Cloud Infrastructure Lead Specialist

Job Title: Cloud Infrastructure Lead Specialist
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Experience: 12+ Years
Employment Type: Contract
Interview Type: In-Person or Webcam

We are seeking an experienced Cloud Infrastructure Lead Specialist to oversee the design, deployment, and management of enterprise-level cloud environments. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in cloud architecture, infrastructure automation, security, and high availability solutions. This role requires strong leadership, the ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams, and hands-on experience with large-scale cloud implementations.

The Cloud Infrastructure Lead Specialist will provide technical direction, develop strategy for cloud adoption, and ensure the stability, performance, and scalability of cloud systems. This role also involves guiding engineering teams, troubleshooting complex issues, and ensuring best practices and governance standards are followed.

• Lead design, implementation, and management of cloud infrastructure environments across public, private, and hybrid cloud platforms.

• Define cloud strategy, migration roadmaps, and modernization frameworks aligned with business and technology objectives.

• Architect and manage scalable, secure, resilient, and cost-optimized cloud infrastructure services.

• Oversee cloud network configuration, identity and access management, storage, compute resources, and monitoring solutions.

• Implement automation and orchestration using tools such as Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation.

• Ensure compliance with security standards, governance policies, disaster recovery, and backup strategies.

• Perform performance analysis, capacity planning, and cloud cost optimization.

• Collaborate closely with development, operations, and security teams to standardize infrastructure practices.

• Lead problem-resolution efforts for critical cloud systems and high-severity incidents.

• Mentor engineering team members and provide technical guidance and documentation.

• 12+ years of experience in IT infrastructure with at least 7 years focused on cloud engineering and architecture.

• Hands-on expertise with AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud Platform (at least one major provider is required).

• Strong understanding of virtualization, container technologies (Docker, Kubernetes), and microservices architecture.

• Proficiency with Infrastructure-as-Code tools such as Terraform, Ansible, Helm, or CloudFormation.

• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices using tools such as Jenkins, GitLab, or Azure DevOps.

• Knowledge of networking technologies including VPN, VPC, load balancing, DNS, firewalls, and routing protocols.

• Strong understanding of cloud security, identity management, and compliance frameworks.

• Experience with logging, monitoring, and performance tools such as CloudWatch, Grafana, Prometheus, or Splunk.

• Familiarity with automation scripting languages such as Python, Bash, or PowerShell.

• Proven leadership with ability to influence technical direction and deliver enterprise cloud solutions.

• Excellent analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills.