and production transitions.
• Mentor engineers and communicate technical tradeoffs to stakeholders.

• Data lakehouse: Apache Iceberg, Apache Polaris, and Trino on Azure Data Lake Storage.
• Data and metadata services: PostgreSQL, OpenMetadata, and Elasticsearch.
• Processing and orchestration: Azure Data Factory, containerized Spark jobs, and Python Azure Functions.
• Identity and security: Microsoft Entra ID, managed identities, Azure Key Vault, and private networking.
• Delivery: Bicep with Azure Verified Modules, GitLab CI, and hardened container images with vulnerability scanning and SBOMs.
• Analytics: Tableau.

• 401k matching
• PPO and HDHP medical/dental/vision insurance
• Education reimbursement
• Complimentary life insurance
• Generous PTO and holiday leave
• Onsite office gym access
• Commuter Benefits Plan

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Washington DC, Expression provides data fusion, data analytics, software engineering, information technology, and electromagnetic spectrum management solutions to the U.S. Department of Defense, Department of State, and national security community. Expression’s “Perpetual Innovation” culture focuses on creating immediate and sustainable value for their clients via agile delivery of tailored solutions built through constant engagement with their clients.

Expression was ranked #1 on the Washington Technology 2018's Fast 50 list of fastest growing small business Government contractors and a Top 20 Big Data Solutions Provider by CIO Review.