Microsoft Azure Systems Engineer

Company Description

We're a tech company that was first on the ground in the fight against Ubiquitous Technical Surveillance. We help our government and enterprise customers solve a big problem they sometimes don't even know they have. To become leaders in this space, we've relied heavily on curiosity, creativity, and flexibility. We iterate until we get things right and innovate to get there faster.

But enough about us. What's in it for you?

We work hard and do fun things.

Apart from a constantly growing list of fascinating challenges to solve, Ridgeline offers a solid work-life balance, flexible remote work options, and a culture that values teamwork over competition. At Ridgeline, you will work with the most talented software developers, systems engineers, and subject matter experts to change how big enterprises and the U.S. Government manage their digital signatures.

Job Description

This is a deeply hands-on engineering role focused on building, configuring, and troubleshooting Azure infrastructure on a daily basis. We’re seeking engineers who have personally architected and operated production Azure environments and who take pride in owning the full lifecycle — from design through deployment and ongoing operations.

The ideal candidate brings real-world, production experience and enjoys rolling up their sleeves to deliver reliable, secure, and scalable cloud solutions.

What you will do:

Cloud Architecture & Engineering

• You will design and implement scalable, secure Azure infrastructure (IaaS, PaaS, and hybrid)
• You will deploy and manage Azure Virtual Networks, NSGs, Azure Firewall, and private endpoints
• You will architect and support hybrid connectivity (VPN, ExpressRoute)
• You will implement high availability and disaster recovery solutions

Systems & Identity

• You will own the deployment, configuration, patching, and operational health of Windows workloads running in Azure
• You will integrate Azure AD / Entra ID with enterprise identity systems
• You will implement RBAC, Conditional Access, and least-privilege access models
• You will support Microsoft 365 and Azure AD integrations where required

Automation & Infrastructure as Code

• You will build and maintain infrastructure using Terraform (preferred), ARM/Bicep templates, PowerShell, and Azure CLI
• You will ensure deployments are idempotent and repeatable — manual deployments are not acceptable
• You will contribute to CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure delivery

Security & Compliance

• You will implement Azure Security Center / Defender for Cloud controls
• You will configure logging and monitoring (Azure Monitor, Log Analytics)
• You will support compliance frameworks (e.g., NIST, RMF, CMMC as applicable)
• You will conduct vulnerability remediation and hardening

Monitoring & Operations

• You will implement alerting and performance monitoring
• You will own backup and recovery strategy (Azure Backup, Site Recovery)
• You will participate in incident response and root cause analysis — and personally drive remediation
• You will document architecture and operational runbooks

What You’ll Accomplish in Your First Six Months

This role is about maturing and optimizing an already functional Azure environment into a fully standardized, enterprise-ready platform — while keeping delivery moving at full speed.

Months 0–2: Understand and Stabilize

• Build a deep understanding of the current Azure architecture, deployment pipelines, networking, and security model.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, standardize, and reduce operational risk.
• Ensure CI/CD pipelines continue operating smoothly and reliably.
• Begin developing clear, structured documentation of infrastructure, dependencies, and operational workflows.
• Establish a practical, prioritized roadmap for platform improvements aligned to business objectives.

Months 2–4: Standardize and Strengthen

• Introduce infrastructure-as-code and repeatable deployment patterns where needed to increase consistency and reliability.
• Refine identity, access controls, and network architecture to align with enterprise-grade best practices.
• Implement consistent naming, tagging, and environment standards.
• Partner with the Network Operations Center to onboard systems into a 24×7 monitoring and alerting framework.
• Enhance logging, observability, and operational visibility across the environment.

Months 4–6: Scale with Confidence

• Improve resiliency through well-defined backup, disaster recovery, and restoration testing.
• Increase deployment reliability with improved rollback strategies and change discipline.
• Reduce technical debt while preserving development velocity.
• Deliver a well-documented, supportable, and scalable Azure platform designed for long-term growth.

By the six-month mark, the environment will be more consistent, observable, resilient, and operationally mature — positioned to support both current demands and future expansion.

Qualifications

What We Are Looking For

Every item below requires demonstrated, hands-on experience. We are evaluating what you have personally built and operated, not what your team delivered while you were on it.

• An Active Secret Clearance at a minimum 
• 5+ years of systems engineering experience with direct, hands-on technical execution — not project management, not oversight
• 3+ years building and operating Microsoft Azure infrastructure in production environments — you must be able to demonstrate personal technical contributions, not team-level accomplishments
• Proven hands-on experience with Azure networking — you have personally deployed and troubleshot VNets, NSGs, peering, private endpoints, and hybrid connectivity (VPN or ExpressRoute)
• Direct implementation experience with Azure AD / Entra ID — you have personally configured Conditional Access policies, RBAC assignments, and enterprise identity integrations
• Working Infrastructure as Code practice — you maintain and deploy Terraform (preferred), ARM/Bicep, or equivalent in real environments, not just lab or training contexts
• Strong PowerShell scripting ability demonstrated in production automation — not just basic cmdlet usage
• Experience as a primary engineer responsible for production Azure workloads — including incident response, root cause analysis, and remediation you personally executed

Nice to haves:

• Azure certifications such as AZ 104 or AZ 305
• Experience in regulated or Department of Defense environments
• Azure Kubernetes Service experience
• Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions pipeline experience
• Microsoft Defender suite experience
• Zero trust architecture implementation

What Success Looks Like

• Infrastructure is automated, secure, and well documented
• Deployments are repeatable and reliable
• Incidents decrease because root causes are eliminated
• Systems scale cleanly and predictably
• Engineering decisions balance technical rigor and business impact

The type of people who thrive on our team have the following qualities:

• Strong troubleshooting mindset — you dig until you find root cause, not just symptoms
• Clear communicator — you can explain complex technical decisions in writing and in person
• Independent and collaborative — you can drive work on your own and integrate with cross-functional teams
• Ownership mentality — you build it, you run it, you fix it
• Disciplined operator — you take change management and documentation seriously

Additional Information

Why You’ll Love Working Here:

• Impactful Work: Contribute to projects that drive business success and innovation.
• Collaborative Culture: Join a team that values teamwork, innovation, and shared success.
• Career Growth: Access to professional development opportunities, mentorship, and clear advancement paths.

Here are some Perks!

• Flexible PTO + holidays
• Generous 401k match benefit up to 10%, with an automatic 3% safe harbor contribution and additional matching based on employee contributions.
• Medical (HSA & PPO Plans Available), dental, vision, disability, and life insurance
• Employer Contribution to Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Learning & Development opportunities
• Professional coaching services
• Free Personal Privacy Protection Services
• Get the technology you want to do your job
• We have free daily snacks & drinks

Physical Requirements:

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position 50% of the time. The person in this position needs to occasionally move about inside the office 
• Constantly work with computers and other information technology equipment
• The ability to communicate information and ideas in a classroom style format, may stand at a podium for long periods of time

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.

If you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a position with Ridgeline International through its online applicant system, please contact Ridgeline's Talent Management Department at (703) 544-2424 or contact us through e-mail at [email protected]