Azure IoT Solutions Engineer

This is a fully remote position.

PURPOSE:

The Azure IoT Solutions Engineer is a senior, hands-on engineer with blended experience in software development, Azure cloud engineering, IoT infrastructure, device and edge integration, automation, and secure delivery. The role works directly with development teams to design, build, integrate, test, deploy, and troubleshoot end-to-end IoT solutions for manufacturing clients.

This position implements both application and platform components, including APIs, event-processing services, device and edge integrations, Azure IoT services, data flows, networking, identity, monitoring, Infrastructure as Code, and CI/CD pipelines. The engineer is expected to understand the complete device-to-cloud-to-application path and to contribute code, automation, configurations, technical patterns, and practical solutioning support.

The engineer also implements approved product-security and Cyber Resilience Act controls under the direction of the Azure IoT Solutions and Cybersecurity Architect, including secure development, vulnerability remediation, SBOM generation, secure update support, evidence collection, and operational readiness.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

IoT Application and Integration Engineering

• Develop, integrate, and support cloud services, APIs, message processors, event-driven components, device-management functions, telemetry pipelines, command-and-control workflows, and supporting application capabilities.

• Build or maintain reference implementations, device simulators, integration utilities, SDK examples, reusable libraries, edge modules, and technical prototypes that support development-team solutioning.

• Implement REST APIs, asynchronous messaging, event schemas, data contracts, retry and idempotency patterns, error handling, logging, tracing, and operational telemetry.

• Participate in application design, code reviews, API reviews, debugging, technical spikes, and root-cause analysis across software, device, edge, network, data, and cloud layers.

• Collaborate with software, firmware, data, QA, infrastructure, and product teams to validate interfaces, functional behavior, performance, resilience, and supportability.

Azure IoT Platform and Cloud Engineering

• Provision, configure, and support Azure IoT Hub, Device Provisioning Service, IoT Edge, Event Hubs, Event Grid, Service Bus, Functions, App Service, Container Apps, API Management, storage, databases, integration, logging, and monitoring services as required.

• Build and maintain development, test, staging, and production environments aligned with approved architecture, security, naming, tagging, governance, and operational standards.

• Implement repeatable infrastructure and configuration using Bicep, ARM templates, Terraform, or equivalent Infrastructure as Code tools and maintain all assets in source control.

• Configure scaling, availability, backup, retention, disaster recovery, regional deployment, capacity, performance, and cost-management controls appropriate to IoT workloads.

• Implement secure Azure networking, private connectivity, DNS, firewalls, network security groups, routing, VPN, ExpressRoute, and segmentation between operational technology and information technology environments.

Device, Edge and Manufacturing Integration

• Implement device enrollment and provisioning workflows using symmetric keys, X.509 certificates, certificate authorities, enrollment groups, Device Provisioning Service, and approved identity patterns.

• Develop, configure, or support IoT Edge devices, industrial gateways, containerized modules, deployment manifests, local processing, offline operation, store-and-forward, remote diagnostics, and update workflows.

• Integrate devices and edge systems using MQTT, AMQP, HTTPS, OPC UA, and related industrial protocols and troubleshoot connectivity through the complete cloud application stack.

• Coordinate with firmware and embedded teams on device SDKs, message formats, telemetry, command handling, configuration, synchronization, retry behavior, secure updates, and field support.

• Support laboratory, pilot, factory, and field deployments, including occasional travel to client or manufacturing locations when needed.

DevSecOps, Security and Cyber Resilience Act Support

• Develop and maintain CI/CD pipelines for application services, APIs, infrastructure, edge modules, deployment manifests, configuration, automated testing, security scanning, approvals, and controlled promotion across environments.

• Implement device and workload identity, certificate and secret management, managed identities, role-based access control, Key Vault integration, credential rotation, and secure configuration practices.

• Apply approved security baselines and hardening requirements to Azure resources, applications, edge systems, operating systems, containers, and supporting services.

• Integrate secure coding, unit and integration testing, static analysis, software composition analysis, secrets scanning, container scanning, dependency management, and SBOM generation into the delivery process.

• Support vulnerability triage and remediation, security updates, certificate renewal, incident investigation, evidence collection, technical documentation, and secure release activities required for product-security and CRA readiness.

• Implement monitoring and alerting using Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, Application Insights, Defender for Cloud, Defender for IoT, and Microsoft Sentinel as applicable.

Testing, Operations and Collaboration

• Define and execute connectivity, integration, resilience, performance, failover, security, update, recovery, and operational-readiness testing with development and QA teams.

