Lead Public Cloud Windows Engineer

Lead Public Cloud Windows Engineer

Remote role **Minimal Travel expectation 10% to Austin, TX.

Job Description:
The Lead Cloud Windows Engineer is responsible for advanced technical support, administration, and optimization of managed customer cloud environments across AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform (Google Cloud Platform), and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). This role requires deep expertise in Windows Server OS, experience in public cloud, a strong grasp of managed services operations, and a proactive, solution-oriented mindset. The engineer will also contribute to automation efforts, incident and change management, and mentor junior team members.

Key Responsibilities:
Cloud Windows Operations & Support
Provide support for Windows-based systems across on-premises and cloud environments (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, OCI).
Support Customer Self-Provision cloud instances across AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and OCI with security guardrail and backend deployment.
Assist troubleshoot, and resolve incidents, performance issues, and service outages in production and staging Windows environments.
Design and implement system monitoring, alerting, and logging tools to ensure high availability and reliability.
Lead root cause analysis and document post-incident reviews for major Windows-related issues.
Track and lead patch management, OS upgrades, and regular system maintenance.
Develop and maintain backup, disaster recovery, and failover strategies for Windows infrastructure.
Participate in on-call rotation and provide after-hours support as needed.
Automation & Infrastructure Management
Design and develop automation scripts using PowerShell, Python, or Ansible to streamline system administration tasks.
Manage infrastructure using tools like Ansible, DSC, or Azure Automation.
Maintain Infrastructure as Code (IaC) templates using tools such as Terraform, CloudFormation, ARM, or OCI Resource Manager is a plus.
Recommend and implement system optimization strategies for performance, and resource utilization.

Security & Compliance
Propose and enforce Windows system security best practices, including access control, encryption, and secure configurations.
Manage user access, Group Policy Objects (GPOs), and Active Directory (AD) policies in line with IAM standards.
Identify, and remediate security vulnerabilities reported by scanning tools or external advisories.
Support compliance initiatives by maintaining secure and auditable Windows environments.
Collaboration & Documentation
Work closely with application, security, and network teams for solution delivery and support.
Mentor junior engineers and provide technical guidance as needed.
Create and update technical documentation, runbooks, and SOPs.
Participate in client calls to provide technical input when required.

Requirements Education & Certifications
Bachelor s degree (or equivalent experience) in Computer Science, IT, Engineering, or a related field.

At least two of the following certifications (or equivalent experience):
Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate
AWS Certified Solutions Architect / SysOps Administrator
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate or Solutions Architect Expert
Google Professional Cloud Architect / Engineer
Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Architect Associate/Professional
(Preferred) ITIL Foundation or other support framework knowledge.

Required Experience:
Primary: Windows
Secondary: AWS/AZ/Google Cloud Platform/OCI
10+ years of hands-on experience in cloud Windows engineering, operations in a 24*7 production support model
5+ years multi-cloud experience (must have hands-on in at least 4 of AWS/Azure/Google Cloud Platform/OCI; familiarity in all is preferred).

Highly Preferred Qualifications:
Direct experience in managed services/NOC/SOC/MSP environments is a plus.
In-depth expertise in provisioning, configuring, securing, supporting, and optimizing Windows Server systems (2012/2016/2019/2022) in enterprise environments.
Expertise with optimizing cloud-native and hybrid workloads in AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and/or OCI.
Strong experience in managing compute, storage, networking, and system services on Windows platforms.
Proficient in system designs, architecture, deployment, performance tuning, and troubleshooting of Windows servers.
Skilled in scripting languages such as PowerShell and Python for automation and system management.
Proficient in using ServiceNow ITSM for incident, change, and problem management.
Strong expert level understanding of Windows-based backup strategies, disaster recovery planning, and high-availability configurations (e.g., Failover Clustering, Client, Hyper-V Replica).
Familiar with security tools and practices including Windows Defender, BitLocker, and auditing policies.
Strong Experience with vulnerability assessment and patch management using tools like WSUS, SCCM, or Qualys.
Proficient in log analysis and system monitoring using tools such as Event Viewer, SCOM, Nagios, or Grafana.
Familiar with endpoint protection and threat detection tools such as CrowdStrike and Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
Strong knowledge of user access control, Active Directory, Group Policy, and secure file transfer protocols.
Ability to troubleshoot Windows services such as IIS, SQL Server, DNS, DHCP, and SMB.
Familiarity in AppGate SDP, TotalCloud, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto NGFW, etc.
Be able to support customer self-provision cloud instances with required security (guardrail) via Azure Blueprints, AWS Control Tower, etc.