Principal Kubernetes Platform Engineer (9994)
Toronto, Canada / Ontario, Canada
Products – Engineering /
Fulltime /
Hybrid
We are seeking a Tech Lead – Kubernetes Platform Engineer to lead platform development for our Edge Kubernetes Platform, supporting both connected and air-gapped deployments. This is a hands-on technical leadership role where you will define architecture, guide implementation, and ensure secure, scalable, and reliable delivery of Kubernetes-based platforms. You will serve as the go-to expert for Kubernetes, Rancher Gov stack, and GitOps practices, while leading a team to deliver enterprise-grade infrastructure solutions.
Key Responsibilities
- End-to-End Ownership: Lead the full lifecycle of the platform – from architecture and design through deployment, upgrades, and long-term operations.
- Kubernetes Leadership: Provide technical direction and deep hands-on expertise in upstream Kubernetes and RKE2, ensuring stability, security, and availability.
- Rancher Gov Stack: Architect and manage Rancher for multi-cluster management, including policy enforcement, compliance, and workload orchestration.
- GitOps & Automation: Implement and scale GitOps pipelines using Fleet and ArgoCD for consistent, auditable, and automated operations.
- OCI Bundle Orchestration: Manage packaging, distribution, and lifecycle of application bundles in OCI-compliant registries for edge environments.
- Helm Expertise: Build, optimize, and maintain Helm charts for application packaging and upgrade automation.
- Security & Networking: Enforce security best practices, network segmentation, and zero-trust principles throughout platform design.
- Upgrade Strategy: Define and execute robust cluster and platform upgrade strategies to ensure long-term stability and security.
- Collaboration & Leadership: Partner with product, security, and engineering teams; mentor junior engineers; and establish technical standards.
- Documentation & Communication: Create clear documentation of architectures and processes while effectively communicating to technical and non-technical audiences.
Qualifications
- 10+ years of experience in infrastructure or platform engineering, including 5+ years focused on Kubernetes.
- Deep hands-on expertise with upstream Kubernetes, RKE2, and Rancher Gov stack.
- Proven experience implementing GitOps workflows with Fleet and/or ArgoCD.
- Strong knowledge of OCI bundle management, Helm packaging, and orchestration pipelines.
- Expertise in secure infrastructure design, networking, and segmentation strategies.
- Demonstrated success in leading teams or initiatives delivering end-to-end platform solutions.
- Solid background in CI/CD, containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and Linux systems.
- Excellent problem-solving, communication, and leadership skills with the ability to influence across teams.
Nice to Have
- Experience building edge or air-gapped.
- Familiarity with service meshes such as Istio or Linkerd.
- Exposure to observability stacks (Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, ELK).
- Contributions to open-source Kubernetes or GitOps ecosystems.
