Lead DevOps Engineer
Lead DevOps Engineer (12-Month FTC) – Hybrid (UK)
Location: Hybrid – 1 day per week onsite in Manchester, remainder remote
Contract Type: 12-Month Fixed Term Contract (FTC) – with potential to extend
Clearance Requirement: Must be BPSS eligible
Amber Labs is seeking an experienced Lead DevOps Engineer with strong Azure cloud expertise to join our growing team on a 12-month Fixed Term Contract, with the potential for extension. This role follows a hybrid working model, requiring one day per week onsite in Manchester, with the remaining time working remotely.
In this role, you will lead the design, automation, and operation of secure, scalable Azure-based infrastructure supporting mission-critical systems for our government and public-sector clients. You will also take ownership of leading, mentoring, and developing a DevOps team, working closely with delivery and stakeholder teams.
Key Responsibilities
- Design, build, and maintain scalable, resilient, and secure cloud infrastructure on Microsoft Azure
- Lead infrastructure automation using Infrastructure as Code (Terraform and/or Bicep)
- Deploy and manage containerised workloads using Docker and Kubernetes (AKS)
- Design and maintain robust CI/CD pipelines to enable rapid and reliable delivery
- Lead and manage a DevOps team, providing technical direction, mentoring, and support
- Collaborate closely with development, security, and operations teams to ensure high availability, performance, and compliance
- Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimise live production environments
- Ensure platforms meet security, governance, and compliance requirements, particularly for UK government environments
- Drive continuous improvement across DevOps processes, tooling, and cloud architecture
- Champion DevOps, SRE, and cloud best practices across delivery teams
- Support knowledge sharing and capability building across the wider engineering community
Essential Skills & Experience
- Must be BPSS eligible
- Proven experience as a Lead DevOps Engineer, including direct responsibility for leading and mentoring a DevOps team
- Demonstrable experience delivering DevOps solutions on UK government or public sector projects
- Strong hands-on experience with Microsoft Azure
- Expertise in Terraform (and/or Bicep) for Infrastructure as Code
- Solid experience with Kubernetes, ideally Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
- Strong containerisation experience using Docker
- Proven experience building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines (e.g. Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins)
- Experience with monitoring and logging tools (e.g. Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK)
- Strong understanding of cloud security, DevSecOps practices, and compliance controls
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to engage effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Ability and willingness to attend the Manchester office one day per week
Why Join Amber Labs?
- Be part of a fast-growing consultancy where innovation and personal development are key priorities
- Private Medical Insurance (Aviva)
- Company Pension Plan (Nest)
- 25 days annual leave + UK bank holidays
- Access to Perkbox – global employee rewards and wellbeing platform
- Generous employee referral scheme
- Collaborative, inclusive work environment that encourages experimentation and bold ideas
- Choose your preferred device – Mac or PC
Diversity & Inclusion at Amber Labs
At Amber Labs, we believe diversity drives innovation and creativity. We are committed to fostering a workplace where everyone feels welcomed and valued.
We:
- Embrace a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives
- Actively promote equality and inclusion across all levels
- Create a respectful workplace free from discrimination, bullying, and harassment
Important Information
We are unable to consider candidates who require sponsorship or hold a visa of any type.