Principal Platform Engineer

Principal Platform Engineer Location: United States (Remote) – must be located within the United States About This Opportunity Purple Squirrel Enterprises has been supporting startups and global firms through growth, change, and expansion for 19+ years. We provide flexible HR and recruiting solutions that allow leaders to focus on strategy while we handle people operations — and this search is no exception. We are exclusively engaged by a high-growth health technology company to help them identify and hire exceptional engineering talent for this role. We are embedded directly with their leadership team, have deep knowledge of the company, the culture, and what it takes to succeed here — and we will be your dedicated recruiting partner from first conversation through offer. This is not a blind submission. When you apply, you are working with a team that knows this opportunity inside and out and will advocate for you every step of the way. 💜 If this opportunity resonates with you, we encourage you to apply. We will be in touch promptly. Applications submitted directly to our client will be redirected back to Purple Squirrel Enterprises. To be considered for this role, all candidates must apply through this posting. About Our Client Our client is a mission-driven health technology company on a high-growth trajectory. They build integrated software and technology solutions that help care organizations deliver safer, more consistent, and more compliant services to the populations they serve. Their work sits at the intersection of technology, operations, and human care — and the problems they are solving have real consequences for real people. They serve a growing network of specialized care providers across the United States, helping organizations replace fragmented, manual workflows with technology-guided processes that reduce errors, improve compliance, and give care teams greater confidence in their day-to-day work. This is a remote-first, early-stage company with a lean, high-performing engineering team. They move fast, hold themselves to high standards, and are deeply committed to the mission that drives their work. If you are looking for a role where your contributions have direct, measurable impact — and where the work actually matters — this is worth your attention. 💜 This company was built around a cause that is both personal and urgent. That authenticity shows in how they operate, who they hire, and what they build. About the Role Our client is seeking a Principal Platform Engineer to take primary ownership of their existing platform infrastructure. Today, engineering leadership manages cloud infrastructure, DevOps, and compliance alongside other responsibilities. You will be the dedicated technical lead for this domain — the person who matures their practices, optimizes their workflows, and scales their infrastructure as the company grows. This is not a "build it from zero" role. The foundation exists. What they need is an experienced engineer who can quickly assess the environment, identify the highest-leverage opportunities for improvement, and drive solutions with a high degree of agency — without waiting to be directed. You will own their cloud infrastructure footprint end-to-end: a multi-account cloud organization setup, their Infrastructure-as-Code repository, CI/CD pipelines, containerization and orchestration strategy, and developer environment tooling. You will also be the primary technical lead for elevating their security and compliance posture — including HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II, and likely upcoming work toward StateRAMP or FedRAMP. If you thrive in high-growth, mission-driven environments and are energized by complex infrastructure challenges where reliability, security, and usability truly matter — this role is for you. What You'll Do Own and evolve the cloud infrastructure environment across a multi-account organization structure, including account boundaries, governance policies, cross-account access management, and cost and security governance Extend and maintain the Infrastructure-as-Code repository, treating infrastructure changes with the same rigor as application code — reviewed, tested, and versioned Own and improve CI/CD pipelines , pushing toward faster, safer, and more automated deployments across all applications Own the containerization strategy and container orchestration platform — including image standards, dependency security, and day-to-day orchestration operations Maintain and improve the developer environment so engineers get consistent, reproducible local environments Lead the technical work to elevate compliance and security posture — maintaining and evolving controls for HIPAA and SOC 2 Type II, and leading technical readiness for StateRAMP/FedRAMP Lead infrastructure-focused security work : secrets management, network security, vulnerability management, and incident response readiness Partner with engineering leadership to evolve platform strategy and formalize infrastructure practices as the company scales Proactively identify risk across cost, security, reliability, and audit readiness — and drive fixes to completion without being asked Elevate engineering culture by setting high standards, mentoring teammates, and simplifying processes that help the team move faster Ensure reliability and performance of critical systems by taking ownership of production issues and implementing sustainable fixes What We're Looking For Required 7+ years of experience owning production cloud infrastructure, including direct, hands-on experience with multi-account cloud organization structures, governance policies, and cross-account access management Infrastructure as Code — deep hands-on experience with AWS CDK, Terraform, Pulumi, or comparable tooling; you treat infrastructure as software — code reviewed, tested, and version controlled CI/CD — proven experience designing, operating, and improving CI/CD pipelines in a production environment Containerization & Orchestration — strong production experience with containers and a container orchestration platform (ECS, EKS, or Kubernetes) Security & Compliance — direct experience