Software Engineer, Platform Operations

## About the Company Planet is a global space and data company focused on using space-based technology to help life on Earth. Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history, delivering cloud-based datasets to customers and users across commercial, environmental, research, and humanitarian sectors. Planet brings together expertise across satellite hardware, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering. The company supports a global workforce, with employees working remotely and from offices in San Francisco, Washington, DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and the Netherlands. ## About the Role Planet is seeking a **Software Engineer, Platform Operations** to help design, build, and operate the core infrastructure that enables engineering teams to reliably deploy and scale their services. This role focuses on **Platform Engineering, DevOps, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), cloud infrastructure, Kubernetes, Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), security, scalability, reliability, and developer experience**. The successful candidate will collaborate with software engineers across the organization to improve deployment and operational workflows and help provide an effective internal developer platform. This is a **full-time remote position based in the United States**. Employees located near a Planet office are expected to work from that office three days per week. ## Key Responsibilities * Design and implement secure and scalable Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) solutions. * Contribute to major platform modernization initiatives, including migration from legacy tooling to new solutions. * Manage cloud-based infrastructure services, including Kubernetes clusters and associated platform tooling. * Support infrastructure that meets internal requirements and customer-facing service-level agreements. * Improve observability for key platform services using Grafana and other relevant tools. * Establish and improve Service Level Objectives (SLOs) and operational readiness. * Implement improvements and features for core platform systems, including GKE clusters, public API gateways, and other managed infrastructure solutions. * Collaborate with software engineering teams to improve the developer experience (DevEx) of managed infrastructure. * Troubleshoot complex production environments using a strong operational mindset. * Build and maintain cloud-based services and infrastructure tooling. ## Required Qualifications * **4+ years of experience** in Platform Engineering, System Administration, DevOps, or Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). * Deep understanding of **Kubernetes, Linux, and underlying compute systems**. * Working knowledge of public cloud platforms, particularly **Google Cloud Platform (GCP) or Amazon Web Services (AWS)**. * Experience with **CI/CD tools**, such as GitLab or ArgoCD. * Experience with **Infrastructure-as-Code and configuration management**, such as Terraform or Crossplane. * Understanding of **GitOps principles**. * Strong troubleshooting skills and an operational mindset for complex production environments. * Experience building services using **Go and/or Python**. * Experience with **Git, Docker, and CI/CD workflows**. * Experience building services that leverage cloud-based infrastructure and tooling. * Ability to clearly communicate technical designs and decisions both verbally and in writing. ## Preferred Qualifications * Experience operating and developing core platform systems. * Experience contributing to open-source infrastructure projects. * Experience maintaining highly available or operationally resilient infrastructure at very large scales. * Experience working with infrastructure across multiple clouds. * Practical experience with networking and network architectures related to platform infrastructure. * Experience with observability tools and industry best practices. ## Skills & Competencies * Platform Engineering * DevOps * Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) * Kubernetes * Linux * Cloud Infrastructure * Google Cloud Platform (GCP) * Amazon Web Services (AWS) * Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) * Terraform * Crossplane * GitOps * CI/CD * GitLab * ArgoCD * Docker * Git * Go * Python * GKE * Grafana and observability * Production troubleshooting * Infrastructure security, scalability, and reliability * Developer Experience (DevEx) * Technical communication and collaboration ## Education & Experience **Education:** No specific education or degree requirement is stated in the original job description. **Experience:** * 4+ years of experience in Platform Engineering, System Administration, DevOps, or Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). * Relevant experience with Kubernetes, Linux, public cloud infrastructure, CI/CD, IaC, GitOps, and cloud-based services as outlined above. ## Work Arrangement & Schedule * **Work Type:** Remote * **Employment Type:** Full-time * **Location:** United States * **Office Requirement:** Employees located near a Planet office are expected to work from that office **3 days per week**. * No specific weekly hours or weekend requirements are stated in the original job description. ## Compensation & Benefits The US base salary range for this full-time position in **New York City and California is $136,000–$170,000 USD**. The position may also be eligible for discretionary short-term and long-term incentives, including bonus and equity. Final compensation is determined based on job-related experience, skills, and location. Benefits may vary based on employment type, geographic location, applicable law, or company policy and include: * Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans * Health Savings Account (HSA) with company contribution * Generous paid time off, holidays, and company-wide days off * 16 weeks of paid parental leave * Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP) * Home office reimbursement * Monthly phone and internet reimbursement * Tuition reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning * Equity * Commuter benefits for employees local to an office * Paid volunteering time off ## Compliance / Additional Information Planet is committed to providing an inclusive workplace and equal employment opportunities. Employment decisions are made without discrimination based on legally protected characteristics, including sex and sexual orientation. **Application Deadline:** May 5, 2026 at 11:59 PM PT