Cloud engineer Jobs in Jackson, MS

Job Title: Azure Cloud SME
Job Code: MS 159640
Client: State of Mississippi – Department of Information Technology Services (ITS)
Location: Jackson, MS (Hybrid)
Duration: Initial 1-Year Contract (Likely Extension)


Position Overview
The Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services (ITS) is seeking a highly experienced Azure Cloud SME to support and enhance the State's Azure Landing Zone and Azure Government Cloud environments. This role will serve as a senior cloud architect and technical advisor, helping agencies design, troubleshoot, secure, and optimize Azure solutions while mentoring internal teams and contributing to the State’s Cloud Center of Excellence.


Key Responsibilities
Azure Environment Management
• Manage and maintain Azure tenants, subscriptions, and Management Groups
• Support Azure Landing Zone and Azure Gov Cloud environments
• Ensure adherence to cloud governance and best practices


Cloud Architecture & Engineering
• Design, review, and implement Azure solutions for performance, security, scalability, and reliability
• Lead architectural reviews and solution design discussions
• Support agency cloud adoption and modernization initiatives


Troubleshooting & Support
• Serve as senior escalation point for Azure infrastructure, networking, storage, and compute issues
• Troubleshoot ExpressRoute, VPN, VNet, and hybrid connectivity challenges
• Coordinate resolution efforts across internal teams and agencies


Security & Governance
• Implement Azure security best practices including:

• Azure RBAC
  
  
• Azure Policies
  
  
• Encryption
  
  
• Network Segmentation
  
  
• Microsoft Defender for Cloud
  • Ensure compliance with regulatory and governance requirements
  
  

DevOps & Automation
• Develop Infrastructure as Code solutions using:

• ARM Templates
  
  
• Bicep
  
  
• Terraform
  • Support CI/CD pipelines using:
  
  
• Azure DevOps
  
  
• GitHub Actions
  • Implement containerized and serverless solutions using:
  
  
• Docker
  
  
• AKS
  
  
• Azure Container Apps
  
  
• Azure Functions
  
  

Mentorship & Documentation
• Mentor cloud engineers and technical staff
• Develop cloud standards, playbooks, architecture diagrams, and technical documentation
• Support knowledge transfer and internal cloud capability development


Required Skills & Experience


• Deep expertise with Azure services including:

• Azure Virtual Machines
  
  
• Azure Storage
  
  
• Azure SQL
  
  
• Cosmos DB
  
  
• Azure Functions
  
  
• Microsoft Entra ID
  
  
• Virtual Networks (VNet)
  
  
• Azure Resource Manager (ARM)
  
  

• Experience leading enterprise Azure migrations and implementations in multi-tenant environments
• Strong Azure networking expertise including:

• ExpressRoute
  
  
• VPN
  
  
• Hybrid Connectivity
  
  
• Network Troubleshooting
  
  

• Experience with Azure Landing Zones and Azure Landing Zone Reference Architectures
• Strong Infrastructure as Code experience (ARM, Bicep, Terraform)
• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps and GitHub Actions
• Experience implementing Azure security controls and governance frameworks
• Experience with Docker, AKS, Azure Container Apps, and Serverless Architectures
• Strong troubleshooting skills across Azure compute, networking, and storage layers
• Excellent communication, mentoring, leadership, and stakeholder management skills
• Experience leading technical design reviews and architectural discussions


Preferred Skills


• Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert Certification
• Azure DevOps Engineer Expert Certification
• Government or highly regulated industry experience

• HIPAA
  
  
• CJIS
  
  
• IRS 1075
  
  

• Knowledge of:

• ITIL
  
  
• PMP
  
  
• Agile Methodologies
  
  
• Enterprise Governance Frameworks
  
  

• Experience with Hybrid Cloud environments and Azure Arc
• Scripting experience with:

• Python
  
  
• Bash
  
  
• PowerShell
  
  

Key Competencies


• Azure Architecture
• Azure Landing Zones
• Azure Governance & Security
• Azure Networking
• Cloud Migration
• Infrastructure as Code
• DevOps & CI/CD
• Hybrid Cloud
• Cloud Operations
• Technical Leadership & Mentoring


Primary Skills


Azure, Azure Landing Zone, Azure Gov Cloud, Azure Architecture, Azure Virtual Machines, Azure Storage, Azure SQL, Cosmos DB, Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Functions, ARM Templates, Bicep, Terraform, Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Docker, AKS, Azure Container Apps, Azure RBAC, Azure Policy, Defender for Cloud, ExpressRoute, VPN, Hybrid Cloud, Azure Arc, Python, Bash, PowerShell, Cloud Migration, Cloud Governance, ITIL, Agile