Lead DevOps Engineer

PharmaLex GmbH; Colchester; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading pharma consulting company in Colchester seeks a DevOps leader to drive infrastructure improvements and mentorship within the team. The role requires over 6 years in DevOps and expertise in Microsoft Azure and Kubernetes. Responsibilities include establishing CI/CD pipelines and aligning initiatives with business goals. This position is vital for fostering a culture of automation and knowledge sharing, aimed to enhance software delivery and operational excellence.

Qualifications

• 6+ years in DevOps/Cloud/Platform Engineering roles.
• 2+ years in technical leadership or team lead capacity.
• Strong hands-on experience with Microsoft Azure.
• Deep experience with Kubernetes in production environments.
• Strong CI/CD experience, ideally with Azure DevOps.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the DevOps Vision using Agile best practices.
• Lead the design of scalable, secure, and reliable infrastructure.
• Establish and maintain CI/CD pipelines for multiple applications.
• Mentor engineers and promote knowledge sharing across teams.

Skills

DevOps

Microsoft Azure

Kubernetes

CI/CD

Terraform

Golang

Python

PowerShell

Networking

Cloud Architecture

Education

Minimum of 5 GCSEs at grades A–C

Tools

Azure DevOps

Cloudflare

Observability platforms

Job description

Our team members are at the heart of everything we do. At Cencora, we are united in our responsibility to create healthier futures, and every person here is essential to us being able to deliver on that purpose. If you want to make a difference at the center of health, come join our innovative company and help us improve the lives of people and animals everywhere. Apply today!

Job Details

This role is in support of Cencora's global pharma consulting services marketed through our PharmaLex business. The purpose of this role is to own and lead the DevOps function, helping teams ship software faster and more safely by building and improving Azure infrastructure and CI/CD pipelines, driving automation and a shift‑left culture, and mentoring engineers — based in Poland or the UK.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the DevOps Vision and using Agile best practices
• Set direction, standards, and best practices for the team
• Lead the design of scalable, secure, and reliable infrastructure and delivery pipelines
• Establish and maintain CI/CD pipelines for multiple applications and services
• Align DevOps initiatives with engineering, product, and business goals
• Ensure high‑quality engineering is demonstrated across the team
• Design, deploy and maintain cloud infrastructure (Azure)
• Mentor engineers and promote knowledge sharing
• Facilitate clear communication between the different departments
• Advocate DevOps culture across the teams looking to shift‑left wherever possible

Requirements

• 6+ years in DevOps/Cloud/Platform Engineering roles
• 2+ years in a technical leadership or team lead capacity
• Strong hands‑on experience with Microsoft Azure (VMs/networking/Storage, AKS, App Services, Keyvault)
• Deep experience with Kubernetes in production environments
• Strong infrastructure as code experience, mainly Terraform/Helm
• Strong CI/CD experience, ideally with Azure DevOps
• Candidates must be based in Poland ( ideally located near Lublin ) or the United Kingdom
• Functional development/coding ability with at least one language – Golang/Python/PowerShell/bash
• Strong understanding of networking, security, and cloud architecture
• Experience working in cross‑functional engineering teams
• Familiar with observability platforms
• Cloudflare/Edge/WAF knowledge – will be a plus
• LLM experience – will be a plus
• Minimum of 5 GCSEs at grades A–C (9–4) including Maths and English, or equivalent high school diploma
• Works under broad direction and often self‑initiates tasks
• Makes decisions impacting results and deadlines
• Demonstrates leadership in operational management and encourages learning and growth
• Understands and evaluates the organizational impact of new technologies and digital services

Salary range (gross, Poland): 27,000 – 35,000 PLN per month.

What Cencora offers

Benefit offerings outside the US may vary by country and will be aligned to local market practice. The eligibility and effective date may differ for some benefits and for team members covered under collective bargaining agreements.

Affiliated Companies

Affiliated Companies: Phlexglobal, Inc.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Cencora is committed to providing equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or membership in any other class protected by federal, state or local law. The company’s continued success depends on the full and effective utilization of qualified individuals. Therefore, harassment is prohibited and all matters related to recruiting, training, compensation, benefits, promotions and transfers comply with equal opportunity principles and are non‑discriminatory. Cencora is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities during the employment process which are consistent with legal requirements. If you wish to request an accommodation while seeking employment, please call 888.692.2272 or email [e-mail]. We will make accommodation determinations on a request‑by‑request basis. Messages and emails regarding anything other than accommodations requests will not be returned.