Cloud Senior Principal Engineer

The Cloud Senior Principal Engineer serves as the organization’s highest-level technical contributor and engineering leader for cloud platforms, artificial intelligence solutions, enterprise applications, and digital transformation initiatives. This position provides strategic technical direction, establishes engineering standards and architecture practices, and leads the design and implementation of complex, enterprise-wide technology solutions. The Senior Principal Engineer oversees the technical work of Cloud and AI Engineering team while fostering a culture of innovation, engineering excellence, and continuous improvement. The role serves as the primary technical advisor for emerging technologies, cloud architecture, AI strategy, enterprise platform modernization, and system-wide digital initiatives.

Working closely with executive leadership, business stakeholders, and technology teams, the Senior Principal Engineer translates strategic objectives into scalable, secure, and sustainable technical solutions. This position maintains deep technical expertise while providing mentorship, architectural governance, and leadership across multiple technology domains including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, application development, enterprise integration, cybersecurity, and platform engineering.

This position is a hybrid work arrangement and will work at least three days per week onsite at the Dillon building in downtown Raleigh’s Warehouse District. UNC System employees are generally required to reside in North Carolina, within a 2-hour commuting distance of their assigned duty station.

About the UNC System Office The UNC System Office includes the offices of the President and other senior administrators of the multi-campus University of North Carolina System. The UNC System is a treasured public institution dedicated to serving the people of North Carolina through world-class teaching, research, and community engagement. Today, nearly 250,000 students are enrolled in our 16 universities across the state and at the NC School of Science and Mathematics. System Office staff is responsible for executing the policies of the UNC Board of Governors and providing University-wide leadership in the areas of academic affairs, business and financial management, long-range planning, student affairs, research, legal affairs, and government relations. The UNC System Office also has administrative oversight of a number of University affiliates, including PBS North Carolina, the North Carolina Arboretum, the NC State Education Assistance Authority, and University of North Carolina Press.

About the Team The Information Technology division works collaboratively with UNC constituent institutions to help ensure efficient and cost-effective integration of new technologies that meet common and unique needs of the 17 institutions. The division is also charged with managing the highly complex enterprise-wide data modernization efforts that will enable the System to better monitor, evaluate, and manage our enterprise; as well as facilitate timely comparisons across the 17 institutions and create better data-sharing capabilities for smarter and more efficient data-driven decisions.

The Digital Transformation Department drives innovation and modernization across the organization by leveraging emerging technologies, cloud platforms, data-driven solutions, and artificial intelligence to improve operational efficiency, enhance user experiences, and advance strategic objectives. The department partners with business and technology stakeholders to identify opportunities for process improvement, develop scalable digital solutions, and implement enterprise-wide platforms that increase collaboration, automation, and service delivery. Through continuous evaluation of evolving technologies and best practices, the department enables organizational transformation while ensuring solutions remain secure, accessible, sustainable, and aligned with system goals., To claim veteran’s preference, all eligible persons must indicate their eligibility as requested on the application. A DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, may be required later in the selection process.

The UNC System Office (includes PBS NC, NCSEAA, and NC Arboretum) participates in E-Verify. Federal law requires all employers to verify the identity and employment eligibility of all persons hired to work in the United States.

Masters’ and 2-4 years’ experience; or Bachelors and 3-5 years’ experience; or will accept a combination of related education and experience in substitution., Minimum of three years of progressive experience in the information technology field including experience in technology support related, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Preferred Education, Experience, and Skills Cloud Architecture & Platform Engineering: Demonstrated expertise designing, implementing, and governing enterprise-scale cloud solutions utilizing AWS services and modern cloud-native architectures. Experience establishing cloud engineering standards, Infrastructure as Code (AWS CDK, CloudFormation, Terraform), multi-account governance, platform engineering practices, and operational excellence frameworks. Experience leading cloud center-of-excellence (CCoE), platform engineering, or digital transformation initiatives is preferred.

Artificial Intelligence & Emerging Technologies: Demonstrated experience evaluating, designing, and implementing enterprise AI solutions that support organizational objectives. Knowledge of generative AI technologies, large language models (LLMs), intelligent automation, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and AI governance principles. Experience with Amazon Bedrock, OpenAI, Anthropic, or similar enterprise AI platforms is highly desirable. Ability to assess emerging technologies and translate innovation into practical business solutions.

Enterprise Application & Solution Architecture: Experience architecting complex enterprise systems, cloud-native applications, APIs, integrations, and shared technology platforms. Ability to align technical architecture with business objectives while ensuring scalability, maintainability, security, and performance. Knowledge of modern software engineering practices, application modernization strategies, and enterprise integration patterns.

Technical Leadership & Engineering Excellence: Proven ability to provide technical leadership across multidisciplinary engineering teams, establish engineering standards, conduct architecture and code reviews, and mentor technical staff. Experience managing or leading teams consisting of cloud engineers, software developers, architects, AI specialists, and other technical professionals. Ability to foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Strategic Planning & Digital Transformation: Ability to develop and execute technology roadmaps that support enterprise modernization and digital transformation goals. Experience leading large-scale technology initiatives, evaluating technology investments, and guiding organizations through complex technical change. Experience within higher education, state government, public sector, or similarly complex enterprise environments is preferred.

Security, Governance & Risk Management: Strong understanding of cloud security architecture, identity and access management, compliance requirements, governance frameworks, and risk mitigation strategies. Experience implementing security controls and governance processes that balance innovation, operational efficiency, and organizational compliance requirements.

Communication & Stakeholder Engagement: Exceptional ability to communicate complex technical concepts to executive leadership, business stakeholders, and technical teams. Experience building consensus, influencing strategic decisions, facilitating cross-functional collaboration, and serving as a trusted advisor on technology-related matters.

Innovation & Continuous Improvement: Demonstrated commitment to continuous learning, technology evaluation, and organizational innovation. Ability to identify opportunities for process improvement, automation, AI adoption, and platform modernization that increase efficiency, enhance user experiences, and support organizational objectives.