Software Engineer, Core Platforms
The Software Engineer, Core Platforms at Confidential Client is responsible for developing and operating Kubernetes-based internal platforms that enhance engineering productivity and system reliability. This role involves building infrastructure-as-code, supporting workflow and automation platforms, managing API gateways and messaging systems, and contributing to cost optimization and incident response efforts. It offers hands-on experience with cutting-edge technologies in autonomous transportation within a collaborative, growth-oriented environment.
About Careertakes
👉 Important disclosure: Careertakes is a third-party recruiting platform supporting this hiring process. If selected, you will be employed directly by our client, Freight and Package Transportation.
Applicants for this role may also receive access to additional matched opportunities through the Careertakes platform.
What You’ll Do
This hands-on platform engineering role focuses on building and operating internal infrastructure and developer-facing tooling that help engineering teams move faster and operate more reliably.
- Contribute to the development and operation of Kubernetes-based platform features (scheduling, autoscaling, internal platform tooling).
- Write and maintain infrastructure-as-code for on-prem, cloud, and Kubernetes environments (e.g., Terraform, Ansible), following team standards and code review processes.
- Build and support workflow platforms that run data pipelines, simulation jobs, ML workloads, and CI/CD.
- Assist in deploying and operating self-hosted LLMs and agentic workflows used for internal automation.
- Support API gateways and messaging/streaming systems (including MQTT), handling configuration, upgrades, and troubleshooting.
- Create dashboards, alerts, and logging integrations to improve platform visibility and incident response.
- Help track infrastructure costs and implement optimizations with guidance from senior engineers.
- Participate in on-call rotations, incident response, and post-incident reviews with mentorship from experienced team members.
- Write documentation and runbooks; help internal users adopt and use platform services.
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field — or equivalent practical experience.
- 0–2 years of experience in software engineering, platform engineering, DevOps, or SRE (internships, co-ops, and substantial personal or open-source projects count).
- Solid programming skills in at least one of: Python, Go, Java, or JavaScript/TypeScript.
- Working knowledge of Linux, networking fundamentals, Git, and containers (Docker).
- Eagerness to learn, take feedback, and own tasks from start to finish.
Preferred Qualifications
- Hands-on exposure to Kubernetes (EKS, GKE, AKS, RKE2/Rancher, or local setups like kind/minikube).
- Experience with AWS, GCP, or Azure from coursework, projects, or work.
- Familiarity with an IaC tool such as Terraform, Pulumi, OpenTofu, or Ansible.
- Exposure to workflow orchestration tools such as Argo Workflows or Airflow.
- Interest or project experience in running LLMs or building agent-based automation.
- Familiarity with messaging/streaming systems (NATS JetStream, Kafka, Pulsar, RabbitMQ) or API gateways (Kong, APISIX).
- Experience using Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, OpenTelemetry, or similar observability tooling.
- Interest in cost-aware engineering and infrastructure efficiency.
Skills & Tools You’ll Use
- Kubernetes, Docker
- Python, Go, Java, or JavaScript/TypeScript
- Terraform, Ansible, Pulumi, or OpenTofu
- AWS / GCP / Azure
- Argo Workflows, Airflow (or other orchestration tools)
- Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, OpenTelemetry
- Kafka, NATS, RabbitMQ, MQTT, API gateways
Working Conditions & Additional Details
- Employment type: Full-time.
- Location: Houston, TX (on-site or hybrid as determined by the client).
- This role involves participation in an on-call rotation and incident response.
- Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. — the client will not sponsor applicants for work authorization for this role.
- This posting is optimized for platform engineering and DevOps candidates with entry-level to early-career experience.
Equal Opportunity & Hiring Transparency
Careertakes and our client are Equal Opportunity Employers committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind. To support a fair and efficient hiring process, AI tools may be used to assist with application review or resume screening. These tools do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.
If you have questions about how your data is used, please contact us directly.
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