Cloud Engineer

Job Title: Manager, Cloud FinOps Engineer

Location: Princeton, New Jersey, United States

Type: Full Time

Our client is looking for a Cloud FinOps Engineer to drive cost-efficient, scalable, and well-governed cloud operations across multi-cloud environments.

This role sits within the cloud engineering and platform ecosystem, focusing on integrating FinOps principles directly into cloud architecture, infrastructure, and operational workflows. The ideal candidate will combine strong technical expertise with a data-driven mindset to optimize cloud usage and enhance cost visibility through automation and engineering solutions.

Key Responsibilities

Cloud Operations \& Cost Management

• Analyze cloud usage and spending across AWS, Azure, and GCP to identify inefficiencies and optimization opportunities.
• Monitor cost patterns, detect anomalies, and investigate usage spikes by correlating infrastructure and application behavior.
• Develop and maintain cost visibility tools such as dashboards, reports, and performance scorecards.
• Strengthen governance by implementing controls for tagging, cost allocation, and usage tracking.

Platform Enablement \& Stakeholder Collaboration

• Act as a technical advisor to engineering teams, translating cloud consumption patterns into actionable insights.
• Conduct regular optimization reviews to align architecture decisions with cost, performance, and scalability goals.
• Promote adoption of FinOps practices across development, deployment, and operational workflows.
• Partner with finance teams by enabling accurate cost reporting and automation-driven insights.

Cost Optimization \& Engineering Solutions

• Identify opportunities for optimization such as compute rightsizing, storage lifecycle management, and container cost efficiency.
• Support and enhance cost-saving initiatives including reserved capacity and usage commitments.
• Lead targeted optimization initiatives with measurable outcomes and long-term benefits.
• Drive a shift toward continuous, automated cost management practices.

Automation, Tooling \& Infrastructure as Code

• Build automation tools using Python to streamline cloud cost analysis and reporting.
• Develop and manage infrastructure using AWS services, including serverless and database solutions.
• Create and maintain infrastructure-as-code templates (e.g., CloudFormation).
• Integrate cost governance and validation into CI/CD pipelines.
• Automate processes such as anomaly detection, reporting, and billing data ingestion.

Governance, Security \& Compliance

• Support access control and identity management practices to ensure secure and accountable cloud usage.
• Implement technical controls to enforce cost ownership and traceability.
• Work with security and compliance teams to embed governance into platform standards.
• Enable audit readiness through automated reporting and system-generated evidence.

Collaboration \& Cross-Functional Alignment

• Work closely with SRE, engineering, security, network, and product teams to incorporate cost awareness into technical decisions.
• Communicate technical and financial insights effectively to both technical and business stakeholders.
• Participate in enterprise initiatives and contribute to continuous improvement of cloud operations.

Qualifications \& Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field.
• 4–5\+ years of experience in cloud engineering, SRE, platform operations, or FinOps-related roles.
• Strong understanding of cloud services and cost drivers across compute, storage, databases, and networking.
• Hands-on experience with Python for automation and scripting.
• Experience with AWS services, infrastructure-as-code tools, and CI/CD practices.
• Strong analytical skills with experience in SQL, advanced Excel, and cost modeling.
• Familiarity with data visualization tools such as Power BI, Tableau, or QuickSight.
• Experience with version control tools such as GitHub.
• Knowledge of tagging frameworks, cost allocation models, and cloud financial management practices.

Preferred Qualifications

• FinOps certification (Practitioner or Analyst).
• Experience with cloud cost management tools across AWS, Azure, or GCP environments.
• Familiarity with monitoring and observability tools such as Datadog, Prometheus, or Grafana.
• Experience working in large enterprise or regulated environments.
• Exposure to building internal dashboards or automation tools using modern technologies.