Job Information
Starbucks engineer lead, Cloud Foundation Services Platform (Kubernetes)- ST; Seattle WA in Seattle, Washington
At Starbucks, our mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time. Starbucks Technologists work to achieve this mission through the use of cutting-edge technology delivered to our partners, customers, stores, roasters, and global communities.
This job contributes to Starbucks success by delivering high-quality, reliable, and stable technologies and security capabilities in support of the Starbucks Engineering Platform. This position is accountable for the installation, configuration, monitoring, analysis, maintenance, and technical support of the platform.
We are seeking a Cloud Engineer – Lead with deep expertise in Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) and cloud-native platform engineering to design, build, and operate a secure, scalable, and cost-efficient Kubernetes-based platform on Microsoft Azure. This role will serve as a hands-on technical leader responsible for enabling development teams through reliable platforms, automation, and modern DevOps and GitOps practices.
The ideal candidate is an AKS and Kubernetes expert with strong working knowledge of Azure PaaS services, service mesh technologies, and continuous delivery systems, and who brings a strong focus on security, reliability, and cost optimization.
Key Responsibilities
Technical Leadership & Collaboration
Communicate complex platform and Kubernetes architecture decisions clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
Establish strong cross-functional partnerships with application, security, networking, and business teams
Act as a technical leader and mentor for Kubernetes, AKS, and Azure platform engineering best practices
Partner with technology vendors and open-source communities to deliver against business and platform objectives
AKS & Platform Engineering
Design, implement, and operate Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) platforms at scale
Build and maintain a secure, multi-tenant Kubernetes platform with a focus on:
Reliability, performance, and scalability
Environment consistency across dev, test, and productionLeverage Azure-native services and PaaS offerings to support application and platform needs
Own Kubernetes cluster lifecycle management, upgrades, capacity planning, and operational health
Kubernetes Ecosystem & Service Mesh
Design and operate Kubernetes-native solutions using:
Argo CD / Argo Workflows for GitOps and continuous delivery
Istio (or similar service mesh) for traffic management, security, and observability
Implement best practices around ingress, egress, service discovery, and policy enforcement
Enable secure communication, workload identity, and secrets management across the platform
Automation, Infrastructure as Code & GitOps
Drive an automation-first approach using:
Terraform, Azure Bicep, and Crossplane for infrastructure and platform provisioning
Python for scripting, tooling, and automation
Enable CI/CD and GitOps workflows using Azure DevOps, Git-based pipelines, and modern delivery patterns
Engineer standardized, repeatable build and release processes for platform and application teams
Security, Compliance & Cost Optimization
Design platforms that are secure by default, following Zero Trust and least-privilege principles
Ensure all implementations align with Information Security policies and compliance requirements (e.g., PCI)
Continuously evaluate and optimize platform cost using cloud-native tooling and usage analysis
Implement system configurations and baselines that support secure software development and operational best practices
Observability & Operations
Implement deep telemetry, logging, and monitoring across Kubernetes and Azure PaaS platforms
Deploy and maintain observability solutions to support performance, reliability, and troubleshooting
Ensure high availability and operational continuity for mission-critical services
Support and operate 24x7 production environments, enabling automated recovery wherever possible
Basic Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent professional experience)
8–10 years of professional industry experience in cloud, platform, or software engineering
2+ years of experience leading teams or serving as a technical lead for groups of four or more engineers
Required Skills & Experience
Cloud & Platform Expertise
Strong hands-on experience with Microsoft Azure (mandatory)
Strong working experience with Amazon Web Services (AWS) (Good to have)
Exposure to Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and/or Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is a plus
Deep hands-on experience with Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) and Kubernetes platform operations
Kubernetes & Cloud-Native Technologies
Expert-level Kubernetes knowledge, including:
Cluster architecture, scheduling, scaling, and upgrades
Ingress/egress, service discovery, and workload isolation
Experience with service mesh technologies such as Istio
Strong experience with Argo CD / GitOps-based delivery models
Familiarity with Azure PaaS services (e.g., storage, messaging, identity, secrets)
Automation & DevOps
Strong hands-on experience with:
Terraform, Azure Bicep, and Crossplane
Python for automation and tooling
CI/CD experience using Azure DevOps, GitOps workflows, and modern DevOps tools
Strong understanding of DevOps and Agile principles
Observability & Reliability
Experience implementing application and infrastructure logging and monitoring solutions
Proven experience operating and supporting high-scale, highly available platforms
Ability to troubleshoot complex distributed systems and performance issues
Preferred Qualifications
8+ years of experience in systems engineering, platform engineering, or site reliability engineering
Experience with large-scale distributed systems and cloud-native architectures
Proven ability to debug, optimize, and automate complex systems
Strong understanding of security best practices in Kubernetes and cloud platforms
Knowledge of regulatory requirements such as SOX, PCI, HIPAA, and data protection standards
Ability to translate technical insights into actionable business and platform recommendations
As a Starbucks partner, you (and your family) will have access to medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, and other voluntary insurance benefits. Partners have access to short-term and long-term disability, paid parental leave, family expansion reimbursement, paid vacation from date of hire*, sick time (accrued at 1 hour for every 25 hours worked), eight paid holidays, and two personal days per year. Starbucks also offers eligible partners participation in a 401(k) retirement plan with employer match, a discounted company stock program (S.I.P.), Starbucks equity program (Bean Stock), incentivized emergency savings, and financial well-being tools. Additionally, Starbucks offers 100% upfront tuition coverage for a first-time bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program via the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, student loan management resources, and access to other educational opportunities. You will also have access to backup care and DACA reimbursement. Starbucks will comply with any applicable state and local laws regarding employee leave benefits, including, but not limited to providing time off pursuant to the Colorado Healthy Families and Workplaces Act, and in accordance with its plans and policies. This list is subject to change depending on collective bargaining in locations where partners have a certified bargaining representative. For additional information regarding partner perks and more detailed information about benefits, go to starbucksbenefits.com (file:///C:/Users/rofunk/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/EHRXPAYM/starbucksbenefits.com) .
*If you are working in CA, CO, IL, LA, ME, MA, NE, ND or RI, you will accrue vacation up to a maximum of 120 hours (190 in CA) for roles below director and 200 hours (316 in CA) for roles at director or above. For roles in other states, you will be granted vacation time starting at 120 hours annually for roles below director and 200 hours annually for roles director and above.
The actual base pay offered to the successful candidate will be based on multiple factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge/skills, experience, geographical location, and internal equity. At Starbucks, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the high end of the range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.
If you live in the greater Seattle area, we offer a flexible workplace that allows for hybrid work. Partners can work remotely up to one day per week.
Join us and inspire with every cup. Apply today!
Starbucks Coffee Company is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.Qualified applicants with criminal histories will be considered for employment in a manner consistent with all federal, state and local ordinances.Starbucks Coffee Company is committed to offering reasonable accommodations to job applicants with disabilities. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us at applicantaccommodation@starbucks.com or 1(888) 611-2258.