Principal Cloud Architect

Overview

There’s never been a better time to join Stratus! As the market leader in brand implementation and maintenance, we transform how national brands connect with their customers. From exterior signage & interior branding to site refresh & remodel, from energy & lighting to repair & maintenance solutions, we deliver ideal solutions to meet all our client's branding needs.

From our locations across the country, to our corporate headquarters in Mentor, Ohio, every employee is a stakeholder in Stratus’ success. This environment offers endless career opportunities for individuals with a commitment to customer service, focus on execution and bias for action.

Job Summary:The Principal Cloud Architect is the organization’s senior-most cloud-focused IT leader, responsible for architecting, implementing, governing, and operating the enterprise cloud environment. This role defines the cloud strategy and target-state architecture for the company’s transition from on-premise infrastructure to a pure-cloud model, ensuring scalability, security, reliability, resilience, and cost efficiency. The Principal Cloud Architect leads enterprise cloud transformation initiatives across infrastructure, identity, networking, security, and integrated business systems; serves as the technical authority for Azure architecture and cloud platform standards; and leads a team of Cloud Engineers to deliver modernization, migration, and operational excellence.

Responsibilities

• Define and maintain enterprise cloud architecture standards, reference patterns, landing zone design, and governance frameworks.
• Own the enterprise cloud transformation roadmap, including migration sequencing, target-state architecture, and operating model design.
• Architect, implement, and operate highly available, secure, and resilient Azure solutions aligned with business continuity and disaster recovery requirements.
• Lead a team of Cloud Engineers, setting priorities, reviewing designs, mentoring team members, and ensuring high-quality execution of cloud initiatives.
• Establish Infrastructure as Code (IaC) standards and automation strategies using Terraform, Azure CLI, PowerShell, and related tooling.
• Lead cloud migration and modernization strategies, including assessment, application rationalization, planning, cutover, and architectural design.
• Design and govern secure connectivity, identity, and access models across cloud environments, legacy systems, and integrated platforms.
• Develop and enforce cloud security, compliance, data protection, backup, recovery, and operational resilience standards.
• Provide architectural oversight for enterprise application modernization, platform integration, and cloud adoption initiatives involving multiple interconnected systems.
• Partner with DevOps, infrastructure, security, and application teams to implement CI/CD, automation, observability, and service reliability best practices.
• Drive cloud financial management practices, including cost optimization, budgeting, forecasting, governance, and performance monitoring.
• Lead technical due diligence and post-acquisition integration planning for inherited infrastructure, applications, identity, and data into the enterprise cloud environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related field; equivalent experience considered.
• 8+ years of experience in infrastructure, cloud engineering, or cloud architecture roles, including 5+ years in senior cloud architecture or platform leadership positions.
• 5+ years of hands-on Microsoft Azure architecture, design, and operational experience in enterprise environments.
• Proven experience leading cloud transformation from on-premise or hybrid infrastructure to cloud-first or cloud-native operating models.
• Experience leading or supporting post-merger or acquisition IT integration, including environment assessment, migration, standardization, and security alignment.
• Demonstrated experience leading technical teams, including coaching engineers, reviewing designs, and overseeing architectural and operational delivery.
• Advanced experience with Infrastructure as Code and automation tools such as Terraform, Azure CLI, PowerShell, Puppet, or Ansible.
• Deep expertise in Azure landing zones, governance, policy management, subscription design, and enterprise-scale cloud operating models.
• Strong knowledge of cloud security frameworks, Microsoft Entra ID, hybrid identity, RBAC, privileged access, and zero trust architecture.
• Experience designing high-availability, fault-tolerant, self-healing, and disaster recovery solutions for critical business platforms.
• Strong experience with Azure DevOps, G