Azure Cloud Architect

Job Title: Azure Cloud Architect
Engagement type: 6 Month Contract-to-hire
Hybrid: 3 days onsite (Dallas, TX), 2 days remote


We are seeking a Senior Azure Cloud Architect / Engineer to take ownership of our Azure cloud platform and lead its evolution as part of a broader IT transformation. This is a hands-on, high-impact role responsible for designing, building, securing, and scaling the cloud environment that supports a global, multi-site organization. This is a net-new role. There is no incumbent and no managed service provider currently owning the cloud platform, so the right person will establish architecture, governance, and operational structure where little exists today. They will serve as the primary Azure authority within the organization, owning cloud architecture, platform operations, and long-term strategy. They will partner with the incoming Network Engineer / Architect on hybrid connectivity and work closely with the systems and service desk teams. The organization was recently acquired by a private equity firm with a mandate to grow the business roughly 5x over the next three to five years. Getting the cloud platform right is central to that plan, since it has to support fast, safe, and secure growth along with ongoing cost and performance optimization. This is a chance to build and scale an environment rather than maintain an existing one.


Environment at a glance: a global organization across 6 sites, including 2 overseas call centers, supporting roughly 900 to 1,100 users. The Azure estate has grown organically on a "make it work" basis, without a formal landing zone, consistent governance, or infrastructure-as-code practices. The goal now is to bring it to a documented, secure, well-governed, and scalable state that can support aggressive growth.



Key Responsibilities
Architecture & Design
• Own end-to-end Azure architecture, including landing zone design, management group and subscription structure, and platform standards.
• Design scalable, secure, and resilient cloud solutions for a global, multi-site organization.
• Develop and maintain cloud reference architectures, standards, diagrams, and documentation from the ground up.
• Lead cloud initiatives as part of ongoing infrastructure modernization and transformation.


Platform & Operations
• Own the health, reliability, and performance of the Azure platform across compute, storage, and PaaS services.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for cloud-related issues and incidents.
• Establish monitoring, alerting, and operational processes as the environment matures.
• Manage capacity, performance, and resilience across the estate.


Infrastructure as Code & Automation
• Build and maintain infrastructure as code using Terraform and/or Bicep for repeatable, version-controlled deployments.
• Establish CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure and supporting workloads.
• Reduce manual processes and improve repeatability where it adds value.


Security, Identity & Governance
• Design and manage Azure identity and access through Entra ID, including RBAC, conditional access, and privileged access.
• Implement cloud security controls and guardrails, including Azure Policy and baseline configurations.
• Support compliance efforts aligned to the organization's regulatory requirements.


Cost & Optimization
• Establish cost visibility and governance, and right-size and optimize spend across the estate.
• Balance performance, security, and cost as the platform scales.


Collaboration
• Partner with the Network Engineer / Architect on hybrid connectivity, and with Systems Administrators and Service Desk teams.
• Act as a technical advisor to IT leadership and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Communicate cloud design decisions and tradeoffs clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.


What Success Looks Like
• A documented, well-governed Azure landing zone and architecture where none existed before.
• Repeatable, infrastructure-as-code provisioning that replaces manual builds.
• A strong identity, security, and policy posture aligned to compliance needs.
• Clear visibility into cloud spend, with cost kept under control as usage grows.
• A cloud platform that scales to support company growth and global operations.

Must-Have Qualifications
These are the hard screens. Candidates without them should not be submitted:
• 7+ years in cloud engineering and architecture roles, with deep, recent Azure focus.
• Azure architecture and landing zone design, including management groups, subscriptions, and governance.
• Infrastructure as code with Terraform and/or Bicep, used in production for real deployments.
• Azure security and identity with Entra ID, including RBAC, conditional access, and Azure Policy.
• Proven ability to design, build, and operate cloud environments end-to-end.
• Demonstrated ownership of both strategy and execution.
• Strong troubleshooting skills in complex cloud and hybrid environments.

Strong Pluses
Not required to be submitted, but these meaningfully strengthen a candidate:
• Experience in HIPAA / HITRUST or comparable regulated, compliance-driven environments.
• Container platforms and orchestration, including AKS and Kubernetes.
• CI/CD tooling such as Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions.
• Cloud cost management and FinOps practices.
• Depth in Azure data and PaaS services.
• Certifications such as Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305), Azure Administrator, or Azure DevOps Engineer Expert.