Principal Cloud Architect - Contract - Remote

Principal Cloud Architect Location: Fully Remote with occasional onsite visits required. (The consultant should anticipate being onsite approximately 2-4 business days per month) Interview Process: 1 round, virtual or onsite for local resources Duration: 12 Months Employment Type: Contract Experience Required: 12+ Years Candidate location: No South Carolina residency required.

Open to nationwide candidates; must be able to work eastern time zone hours. All travel-related costs for onsite work will be the responsibility of the resource, regardless of the frequency of onsite work. Project Scope: We are seeking an experienced Principal Cloud Architect to provide enterprise-level architecture expertise for cloud modernization initiatives.

The ideal candidate will lead the design, implementation, and adoption of a cloud-native integration platform built on Microsoft Azure. The role will focus on developing scalable enterprise integration solutions using APIs, event-driven architecture, messaging platforms, cloud data technologies, and modern cloud engineering practices.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead architecture, design, and implementation of enterprise cloud solutions using Microsoft Azure.
• Design and implement cloud-native integration patterns using REST APIs, event-driven architecture, asynchronous messaging, and distributed systems.
• Provide technical leadership and architecture guidance to development teams, project teams, and implementation partners.
• Develop and maintain cloud architecture standards, technical documentation, governance practices, and solution design patterns.
• Collaborate with enterprise architects, cybersecurity teams, infrastructure teams, business stakeholders, and vendors.
• Design and implement enterprise data platforms using cloud-based data lake, analytics, and data engineering technologies.
• Support cloud adoption strategies and ensure solutions align with security, scalability, and performance requirements.
• Mentor technical teams and provide knowledge transfer on cloud architecture best practices.
• Promote continuous improvement, automation, and cloud engineering standards.

Required Skills

& Experience:

• 12+ years of experience in enterprise technology solutions.
• 10+ years of experience designing, developing, and implementing enterprise applications and platforms.
• 7+ years of experience designing and implementing cloud solutions and cloud-native architectures using Azure, AWS, GCP, or similar cloud platforms.
• Strong experience designing enterprise integration solutions using: REST APIs, Event-driven architecture, Asynchronous messaging, Distributed systems
• Experience designing and implementing enterprise data platforms, including: Cloud data lakes, Analytics platforms, Data engineering solutions
• Strong understanding of cloud security, identity and access management, scalability, performance optimization, monitoring, and operational support.
• Strong communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills.

Preferred Skills

• Experience integrating enterprise systems such as: SAP, SAP S/4HANA, ERP platforms, HR systems, Financial applications
• Experience supporting government, public sector, or highly regulated environments.
• Experience with: Azure API Management, Azure Functions, Azure Logic Apps, Azure Event Grid, ERP integration solutions
• Experience establishing: Enterprise architecture standards, Cloud governance practices, Technical design patterns, Solution documentation
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code (IaC), including: Terraform, Bicep, ARM Templates
• Experience with: CI/CD pipelines, DevOps practices, Development automation
• Experience with cloud architecture certifications and frameworks.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Data Science, or a related technical field. Preferred Certifications Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert Microsoft Azure Developer Associate Microsoft Azure Data Engineer Associate TOGAF or equivalent Enterprise Architecture certification