WQC DevOps Manager

Role Summary

The WQC DevOps Manager is responsible for overseeing the Website Quality Control platform hosted on AWS cloud infrastructure. This is a high-impact, cross-functional leadership position that demands strategic thinking, executive-level communication, and the ability to manage complex, mission-critical operations on a scale. The role drives seamless delivery, reliability, and continuous improvement of a large-scale federal CMS platform while serving as a key decision-maker and trusted advisor to government stakeholders.

This position sits at the intersection of technology, operations, and program strategy, requiring the manager to be technically strong and lead platform engineering team, align third-party vendors, and champion innovation through AI/ML initiatives. The scope and complexity of this role encompasses full program lifecycle oversight, multi-stakeholder governance, and strategic technology leadership.

Key Responsibilities

Platform & Operations Management

• Provide strategic oversight of a mission-critical CMS DevSecOps platform fully hosted on AWS cloud, including EKS-based containerized workloads.
  
• Ensure platform availability and reliability through 24x7 maintenance and support operations, making high-stakes decisions to minimize downtime and protect service continuity.
  
• Oversee incident management to ensure all issues and outages are resolved within stipulated SLAs, including escalation management and executive communications during critical events.
  

• Coordinate with third-party vendors to align deliverables, SLAs, and technical requirements, acting as the primary accountability owner for vendor performance.
  
• Promote DevSecOps practices throughout the development and operations lifecycle, establishing program-wide standards for security and compliance.
  

Team Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and manage a multi-disciplinary team of AWS and DevOps engineers, driving high performance and professional growth.
  
• Provide strategic guidance, prioritization, and support to ensure team performance and on-time delivery of program commitments.
  
• Foster a collaborative, accountable, and innovation-driven team culture.
  
• Serve as an escalation point and decision authority for all team-level technical and operational challenges.
  

Agile Delivery & Program Governance

• Facilitate and manage Agile ceremonies including daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and Program Increment (PI) planning meetings, ensuring alignment across all workstreams.
  
• Manage and maintain work items, backlogs, and documentation in Jira and Confluence, providing full program visibility to leadership.
  
• Own program-level reporting and ensure delivery metrics are consistently communicated to senior stakeholders.
  

Stakeholder Communication & Collaboration

• Serve as the  point of contact and strategic liaison for the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) and CMS Product Owner.
  
• Lead executive-level briefings and prepare clear, concise written communications, reports, and status updates for leadership and government stakeholders.
  

• Manage stakeholder relationships by balancing competing priorities, managing expectations, and driving consensus across diverse groups.
  
• Facilitate communication and collaboration across teams ensuring transparency and alignment at all levels.
  

Technology Innovation & Strategic Planning

• Lead and define the strategic roadmap for new technology initiatives with a focus on AI/ML integration and adoption across the platform.
  
• Evaluate emerging tools and technologies to drive platform modernization, efficiency, and mission impact.
  
• Lead assessment of return on investment for new solutions that are proposed.
  
• Prepare justifications and ROIs for new initiatives to obtain client approval, demonstrating business acumen and strategic vision beyond technical management.
  

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, or a related field.
  
• 10+ years of experience in DevOps, cloud operations, or IT program/project management.
  
• Demonstrated experience in a senior leadership or management role overseeing complex, multi-team programs.
  
• Strong knowledge of AWS cloud environments and cloud-native architecture (hands-on technical execution not required).
  
• Working knowledge of DevSecOps principles and best practices.
  
• Proven experience managing Agile delivery including stand-ups, PI planning, and sprint ceremonies.
  
• Proficiency with Jira and Confluence for work item and documentation management.
  
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to engage effectively at the executive level.
  
• Demonstrated experience managing third-party vendor relationships and holding vendors accountable to SLAs.
  
• Ability to manage and support 24x7 operations environments with sound judgment under pressure.
  
• Strong strategic thinking, risk management, and problem-solving capabilities.
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service) or containerized platform management.
  
• Familiarity with CMS platforms and processes.
  
• Experience leading AI/ML technology initiatives and building business cases for adoption.
  
• AWS certification (e.g., AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, Solutions Architect).
  
• Prior experience working with or supporting federal government programs, including an understanding of federal compliance, procurement, and governance processes.
  
• Prior experience supporting CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) programs or initiatives is strongly preferred.
  
• Experience in a role with program-level scope and accountability, including budget awareness, strategic planning, and multi-stakeholder governance.