• Monitor and troubleshoot end-to-end IoT solutions across devices, gateways, networks, Azure services, APIs, application services, data pipelines, and security tooling.

• Create and maintain implementation diagrams, configuration records, deployment procedures, operating instructions, support runbooks, test evidence, and change records appropriate to the solution.

• Participate in design reviews, backlog refinement, sprint planning, demonstrations, incident reviews, release-readiness activities, and operational handoff.

• Communicate status, risks, dependencies, technical issues, and remediation options to architects, project managers, development teams, operations teams, and client stakeholders.

• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to engineers and developers and create reusable modules, templates, tools, and patterns that improve delivery consistency.

• Other responsibilities as assigned by management.

REQUIRED SKILLS, EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

• 5+ years of experience in software development, Azure cloud engineering, DevOps, IoT engineering, systems engineering, or related technical roles.

• 3+ years of hands-on experience implementing or supporting Azure IoT, connected-product, edge, industrial, or distributed application solutions.

• Demonstrated hands-on experience in both software development and cloud or infrastructure engineering.

• Proficiency with one or more development languages such as C#, .NET, Java, Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Node.js, C, or C++ and strong scripting skills in PowerShell, Bash, or Python.

• Experience developing or integrating REST APIs, asynchronous messaging, event-driven services, serverless applications, containers, and data-processing components.

• Hands-on experience with Azure IoT Hub, Device Provisioning Service, IoT Edge, event and messaging services, application services, storage, databases, monitoring, identity, and Azure security capabilities.

• Experience with IoT communication protocols and integration patterns, including MQTT, AMQP, HTTPS, OPC UA, device gateways, intermittent connectivity, and offline operation.

• Experience with X.509 certificates, PKI, device identity, secure provisioning, Key Vault, secrets, credential lifecycle management, and secure update support.

• Strong Azure networking experience, including virtual networks, private endpoints, DNS, firewalls, network security groups, VPN or ExpressRoute, routing, and network troubleshooting.

• Experience with Infrastructure as Code using Bicep, ARM templates, Terraform, or equivalent tools and CI/CD using Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or comparable platforms.

• Experience with automated testing, secure coding, dependency management, software composition analysis, vulnerability remediation, SBOM generation, logging, monitoring, and operational troubleshooting.

• 3+ years in a client-facing or cross-functional delivery role with demonstrated communication, collaboration, mentoring, and technical documentation skills.

PREFERRED SKILLS, EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE:

• Microsoft Azure certifications relevant to development, IoT, infrastructure, DevOps, security, or solution architecture.

• Experience in manufacturing, industrial automation, operational technology, or connected-equipment environments.

• Experience with Azure Functions, App Service, Container Apps, AKS, API Management, Cosmos DB, Azure SQL, Azure Data Explorer, or comparable cloud-native application services.

• Experience with embedded Linux, real-time operating systems, firmware integration, device SDKs, C/C++, trusted platform modules, secure elements, or hardware security modules.

• Experience with IEC 62443, Defender for IoT, industrial network segmentation, and secure remote access.

• Working familiarity with the EU Cyber Resilience Act and engineering controls related to secure development, product vulnerability handling, SBOMs, security updates, evidence, and incident reporting.

• Experience with SBOM formats such as SPDX or CycloneDX and vulnerability management tooling.

Starting Compensation Range: $140,000 per year

The salary for this position is commensurate with experience, skills, and qualifications. The range is intended to reflect our commitment to attracting top talent, and the final offer will be based on factors including, but not limited to, the candidate's previous experience, expertise in the field, relevant certifications, and the specific requirements of the role. In addition, internal equity, market trends, and geographic location may also influence the final salary.

At Ascend Technologies we firmly believe that diversity, equity, and inclusion are not only fundamental values but also powerful drivers of innovation, growth, and success. We are committed to fostering an environment where every individual feels valued, respected, and empowered.

CORE VALUES

We are seeking highly motivated individuals who have the willingness and ability to demonstrate Ascend core values:

• Committed to Client Success: Our actions and our words always align with the best interest of the client.

• One Team: We work collaboratively to overcome challenges with humility and respect and do what it takes to find innovative solutions.

• Integrity: We are unquestionably committed to doing the right thing even when it is hard.

• Accountability: We hold ourselves and each other accountable for keeping our commitments to our clients, our communities, and one another.

• Transparency: We create open lines of communication with each other and our clients, fostering relationships founded on candor and trust.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

Must be able to sit, stand, and bend for the duration of shift. The position is mainly sitting, with occasional lifting up to 50 lbs., such as laptop or server equipment, and occasional travel to client or manufacturing sites as needed.