Director of Platform Engineering

Who we are :

Collaboration.Ai is a Minneapolis-Saint Paul based software and services company with employees and strategic partners around the globe.

Using our software platforms, design thinking, and artificial intelligence, we open up opportunities for clients in public, private, and nonprofit sectors to forge valuable connections, create meaningful engagement, and develop groundbreaking ideas.

To learn more about us, visit collaboration.ai.

NetworkOS : evaluate and expand your network

CrowdVector : enable innovation, from ideation to production

TeamCreator : make the most of teamwork opportunities

Who we’re hiring :

We are seeking a talented and motivated Director of Platform Engineering to lead the development and management of our platform infrastructure, ensuring scalability, reliability, and efficiency across multi-cloud and on-prem environments.

This role requires a strategic leader who can create robust platform services that support our engineering teams, optimize cloud and infrastructure resources, and ensure alignment with regulatory compliance requirements.

The Director of Platform Engineering will be responsible for both technical leadership and the growth and mentorship of the platform engineering team.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join a fast-growing, early-stage startup with clients in both the public and private sectors.

We value innovative thinking and are committed to making a positive impact through our products. Flexibility and adaptability are crucial as we navigate rapid growth and evolving challenges.

Key Responsibilities :

Technical Leadership & Strategy :

• Define and execute the platform engineering strategy to support current and future product initiatives, ensuring that all systems are designed for scalability, resilience, and security.
• Provide leadership across platform and engineering teams, establishing clear goals and fostering collaboration to meet business objectives.
• Partner with cross-functional leaders to align platform initiatives with product and customer requirements, especially within highly regulated and government-compliant environments.

Multi-Cloud & On-Prem Infrastructure :

• Architect, manage, and optimize infrastructure spanning AWS, Azure, GCP, and on-prem environments, with a focus on high availability, security, and flexibility.
• Develop processes for multi-cloud cost management and establish best practices to optimize cloud expenses while ensuring consistent service delivery.

Security, Compliance, & DevSecOps Integration :

• Ensure all platform services meet regulatory standards, particularly federal government compliance, while embedding security within the DevOps and platform lifecycle.
• Implement DevSecOps best practices to secure CI / CD pipelines, enforce platform security standards, and maintain compliance across all environments.
• Leverage AI services and frameworks to drive automation, analytics, and innovative platform solutions that align with the company’s strategic goals.
• Build scalable AI-driven features within platform services to support product innovation and drive user engagement.

Platform Service Development & Automation :

• Develop and maintain core platform services and foundational components, implementing self-service capabilities and ensuring efficient, secure workflows for engineering teams.
• Use containerization and orchestration tools to ensure platform services are robust, scalable, and easily managed.

Quality Assurance (QA) Automation :

• Define and lead QA automation strategies, focusing on the selection and implementation of tools, processes, and best practices to enhance automated test coverage across all platform services.
• Collaborate with QA and engineering teams to embed automation within the CI / CD pipeline, ensuring high-quality, stable deployments.
• Develop standards and practices for automated testing to support robust testing frameworks that reduce manual QA dependencies and expedite the release cycle.

Cost Management & Resource Optimization :

• Oversee infrastructure and platform costs, applying best practices in cloud financial management to control expenses while scaling efficiently.
• Implement and utilize monitoring, logging, and observability tools for proactive resource management and optimal platform performance.

Team Building & Management :

• Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing platform engineering team, promoting continuous learning, innovation, and a collaborative culture.
• Set clear performance expectations and support professional growth within the team, fostering a high-trust environment.

Minimum Qualifications :

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years in platform engineering, DevOps, or similar roles, with at least 5 years in a leadership position.
• Demonstrated expertise managing multi-cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP) and on-prem environments with a deep understanding of hybrid-cloud architectures.
• Strong foundation in DevSecOps, with experience embedding security protocols in platform and infrastructure design.
• Knowledge of federal government regulations, compliance requirements, and security best practices.
• Familiarity with AI-driven platforms, tools, and services, with practical experience in implementing AI solutions.
• Open to occasional travel to support company initiatives and business development opportunities.

Preferred Qualifications :

• Experience in a B2B SaaS or high-growth startup environment.
• Proficiency with infrastructure-as-code tools, such as Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation.
• Familiarity with service mesh frameworks like Istio or Linkerd for managing microservices and ensuring secure, reliable inter-service communication.
• Expertise in data engineering platforms for building high-throughput data streaming services.
• Advanced certifications in platform-related services (e.g., AWS Certified DevOps Engineer, Google Professional Cloud DevOps Engineer, Azure DevOps Expert).
• Proven ability to communicate technical concepts effectively to stakeholders at all levels, including clients and government agencies.

What we offer :

• Exciting opportunity to be an early-stage builder
• Work with amazing colleagues and clients
• Earn a competitive salary and 401K, plus medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurance
• Enjoy a flexible schedule and no meeting Fridays

J-18808-Ljbffr