Cloud Engineer

Why AIS?

When you join AIS, you’re joining a mission-driven team that’s passionate about making a difference. You’ll work on projects that matter, alongside industry-leading experts, in an environment that fosters innovation, driving client success, and empowering our team to make a lasting impact. As an employee-owned company, we value collaboration, inclusivity, continuous growth, and shared success.

• Employee Ownership: Your contributions directly impact the company’s success, and you share in its achievements.

• Continuous Learning: Access to resources, training, and mentorship to support your professional growth.

• Inclusive Culture: A workplace where diversity is celebrated, and everyone’s voice is valued.

• Mission-Driven Work: Engage in projects that make a meaningful difference for our clients and communities.

What are we looking for?

At AIS, we're looking for more than just skills - we're looking for driven individuals who are passionate about making a difference, eager to grow, and aligned with our core principles.

What you will be doing?

This position is contingent upon contract award. We are currently pursuing a proposal and are seeking qualified candidates to include in our submission and identify candidates for future hiring needs on the program once awarded.

• Core Knowledge & Skills: Sets enterprise‑level infrastructure strategy; leads global architectures and integrations; manages worldwide environments; is recognized externally as a thought leader.

• Work & Complexity: Oversees multi‑region programs, coordinates global delivery, applies analytics to predict/mitigate issues, and steers strategic vendor partnerships.

• Quality & Independence: Establishes visionary, organization‑wide standards; ensures excellence on large‑scale initiatives; drives sustainable, future‑ready practices with full autonomy.

• Teamwork & Communication: Leads enterprise communication of strategy, aligns global stakeholders, mentors next‑generation leaders, and represents the organization in industry forums.

• Consulting & Engagement: Advises executives on strategy and vision, expands external offerings and partnerships, and shapes long‑term technology direction and market influence.

AIS is seeking a Cloud Engineer to design, implement, and maintain secure, scalable, and resilient cloud-based solutions in support of federal defense and intelligence missions. The Cloud Engineer will be a key member of a cross-functional engineering team, ensuring mission systems are deployed, integrated, and optimized in accordance with Zero Trust, DevSecOps, and DoD Cloud Smart principles. This role requires deep technical expertise, a passion for innovation, and the ability to collaborate with government and industry partners to deliver next-generation digital engineering platforms.

This position is central to AIS’s role as a mission partner to the U.S. Defense Industrial Base. By leveraging cloud-native technologies, the Cloud Engineer will help modernize DoD environments, accelerate digital transformation, and deliver secure, resilient, and cost-effective platforms for the warfighter.

Key Responsibilities

• Cloud Architecture & Design

  • Develop, document, and implement cloud reference architectures aligned to DoD and federal cloud strategies.

  • Design resilient, scalable, and cost-optimized cloud solutions (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS) across environments (Azure Government, AWS GovCloud, DoD IL5/6, JWCC).

  • Leverage containerization and orchestration (Kubernetes, AKS, EKS, OpenShift) to enable secure, portable, and reusable deployments.

• Engineering & Automation

  • Build Infrastructure as Code (IaC) solutions using Terraform, Bicep, or CloudFormation to accelerate deployments.

  • Implement CI/CD pipelines (Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins) to support automated testing, compliance, and deployment.

  • Integrate AI/ML and data platform services into cloud architectures to enable advanced analytics, predictive modeling, and digital engineering.

• Security & Compliance

  • Apply DoD Zero Trust principles and STIG compliance to cloud workloads.

  • Ensure security and compliance with FedRAMP, NIST 800-53, and DISA SRG controls.

  • Support Authority to Operate (ATO) processes through RMF documentation, automation, and compliance validation.

• Operations & Support

  • Monitor and optimize cloud performance, cost, and availability.

  • Troubleshoot complex issues across networking, compute, storage, and security domains.

  • Collaborate with government system owners, integrators, and AIS teams to ensure mission readiness.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field — or equivalent professional experience.

• Experience: 3–7 years in cloud engineering, architecture, or DevSecOps roles.

• Cloud Expertise: Hands-on experience with Azure required

• Infrastructure as Code: Proficiency in tools such as Terraform, Bicep, and CloudFormation.

• Clearance: Active DoD Secret clearance (minimum), with the ability to obtain and maintain Top Secret/SCI if required.

• Location: Must be based in the DC Metro area.

• Certifications: CompTia Security+ certification required.

• Technical Knowledge:

  • Strong foundation in networking, security, identity, and access management.

  • Deep understanding of DoD security frameworks, including RMF, DISA SRGs, and Zero Trust principles.

Desired Qualifications

• Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ-104) certification.

• Other relevant Cloud certifications (Azure Solutions Architect Expert, AWS Solutions Architect, etc.).

• Experience supporting DoD digital engineering initiatives (e.g., Model-Based Systems Engineering, FPAAs, heterogeneous integration).

• Experience with data platforms and analytics services (Databricks, Synapse, Redshift).

• Familiarity with container security, DevSecOps toolchains, and automated compliance frameworks.

• Prior experience delivering mission-focused solutions for DoD, DISA, Army, Navy, or Air Force customers.

This posting is part of our ongoing talent pipeline initiative. While there may not be an immediate opening, we are actively building a network of qualified candidates for future opportunities. If you're interested in being considered when a role becomes available, we encourage you to submit your resume.

Applied Information Sciences does not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, religion, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis. Employment decisions are based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs.