DevOps Engineer - Laurel, United States - Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL)

Description

Are you strongly motivated to improve collaboration, automation, and efficiency amongst diverse teams of software engineers, application integration engineers, systems administrators, and IT operations specialists?

Would you like to play a pivotal role in specifying, selecting, operating, and supporting key software systems and tools for emerging DevOps toolchains that span on-premises, hybrid, and cloud-based environments?

If you answered "Yes", and have the applicable knowledge, skills, and experience working with real-world DevOps solutions, we're looking for someone like you to join our growing Engineering Applications Service Team in the Information Technology Services Department (ITSD) at APL. ITSD is ranked as one of Computerworld's Top Places to Work in IT now for 6 years running

As a DevOps Engineer, you will combine your technical, collaborative, automation, and efficiency skills to enhance the capability, agility, reliability, and scalability of our enterprise software delivery system to:

1. Operate and support our tools:

• Provide day-to-day operational technical support and troubleshooting
• Work closely with development, security, operations, and cross-functional teams to solve complex technical challenges
• Field and answer questions
• Facilitate effective communication and knowledge-sharing across the enterprise

• Apply in-depth understanding of the tools' capabilities and accurately configure them to meet project team needs
• Design, implement, and maintain continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines
• Automate testing and deployment processes to ensure rapid and reliable delivery of software
• Integrate security measures into the development and deployment processes (DevSecOps)

• Implement and maintain monitoring solutions to track system performance and detect issues
• Respond to incidents, troubleshoot problems, and work on preventive measures

• Leverage and operate on-premises, hybrid, and cloud environments (Azure, AWS)
• Implement configuration management to ensure consistency across tools and pipelines
• Work with container technologies (e.g., Docker, PodMan) to package applications and ensure consistency across various environments
• Use container orchestration tools (e.g., Kubernetes, OpenShift) to manage and scale containerized applications

• Design systems for scalability and performance
• Identify and address performance bottlenecks through optimization and tuning
• Collaborate on root cause analysis and implement solutions for recurring issues

• Maintain documentation for processes, configurations, and infrastructure to facilitate knowledge transfer and ensure consistency

• Stay updated on industry trends and tools, technologies, and best practices
• Attend conferences, webinars, and training sessions to enhance skills

You'll meet our minimum qualifications for the job if you ...

• Possess a B.S. or higher in Computer Science, Information Systems, Information Technology (IT) or Systems Administration, or a related engineering or technical field
• Have at least 3 years of experience implementing and administering DevSecOps processes (e.g. automated build/deploy, automated testing, code scanning and analysis) and tools (e.g. GitLab, Jira, Azure DevOps, Jenkins, Artifactory, X-Ray/Security Essentials, Fortify, Klocwork, Ansible, Docker, Podman, Kubernetes, OpenShift, Splunk, Nagios, Solarwinds, Grafana, Prometheus, or similar tools)
• Possess strong problem-solving skills and the ability to troubleshoot sophisticated integration challenges
• Are an excellent written and verbal communicator with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively in a team-oriented environment to include collaboration with software engineers, application integration engineers, systems administrators, IT operations specialists, supervisory and program management, and other stakeholders
• Have strong organizational skills with the ability to handle multiple priorities simultaneously
• Some experience in developing software and familiarity with example languages and tools such as C#, .NET, Java, Python, C++, JavaScript, Node, SQL (General), T-SQL (Microsoft), PL/SQL (Oracle), MATLAB, etc.
• Some experience with Linux and/or Windows system administration and shell scripting (bash, Powershell, Python)
• Willing and able to travel occasionally to attend meetings and events with vendors and peer organizations to include select conferences
• Are able to obtain Secret level security clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

You'll go above and beyond our minimum requirements if you ...

• Have more than 5 years of experience in a DevSecOps or Site Reliability Engineer (SRE) role and strong proficiency with GitLab Premium, Artifactory, X-Ray/Security Essentials, Azure DevOps, and/or Jenkins
• Have used multiple DevOps tools, toolchains, and/or software development technology stacks
• Have a solid understanding of code, application, and data security standards and practices
• Have strong knowledge of various integration technologies, middleware, APIs, and software engineering principles
• Familiarity with or use of graph databases and query languages such as Neo4j, GraphQL, and Cypher

Why work at APL?

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) brings world-class expertise to our nations most critical defense, security, space and science challenges. While we are dedicated to solving complex challenges and pioneering new technologies, what makes us truly outstanding is our culture. We offer a vibrant, welcoming atmosphere where you can bring your authentic self to work, continue to grow, and build strong connections with inspiring teammates.

At APL, we celebrate our differences and encourage creativity and bold, new ideas. Our employees enjoy generous benefits, including a robust education assistance program, unparalleled retirement contributions, and a healthy work/life balance. APLs campus is located in the Baltimore-Washington metro area. Learn more about our career opportunities at

APL is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, occupation, marital or familial status, political opinion, personal appearance, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

APL is committed to promoting an innovative environment that embraces diversity, encourages creativity, and supports inclusion of new ideas. In doing so, we are committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals of all abilities, including those with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in any part of the hiring process, please contact Only by ensuring that everyones voice is heard are we empowered to be bold, do great things, and make the world a better place.