Cloud Architect (Remote, US)

Lumen is the trusted network for the AI‑powered world, connecting people, data, and applications through our expansive fiber network and connected ecosystem. We enable secure, high‑performance connectivity across cloud, edge, and AI workloads for enterprises, governments, and communities.At Lumen, you’ll work on infrastructure customers rely on today and build for what’s next, where performance, security, and resilience matter.This is a high accountability environment where bold ideas drive real innovation for our customers, partners, and industry. The work is challenging, expectations are clear, and trust is built into how we operate. If you’re ready to take ownership, deliver meaningful impact, and help shape the future of AI‑ready connectivity, join us today. The Role Design and govern cloud architecture for Lumen's NaaS platform and related digital services. This role is the primary cloud architecture authority on the DJAS team - responsible for defining how Lumen's network-as-a-service capabilities are built, deployed, and operated in cloud environments. AWS is Lumen's primary cloud target for systems related to network automation; the ideal candidate has deep, demonstrated AWS expertise alongside working knowledge of GCP and Azure for a multi-cloud architecture perspective. This role bridges cloud engineering disciplines with architectural leadership - defining standards, guiding platform decisions, evaluating cloud-native approaches, and ensuring that what gets built in the cloud is resilient, secure, observable, and cost-efficient. Location This is a remote opportunity open to candidates located anywhere in the U.S. The Main Responsibilities Define cloud architecture standards and reference patterns for NaaS platform services across AWS (primary), GCP, and Azure Own cloud-native design decisions: compute, networking, storage, containerization, serverless, and service mesh patterns Design and govern IaC (Terraform, Pulumi, or CDK) standards - reusable, modular, auditable infrastructure code Architect Kubernetes/EKS environments for NaaS workloads: cluster design, operational efficiency, production readiness Define cloud networking architecture: VPCs, transit gateways, peering, interconnects, CDN, load balancing Ensure cloud security posture: IAM policies, encryption standards, network segmentation, FedRAMP alignment where applicable Define observability architecture for cloud workloads: metrics, logging, tracing, alerting (OpenTelemetry-aligned) Lead cloud cost governance: rightsizing, reserved capacity, spend modeling, FinOps practices Evaluate cloud AI/ML platform capabilities (SageMaker, Vertex AI, Bedrock) and define how NaaS architecture supports AI workload hosting Provide architecture reviews and guidance across engineering teams building on cloud platforms Mentor architects and engineers on cloud-native design patterns and best practices Produce architecture artifacts: solution designs, reference architectures, ADRs, migration roadmaps What We Look For in a Candidate Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or related field with 10+ years of relevant experience or Master's degree with 8+ years of relevant experience AI-first practitioner - actively integrates AI tools (LLMs, coding assistants, AI-powered analysis and design tools) as a routine part of architecture and engineering work, not as an occasional experiment. Candidates must demonstrate specific, current examples of how AI has meaningfully accelerated or improved their work. Deep, demonstrated AWS expertise - required. Must have designed and operated production systems on AWS at scale. AWS Solutions Architect Professional or equivalent experience. Working knowledge of GCP and Azure - multi-cloud architecture perspective required Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Pulumi, or AWS CDK) - production-level experience Kubernetes/EKS: cluster design, operational patterns, Helm, service mesh (Istio or equivalent) Cloud networking: VPCs, transit gateways, PrivateLink, BGP peering, CDN, load balancing Distributed systems architecture: microservices, event-driven patterns, async messaging (Kafka, SQS, EventBridge) Cloud security: IAM policies, KMS, network segmentation, compliance controls Observability platforms: OpenTelemetry, CloudWatch, Datadog, or equivalent Preferred: Experience with FedRAMP-aligned cloud architecture or GovCloud environments AI/ML platform experience: SageMaker, Bedrock, Vertex AI - infrastructure design for ML workloads MLOps pipeline design in cloud-native environments Experience with cloud-native network functions or telecom NaaS platforms CI/CD pipeline design and DevSecOps integration FinOps certifications or demonstrated cost governance experience Compensation This information reflects the anticipated base salary range for this position based on current national data. Minimums and maximums may vary based on location. Individual pay is based on skills, experience and other relevant factors. Loca