Data Platform Operations Lead (Contract)

540 is seeking a Data Platform Operations Lead to serve as an embedded SME and advisor, driving operational excellence, performance optimization, and production readiness for an AlloyDB-based platform in a FedRAMP High environment. You’ll join a high-impact team supporting a mission-critical data platform built on Google Cloud Platform (GCP). In this role, you will bridge the gap between complex database architecture and mission objectives, serving as a strategic liaison to client stakeholders while overseeing the technical evolution of the platform’s operations. This is a hands-on leadership role requiring deep expertise in PostgreSQL, Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and cloud-based data platform operations.

Location: Remote friendly within the continental United States
Citizenship & Clearance Requirement: per client requirements, must be a U.S. Citizen with the ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance
Education Requirement: Bachelor’s Degree
Contract Duration: Initial 6-month contract (40 hours/week), with strong likelihood of extension and potential for long-term or full-time conversion based on performance and program needs

HOW YOU’LL DRIVE IMPACT

• Serve as an embedded SME and lead advisor for the data platform operations team supporting a production GCP environment
• Drive operational readiness, including development and refinement of runbooks, SOPs, escalation procedures, and day-two support processes
• Provide hands-on support for production incidents, including troubleshooting, root cause analysis (RCA), and long-term remediation
• Monitor system health, logs, and performance metrics to identify risks and optimization opportunities
• Lead PostgreSQL / AlloyDB performance tuning, including indexing strategies, query optimization, and maintenance practices
• Provide guidance across GCP services including Dataflow, BigQuery, Pub/Sub, Cloud Functions, and Dataplex
• Support release management, including database deployments and rollback strategies
• Contribute to resiliency planning, including backup/recovery, disaster recovery (DR), and high availability (HA)
• Develop and maintain operational documentation and technical artifacts aligned to production needs
• Serve as the primary technical point of contact for client stakeholders, providing strategic database roadmaps and defending technical architectural decisions during program reviews

REQUIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• 8+ years of experience in data engineering, database engineering, or platform operations 
• Strong experience supporting production data platforms in cloud environments
• Deep, hands-on expertise in PostgreSQL (performance tuning, indexing, query optimization, vacuuming, maintenance)
• Experience supporting PostgreSQL in production at scale (large datasets, high availability environments)
• Experience with AlloyDB or similar PostgreSQL-based managed database services
• Hands-on experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP), including data and streaming services
• Experience with Dataflow, BigQuery, Pub/Sub, Cloud Functions, and/or Dataplex
• Experience with data lifecycle management, retention policies, data governance and cataloging
• Proven experience in production operations, including incident response and root cause analysis
• Hands-on experience with SLIs/SLOs/SLAs, including defining reliability targets, implementing monitoring and using error budgets to guide operational decisions and platform improvements
• Proven track record of institutionalizing operational knowledge through technical writing
• Experience supporting release management and database deployment processes
• Experience working in FedRAMP or regulated cloud environments
• Strong communication skills and ability to work directly with engineering teams and stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to take ownership, lead operational efforts, and deliver in a fast-paced environment

NICE TO HAVE SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

• Google Cloud certifications (Data Engineer, Cloud Architect, Cloud Database Engineer)
• CompTIA Security+ certification
• Experience supporting systems at or near production launch
• Background in high availability (HA), disaster recovery (DR), and backup strategies
• Experience identifying and resolving performance bottlenecks using logs and system metrics
• Prior experience in a client-facing or embedded advisory role
• Experience working with federal customers or within government contracting environments
• Familiarity with maintaining architecture diagrams and technical documentation repositories
• Experience supporting day-two op