Active DV / eDV Clearance
Hybrid opportunities across the UK
£75,000 - £100,000+ depending on experience and clearance
There's one conversation I keep having...It usually starts with something like this. "I don't actually dislike where I work... I'm just not sure I'll still be enjoying it in another couple of years."
Sometimes it's because platform engineering has become little more than BAU support. Sometimes it's layers of approvals and process slowing everything down.Sometimes it's being surrounded by good people but working on technology that never really moves forward.
And sometimes it's simply wanting to work somewhere where engineering still feels like engineering.
If you've found yourself thinking something similar recently, I'd like to tell you about the type of opportunities I'm seeing across the National Security community.
What The Best Engineering Teams Have In Common
Over the last couple of years I've spent hundreds of hours speaking with Platform Engineers, Cloud Architects, Technical Leads and Engineering Managers across the National Security sector.
The strongest engineering environments aren't necessarily the biggest names.
In fact, they're often the opposite.
Smaller engineering-led organisations where decisions happen quickly.
Leadership teams who still understand technology.
Platform teams trusted to solve problems rather than simply operate ticket queues.
Modern AWS platforms built around Terraform, Kubernetes and automation instead of legacy infrastructure.
Teams where engineers influence architecture, challenge ideas and genuinely own what they're building.
Those are exactly the organisations I choose to represent.
The Opportunity
Rather than advertising a single employer, this advert represents the type of opportunities I regularly recruit for across a carefully selected group of engineering-led National Security organisations.
Depending on which environment suits you best, that could mean:
- Owning secure AWS platform environments supporting critical UK capability
- Designing and evolving Kubernetes-based platform architecture
- Building Infrastructure as Code using Terraform and cloud-native tooling
- Driving automation across deployment, observability and operational resilience
- Working alongside experienced Cloud, Platform and Software Engineers in genuinely collaborative teams
- Influencing engineering direction rather than simply delivering somebody else's roadmap
- Joining organisations where progression comes through technical impact-not headcount management
Some environments are consultancy-led with long-term customer partnerships.
Others are product-focused.
Some are scaling rapidly.
Others are already recognised as some of the most respected engineering businesses in the National Security community.
The common thread is simple.
Good engineering, good people and meaningful technical ownership.
Clearance
Most of the organisations I support are delivering work on live National Security programmes, so active DV or eDV clearance is typically a prerequisite.
That said, every so often an opportunity arises where an exceptional SC-cleared engineer-someone with the right technical background and a realistic route to higher clearance-can be brought in and sponsored.
Those opportunities are limited, but they do exist, so if you're unsure where you fit, I'm always happy to have an honest conversation.
Who You'll Probably Be
This advert will likely resonate if you already have experience across areas such as:
- AWS
- Platform Engineering
- Kubernetes
- Terraform
- Linux
- CI/CD
- Infrastructure as Code
- Automation
- Observability
- Python, Bash or PowerShell
- Secure Cloud
You're probably already operating as a Senior Platform Engineer, Senior DevOps Engineer, Cloud Engineer, Site Reliability Engineer or Technical Lead.
More importantly, you're someone who enjoys solving problems, improving platforms and continually learning.
Why Speak To Me?
The engineers I work with rarely move because somebody offered them another £5,000.
They're usually looking for something much harder to find.
A stronger engineering culture.
More ownership.
Better technical leadership.
Modern cloud platforms.
Greater flexibility.
A place where they'll still be learning two or three years from now.
That's exactly what my conversations focus on.
Rather than trying to sell you a vacancy, I'll help you understand which organisations genuinely align with what matters most to you-and I'll be honest if I don't think one of my clients is the right fit.
Several of the engineers I've helped over the last year started with nothing more than a confidential conversation about where the market was heading.
Not actively looking? That's completely fine.
Some of the best conversations I have each week are with engineers who simply want an honest view of the market.
If you're curious about which organisations are genuinely investing in modern platform engineering, how engineering cultures compare, or where the strongest technical teams are being built across the National Security community, I'm always happy to share what I'm seeing.
If nothing else, you'll come away
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