DevOps Production Operations Lead

Role: Production DevOps Operations Lead (Windows/IIS/Azure Focus)

Location: North West Houston, TX (Onsite)

Duration: 12+ month C2H

F2F interview is mandatory

Must have skills

• Responsible for the delivery and operational integrity of the Cybersoft Windows-based application suite
• Responsible for the Release processes, manage the lifecycle of applications running on IIS, hosted on Windows Server, with data layers in SQL Server, and an increasing footprint in Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
• Responsible for standardizing and improving the build-test-deploy- monitor process

Key Responsibilities

1. Release & Deployment Management:

Own the end-to-end release management process for our .NET/IIS-based applications and services.

Manage and orchestrate deployments across hybrid environments (on-prem Windows Server clusters and Azure).

Develop and maintain the release calendar, coordinating dependencies between SQL Server schema changes, application deployments, and infrastructure updates.

Lead go/no-go meetings with a focus on validating health across IIS application pools, Windows Services, and AKS pods.

2. Process & CI/CD Pipeline Management:

Manage, optimize, and secure our Azure DevOps (Azure Pipelines) CI/CD workflows.

Oversee the promotion of build artifacts through staging environments to production.

Implement and enforce Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices using ARM Templates, Terraform for consistent environment provisioning.

3. Operational Excellence & Systems Management:

Ensure the performance, security, and availability of our IIS web applications and Windows Server infrastructure.

Partner with the DevOps team to manage and scale our Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) clusters.

Oversee database deployment processes related to SQL Server, working with DBAs/Data Engineer to manage scripts and ensure data integrity during releases.

4. Incident & Problem Management:

Act as the incident commander for production issues, coordinating efforts between development, infrastructure, and database teams.

Utilize deep knowledge of the stack to help triage issues-from IIS logs and Windows Event Viewer to Azure Monitor, Application Insights, and Kubernetes logs.

Drive rigorous Root Cause Analysis (RCA) for incidents and ensure corrective actions are implemented.

The following should help if we need to add a new team member.

Required Qualifications & Skills

5+ years of experience in a technical production, release, or platform management role.

Deep, hands-on experience with the Microsoft Stack: Windows Server, IIS configuration/administration, and SQL Server.

Proven expertise in managing Azure CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps (Azure Pipelines). Must understand build agents, YAML pipelines, and artifact management.

Strong practical knowledge of Kubernetes, specifically Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). Must understand pods, services, ingress, deployments, and basic troubleshooting.

Experience with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) principles and tools like ARM Templates, Terraform etc.

Familiarity with monitoring and logging tools such as Site 24X7, Datadog, Azure Monitor, Application Insights, and Log Analytics.

Excellent understanding of networking concepts relevant to Azure (VNet, NSGs, Load Balancers) and on-premises infrastructure.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing a hybrid environment (on-premises data centers and Azure).
• Certifications such as Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate, Azure DevOps Engineer Expert, or Kubernetes Certified Application Developer (CKAD).
• Strong scripting skills (PowerShell is a must, Bash/Python a plus) for automation.
• Previous experience as a .NET developer, Windows system administrator, or SQL DBA is a significant advantage.