IT Cloud Engineer, People Inc.

6 Month Contract

Salary not provided

Hourly Rate: $60-65

AWS

Docker

GCP

Python

Bash

Linux

Splunk

ELK

Azure

Prometheus

Grafana

Windows

Okta

Powershell

JIRA

Active Directory

loki

Senior and Expert level

Remote from US

Digital & print publisher

Be an early applicant

Digital & print publisher

1001+ employees

B2BPublishingDigital MediaAdvertising

Be an early applicant

Salary not provided

Hourly Rate: $60-65

AWS

Docker

GCP

Python

Bash

Linux

Splunk

ELK

Azure

Prometheus

Grafana

Windows

Okta

Powershell

JIRA

Active Directory

loki

Senior and Expert level

Remote from US

1001+ employees

B2BPublishingDigital MediaAdvertising

Company mission

To help people find answers, solve problems, and get inspired.

Job

Company

Role

Who you are

5+ years in systems administration or infrastructure engineering
Strong Windows Server and patch automation experience
Hands‑on with AWS, Azure, or GCP (IAM, compute/storage, networking)
Deep knowledge of Okta, Active Directory, Azure AD integrations
Scripting with PowerShell (preferred), plus Python or Bash
Experience with Linux, Nutanix, Rubrik
Familiarity with Docker/containers
Monitoring/logging with Prometheus/Grafana, Loki, Splunk, or ELK
Excellent troubleshooting and stakeholder communication
Preferred: Cloud‑migration background, ITIL knowledge, Microsoft Administrator or cloud certifications

What the job involves

People Inc. seeks an experienced IT Cloud Engineer to support, maintain, and modernize enterprise infrastructure during data‑center decommissioning and cloud migrations. You will own Windows Server operations, identity integrations (Okta–AD/Azure-AD), automation, and hybrid cloud services across on‑prem and AWS/Azure/GCP
40 hours a week
Start date: ASAP
End date: 6 months with potential to extend
Windows Servers: Administer 200+ servers; own patching SLAs, monitoring (Prometheus/Grafana), capacity/lifecycle plans, and vulnerability remediations
Directory & Identity: Operate AD/Azure AD; serve as Okta–AD SSO/MFA integration owner (health, upgrades, certificates, lifecycle)
Infrastructure & Migrations: Execute NYC data‑center app migrations; assist Nutanix decommission; administer Rubrik backups and Sectigo certificates
Monitoring & Reporting: Build dashboards and alerts; define SLOs with app owners; deliver monthly system inventory, ownership, and compliance reports
Networking & Peripheral Support: Manage enterprise DNS (non‑Route 53); support ClearPass and printer authentication integrations
Cloud Operations: Manage AWS/Azure/GCP workloads (VMs, IAM, storage/compute, networking, connectivity); optimize cost, reliability, and security
Automation: Deliver PowerShell/Python/Bash tooling for patching, configuration, and repetitive operations; champion IaC/Config‑as‑Code where feasible
Active Directory Migration:
Plan & governance: define scope/success/rollback, RFC/CAB approvals, stakeholder comms, risk register, clear ownership and SLAs
Baseline & readiness: full AD/GPO/OUs/trusts/DC health (dcdiag/repadmin), security posture (tiering/LAPS/NTLM), backups/DR tested
Identity & SSO design: source of truth + JML, AAD Connect (PHS/PTA, sourceAnchor, staging/writeback), Okta agents/MFA/policies, UPN/sAMAccountName strategy
App/data/network prep + pilot: catalog LDAP/Kerberos apps/SPNs, file/print ACLs, DNS/DHCP validation; run a scoped pilot with helpdesk scripts and rollback
Execute, monitor, cutover, close: wave-based moves with replication checks, live auth monitoring, cutover steps, post‑validation, cleanup/decommission, docs/CMDB updates, PIRs and metrics
Change Management & Governance:
Follow ITIL‑aligned change process: RFC tickets with peer review, test evidence, implementation/backout plans, and maintenance windows; attend CAB as required
Track changes in Jira; update CMDB/asset records within 7 days of change; complete PIRs within 5 business days for failed/high‑risk changes
Enforce progressive delivery: phased rollouts, canaries, and checkpoint validation; document rollback criteria and success gates upfront
Documentation & Knowledge Management:
Maintain current runbooks, architecture/network diagrams, standard operating procedures, DR playbooks, and “How We Operate” docs in a versioned repository
Treat documentation as acceptance criteria: every change/migration updates docs before closure; keep system ownership and escalation paths explicit
Publish weekly change summaries and quarterly service health reviews to stakeholders
Accountability & Metrics:
Change quality: change failure rate ≤5%; PIR completion SLA met.
CMDB accuracy: ≥98% CI correctness; ownership fields populated for 100% tier‑1 services
Observability coverage: dashboards/alerts for 100% tier‑1 apps with on‑call playbooks
Patch compliance: ≥95% critical within 14 days; ≥95% standard within 30 days
Backup posture: ≥99% successful jobs; quarterly restore tests with evidence
Incremental Delivery:
Plan migrations and decommissioning as small, testable increments with clear exit/rollback; demonstrate progress via bi‑weekly demos and burn‑up charts
Use feature flags/guardrails where applicable; prefer automate‑then‑standardize over one‑off fixes
Maintain a visible improvement backlog (automation debt, toil reduction, cost optimizations) with quarterly goals

Our take

People Inc., formerly Meredith Dotdash, is the largest digital and print publisher in the US. It encompasses over 40 brands including PEOPLE, Better Homes & Gardens, Verywell and Allrecipes.

The approach that shaped this media giant was to build websites with fast load-times and few adds. A clean site keeps readers longer, boosting its rankings in search algorithms. Ads can then be less frequent but sold at a premium. Interestingly, the company was also an early adopter of affiliate links.

The merger that founded People Inc., that of Dotdash and Meredith, made Meredith sites faster and increased story output for Dotdash - a fruitful development on both sides. The company continues to move at the front of media tech, for example by launching a targeting tool named D/Cipher that enables intent-based targeting at scale, without cookies.