Job description

Why UKG: At UKG, the work you do matters. The code you ship, the decisions you make, and the care you show a customer all add up to real impact. Today, tens of millions of workers start and end their days with our workforce operating platform. Helping people get paid, grow in their careers, and shape the future of their industries. That’s what we do. We never stop learning. We never stop challenging the norm. We push for better, and we celebrate the wins along the way. Here, you’ll get flexibility that’s real, benefits you can count on, and a team that succeeds together. Because at UKG, your work matters—and so do you. About the Role UKG is looking for a Sr. Staff Software Engineer to provide strategic technical leadership for our cloud platform and infrastructure automation. This is a senior individual-contributor (IC) track role — you'll drive architecture and technical direction across teams through influence and expertise, not people management. You'll own the architectural design and implementation of scalable, secure, and automated Google Cloud infrastructure, using Terraform and Ansible to establish repeatable deployment processes. You'll lead complex initiatives from strategy through operational readiness, mentor engineers, and partner with cross-functional stakeholders to improve platform reliability, deployment quality, security, and delivery effectiveness across UKG. What You'll Do • Architect Google Cloud infrastructure — design secure, scalable, cost-effective cloud platforms using Terraform, with reusable Ansible playbooks and standardized configuration management. • Own CI/CD and release engineering — design and continuously improve pipelines, automated testing, and deployment workflows (GitHub Actions, Jenkins). • Set the technical bar — establish and enforce best practices for infrastructure as code, observability, security, compliance, and operational readiness across teams. • Lead cross-functional initiatives — run architecture reviews and technical evaluations, and partner with application, security, architecture, database, and operations teams on integration and deployment. • Drive AI-assisted infrastructure — identify and implement secure AI- and agent-driven solutions (including MCP server/tool integrations) that improve automation, incident troubleshooting, and developer productivity; set guidelines for responsible AI use in DevOps workflows. • Support production reliability — participate in production readiness reviews, incident response, root-cause analysis, and disaster recovery planning. • Mentor and multiply — provide technical direction to engineers, promote knowledge sharing, and maintain architecture documentation and operational runbooks. Required Qualifications • 10+ years in software engineering, DevOps, platform engineering, or infrastructure engineering, including leading large-scale cloud initiatives. • Proven track record architecting complex, highly available, secure, cost-effective cloud platforms Google Cloud Platform strongly preferred. • Extensive hands-on Terraform and Ansible experience, including reusable modules, testing, and lifecycle management at scale. • Strong CI/CD experience (GitHub Actions, Jenkins) covering automated testing, release, and deployment workflows. • Solid scripting ability in Python, Bash, PowerShell, or similar. • Working knowledge of networking, IAM, cloud security/hardening, and compliance; experience with Docker and infrastructure testing (e.g., Terratest, policy-as-code). • Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence technical decisions without formal authority. • Experience with production support: incident response, root-cause analysis, disaster recovery, business continuity. • Strong written and verbal communication skills. Preferred Qualifications • Experience developing or integrating MCP servers, agent-driven tooling, or AI-assisted SDLC practices. • Certifications in Terraform and/or Google Cloud Platform (GCP). • Bachelor's or Master’s degree in computer science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent practical experience. Company Overview: UKG is the Workforce Operating Platform that puts workforce understanding to work. With the world's largest collection of workforce insights, and people-first AI, our ability to reveal unseen ways to build trust, amplify productivity, and empower talent, is unmatched. It's this expertise that equips our customers with the intelligence to solve any challenge in any industry — because great organizations know their workforce is their competitive edge. Learn more at ukg.com. Equal Opportunity Employer UKG is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, disability, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, and other legally protected categories. View The EEO Know Your Rights poster UKG participates in E-Verify. View the E-Verify posters here . It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability. Disability Accommodation in the Application and Interview Process For individuals with disabilities that need additional assistance at any point in the application and interview process, please email UKGCareers@ukg.com . The pay range for this position is $$145,600 to $$209,300. The actual base pay offered may vary depending on skills, experience, job-related knowledge and work location. In addition to base pay, employees may be eligible to participate in a performance-based bonus plan and to receive restricted stock unit awards as part of total compensation. Learn more about UKG’s benefits and rewards at ukg.com

Requirements

Must-haves

Architect Google Cloud infrastructure — design secure, scalable, cost-effective cloud platforms using Terraform, with reusable Ansible playbooks and standardized configuration management.
Own CI/CD and release engineering — design and continuously improve pipelines, automated testing, and deployment workflows (GitHub Actions, Jenkins).
Set the technical bar — establish and enforce best practices for infrastructure as code, observability, security, compliance, and operational readiness across teams.
Lead cross-functional initiatives — run architecture reviews and technical evaluations, and partner with application, security, architecture, database, and operations teams on integration and deployment.
Support production reliability — participate in production readiness reviews, incident response, root-cause analysis, and disaster recovery planning.
Mentor and multiply — provide technical direction to engineers, promote knowledge sharing, and maintain architecture documentation and operational runbooks.
10+ years in software engineering, DevOps, platform engineering, or infrastructure engineering, including leading large-scale cloud initiatives.
Extensive hands-on Terraform and Ansible experience, including reusable modules, testing, and lifecycle management at scale.
Strong CI/CD experience (GitHub Actions, Jenkins) covering automated testing, release, and deployment workflows.
Solid scripting ability in Python, Bash, PowerShell, or similar.
Working knowledge of networking, IAM, cloud security/hardening, and compliance; experience with Docker and infrastructure testing (e.g., Terratest, policy-as-code).
Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence technical decisions without formal authority.
Experience with production support: incident response, root-cause analysis, disaster recovery, business continuity.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Nice-to-haves

Proven track record architecting complex, highly available, secure, cost-effective cloud platforms Google Cloud Platform strongly preferred.
Experience developing or integrating MCP servers, agent-driven tooling, or AI-assisted SDLC practices.
Certifications in Terraform and/or Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
Bachelor's or Master’s degree in computer science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Application prep

Use the role’s language and application details while tailoring your materials.

Keywords to mirror

ci/cdaipythondockergcp

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