Google Cloud Platform Resident Architect

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Google Cloud Platform Resident Architect to embed with a client's engineering and platform teams, providing hands-on architectural leadership for cloud adoption, migration, and modernization initiatives on Google Cloud Platform. This is a client-facing, on-site (or hybrid) role requiring both deep technical expertise and strong stakeholder management skills.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical architect embedded within the client organization, driving Google Cloud Platform solution design and implementation.
• Design and oversee scalable, secure, and cost-optimized cloud architectures across compute, storage, networking, and data services on Google Cloud Platform.
• Lead cloud migration and modernization strategies, including lift-and-shift, replatforming, and refactoring efforts.
• Define and enforce architectural standards, landing zones, IAM policies, and governance frameworks.
• Collaborate with client engineering, DevOps, and security teams to implement CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code (Terraform/Deployment Manager), and observability practices.
• Provide architectural guidance on Kubernetes (GKE), serverless (Cloud Run, Cloud Functions), data analytics (BigQuery), and networking (VPC, hybrid connectivity).
• Conduct architecture reviews, well-architected framework assessments, and cost optimization exercises.
• Mentor client teams to build internal Google Cloud Platform capability and reduce long-term dependency on external resources.
• Act as a trusted technical advisor to client stakeholders, translating business requirements into technical solutions.
• Document architecture decisions, patterns, and best practices for ongoing reference.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in cloud architecture, with at least 4+ years focused on Google Cloud Platform.
• Proven experience as a resident/embedded architect or in a client-facing consulting capacity.
• Strong expertise in Google Cloud Platform core services: Compute Engine, GKE, Cloud Storage, BigQuery, VPC, IAM, Cloud SQL/Spanner, Pub/Sub.
• Hands-on experience with infrastructure-as-code (Terraform preferred) and CI/CD tooling.
• Solid understanding of cloud security, networking, and compliance frameworks.
• Experience leading large-scale cloud migration or modernization projects.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; comfortable presenting to both technical and executive audiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect certification (required or strongly preferred).
• Additional certifications: Professional Cloud DevOps Engineer, Professional Cloud Security Engineer, or Professional Data Engineer.
• Experience with multi-cloud or hybrid-cloud environments (AWS/Azure interoperability).
• Background in a specific vertical (financial services, healthcare, retail, etc.) is a plus.

Educational Qualifications

• Required - Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering or closely related or equivalent.
• Preferred - Master’s degree in Management Information Systems (MIS), Computer Science, Big Data or Analytics or equivalent.

Travel: Open to travel based up on the nature of the engagement.