operating infrastructure under HIPAA and/or SOC 2 Type II in a production environment Autonomy — a track record of owning ambiguous, high-stakes infrastructure and security problems end-to-end with minimal supervision in fast-paced startup environments Communication — excellent written and verbal skills; in a remote-first environment, your ability to document infrastructure decisions and compliance controls clearly enough for both engineers and auditors is critical Technical Leverage — demonstrated ability to build tools or infrastructure patterns that amplify the productivity of the broader engineering team U.S. work authorization — our client is not able to provide visa sponsorship at this time Nice to Have AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional AWS Certified Security – Specialty AWS Certified Generative AI Developer – Professional Experience in healthcare, fintech, or another highly regulated industry Experience with StateRAMP or FedRAMP Familiarity with full-stack web and mobile development frameworks (useful for cross-team collaboration) Experience with IoT or hardware-connected systems What Success Looks Like Timeframe Focus What You Will Have Accomplished First 30 Days Orient · Audit · Contribute • Completed a thorough audit of the current infrastructure and identified the top areas of technical debt and compliance risk • Shipped your first impactful changes to production • Established strong working relationships with the engineering team and developed a clear understanding of how the platform supports the product • Actively participating in engineering discussions and asking the right questions First 60 Days Own · Drive · Improve • Taken primary ownership of the cloud infrastructure environment • Proactively driving the infrastructure roadmap forward — implementing improvements without waiting to be directed • Identified and begun addressing at least one meaningful area of compliance or security risk • Operating with meaningful autonomy and earning the team's trust First 90 Days Lead · Architect · Influence • Operating with full autonomy as the technical authority for the platform • Proposed and begun implementing a roadmap for at least one major initiative without needing guidance on implementation details • Actively contributing to engineering culture — through documentation, mentorship, or process improvements • Leadership sees you as the person who owns this domain — not just someone who executes tasks Compensation & Benefits Our client offers a competitive, comprehensive package designed to support your well-being and long-term growth: Competitive base compensation: Target Base salary range of $160 - $200K base (commensurate with experience) with a benefits package built to support your whole life. Final offer will reflect the depth and relevance of your background. 100% company-paid medical coverage (base plan) via a leading national carrier Dental & vision coverage available 401(k) retirement plan Company-paid life, AD&D, short-term disability, and long-term disability insurance Lifestyle Spending Account — monthly stipend for wellness, personal use, and company swag Flexible PTO + company holidays Fully remote work environment 💜 Mission-driven work with real, measurable impact on the populations our client serves The Interview Process Our client respects your time and moves quickly. The process is designed to be efficient, transparent, and conversational — not a gauntlet. As your recruiting partner, Purple Squirrel Enterprises will prepare you fully for every stage. Stage Format Duration 1. Recruiter Screen (with PSE) Logistics, compensation alignment, role fit, and mission overview 30 min 2. Infrastructure & Cloud Deep Dive A technical conversation with a senior engineering leader covering cloud architecture, security, governance, compliance, and Infrastructure as Code 60 min 3. DevOps & Platform Deep Dive A focused technical session covering containerization, orchestration, CI/CD, database operations, observability, and deployment strategies 60 min 4. Product & Leadership Alignment A conversation with a senior executive covering AI enablement, engineering vision, long-term platform strategy, and mission alignment 60 min Our client makes decisions fast. Purple Squirrel Enterprises will be with you every step of the way. Why This Role — And Why Now Real problems, real stakes — your work will directly support organizations delivering care to vulnerable populations High-growth trajectory — this company is scaling rapidly, with significant expansion already underway True platform ownership — this is not a support role; you will be the technical authority for the entire infrastructure domain High-trust, collaborative culture — small team, strong relationships, fast decisions, and leadership that is accessible and engaged Compliance at the frontier — HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II, and a path toward FedRAMP; this is serious, high-stakes compliance work with real career value Career growth — high visibility with leadership and a real opportunity to grow as the company scales 💜 Authentic mission — this company was built around a cause that matters, and that authenticity permeates everything they do Working With Purple Squirrel Enterprises We are exclusively engaged by this client — meaning we are not one of many agencies submitting resumes. We are their dedicated recruiting partner, embedded in their process, and we know this role inside and out. Here is what that means for you as a candidate: You will have a dedicated PSE point of contact throughout the entire process We will advocate for you with the hiring team to make sure the role is mutually beneficial We will prepare you for each interview stage so you can put your best foot forward We will provide honest, timely feedback at every step We will support you through offer negotiation to ensure the outcome is right for you and the company We know how to navigate complex hiring processes and get great candidates across the finish line Our client is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive team. They welcome applicants of all backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.