Kubernetes Platform Engineer

About the Role
We are seeking an experienced Senior Kubernetes Platform Engineer to join our team in the UAE. In this role, you will be responsible for building, operating, and troubleshooting enterprise Kubernetes platforms, including GPU-enabled clusters tailored for AI/ML workloads. This position requires a strong foundation in Kubernetes operations, troubleshooting skills, and familiarity with several key technologies.

What You'll Do
Key Responsibilities
You will have the unique opportunity to apply and enhance your skills within a diverse and geographically distributed technology team. Your key duties will include:

• Install, configure, and operate production Kubernetes clusters, primarily RKE2, in on-premise, air-gapped, and hybrid environments.
• Set up and manage SUSE Rancher Manager in high availability, handling tasks such as installation, upgrades, backup and restore, authentication and role-based access control (RBAC), and provisioning or importing downstream clusters.
• Automate infrastructure provisioning and configuration through Infrastructure as Code (Terraform and Ansible).
• Diagnose platform issues comprehensively, including nodes, pods, CNI networking, DNS, ingress, storage, certificates, etcd, and the control plane, and ensure closure of root-cause analysis.
• Deploy and maintain the NVIDIA GPU Operator on RKE2, including driver and container toolkit configurations for RKE2's embedded containerd, device plugin, GPU Feature Discovery, and DCGM monitoring.
• Configure GPU sharing (MIG and time-slicing) and support the scheduling and operation of AI/ML workloads on GPU nodes.
• Construct and maintain CI/CD pipelines (e.g., GitLab CI, Jenkins, GitHub Actions) for application and platform delivery.
• Implement GitOps with Rancher Fleet, Argo CD, or Flux, ensuring Git functions as the sole source of truth for cluster configuration and deployments.
• Package and manage workloads using Helm and Kustomize.
• Deploy and manage Istio for traffic management, ingress and egress gateways, mTLS and authorization policies, as well as troubleshooting within the service mesh.
• Operate SUSE Virtualization (Harvester) for running VM workloads alongside containers and hosting RKE2 guest clusters.
• Implement monitoring, logging, and alerting with Prometheus, Grafana, and Rancher Monitoring and Logging.
• Strengthen clusters following CIS benchmarks, including the RKE2 CIS profile, utilizing Pod Security Admission, network policies, and secrets management.
• Plan and execute upgrades for Kubernetes, RKE2, and Rancher with minimal downtime.
• Design and test backup and disaster recovery plans, including etcd snapshots, Rancher backups, and workload backups (e.g., Velero).
• Create and maintain runbooks, playbooks, and platform documentation to support operational excellence.
• Conduct knowledge transfer and training sessions for both customers and internal teams.
• Engage closely with customer stakeholders on-site to ensure alignment and satisfaction.

What You Have
Qualifications & Skills
Our ideal candidate will meet the following requirements:

• 5+ years of hands-on IT experience, with at least 3 years administering Kubernetes in production environments.
• Strong troubleshooting and investigative skills in Kubernetes, including:
  • Systematic debugging techniques using kubectl, events, logs, crictl, and node-level tools.
  • Diagnosing issues involving networking, DNS, storage, scheduling, certificates, and the control plane.
  • Ability to conduct root-cause analysis and provide clear incident documentation.
• Experience with Rancher Manager setup and day-2 operations.
• Practical experience deploying and managing the NVIDIA GPU Operator, preferably on RKE2.
• Proven automation skills with CI/CD and GitOps technologies, including:
  • Familiarity with GitLab CI, Jenkins, or GitHub Actions.
  • Knowledge of Fleet, Argo CD, or Flux.
  • Proficiency in Helm and Kustomize for workload management.
• Experience working with Istio service mesh.
• Proficiency in Infrastructure as Code tools: Terraform and Ansible.
• Strong Linux administration skills (SLES / SLE Micro, RHEL, or Ubuntu) and networking fundamentals (TCP/IP, DNS, load balancing, TLS).
• Familiarity with monitoring and observability tools such as Prometheus, Grafana, and centralized logging solutions.
• Proficient in Bash scripting; familiarity with Python or Go is a plus.
• A Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Solid experience in on-premise enterprise environments, including air-gapped setups.
• Ability to work independently in customer-facing roles.
• Proficient English language skills are a must; Arabic language skills are a strong advantage.

Very Strong Advantage:

• Hands-on production experience with RKE2, Rancher, and SUSE Virtualization. Candidates without this must demonstrate an understanding of the following:
  • RKE2: Understanding of its components, security focus, configuration, and installation processes.
  • Rancher: Knowledge of multi-cluster management, and operation of the Rancher Manager and downstream clusters.
  • SUSE Virtualization (Harvester): Familiarity with hyperconverged infrastructure and KubeVirt.

Desirable Skills:

• Familiarity with SUSE Security (NeuVector) and SUSE Storage (Longhorn).
• Expertise in container network interfaces (CNI) such as Canal, Calico, or Cilium.
• Experiences with secrets management tools like HashiCorp Vault, Sealed Secrets, or External Secrets Operator.
• Knowledge of private registries and air-gapped image management (e.g., Harbor).
• Familiarity with AI/ML platform tools like Kubeflow, KServe, or Ray.
• Experience with other Kubernetes platforms, including Red Hat OpenShift, EKS, AKS, or GKE.

Preferred Certifications:

• Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
• Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS)
• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)
• SUSE Rancher certification (Administrator or Deployment Specialist)
• Istio Certified Associate (ICA)
• NVIDIA-Certified Associate: AI Infrastructure and Operations

Location
Onsite - UAE

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