Hybrid Director of DevOps and Infrastructure

at KingMakers

• Job title: Director of DevOps and Infrastructure
• Job type: Full Time
• Experience level: Lead
• Salary: Not specified
• Degree requirement: No Education Requirement
• Tech skills: Azure, Cloud, Cyber Security, Grafana, Kubernetes, Terraform
• Location requirements: Hybrid, Cape Town, South Africa

About the role

• Director of DevOps & Infrastructure at KingMakers overseeing platform and infrastructure strategy for major brands. Leading cross-functional teams in a cloud-native technology environment.

Responsibilities

• DevOps
• Cloud & Platform Engineering
• Infrastructure & Networking
• Security & Information Security
• Database Administration
• Corporate IT
• You will ensure our platforms remain scalable, secure, resilient and cost-efficient as we expand into new markets.
• This role requires commercial awareness, organisational leadership and strong technical credibility, empowering expert teams while setting clear standards and strategic direction.
• **Platform & Infrastructure Strategy**
• Define and evolve our cloud and infrastructure strategy across Azure, Kubernetes (AKS), Cloudflare, Terraform and our observability stack.
• You are accountable for reliability, uptime, scalability and production resilience across multiple regions.
• **Security & Risk Leadership**
• Lead cybersecurity and information security strategy across the organisation.
• Establish governance, risk management and operational controls that are robust, without slowing product velocity.
• **Commercial & Cost Ownership**
• Own infrastructure budgets, cost optimisation and vendor relationships.
• Lead contract negotiations and renewals, ensuring efficiency, value for money and long-term sustainability of our platform investment.
• **Organisational & People Leadership**
• Lead and develop senior managers and technical leaders across DevOps, Infrastructure, Security and Corporate IT.
• Set clear goals and performance standards aligned with company strategy.
• Empower high-performing teams without micromanagement.
• **Strategic Enablement**
• Translate business strategy into pragmatic, technically sound execution.
• Identify structural improvements, platform modernisation initiatives and operational enhancements that unlock scale and long-term resilience.
• **Our Technology Environment**
• We operate with modern, cloud-native technologies including:
• Microsoft Azure
• Kubernetes (AKS)
• Terraform (Infrastructure as Code)
• Cloudflare
• Observability stacks (Grafana and related tooling)
• ClickHouse and data infrastructure platforms
• CI/CD and modern DevOps practices
• This role requires a deep understanding of how platform engineering enables product teams to move faster, safer and at scale.

Requirements

• Proven senior leadership across DevOps, Infrastructure, Security and Corporate IT in a scaling technology organisation.
• Strong experience with cloud-native environments (Azure preferred), Kubernetes, infrastructure-as-code and production observability.
• Demonstrated experience leading cybersecurity initiatives in live production environments.
• Commercial acumen: vendor management, budget ownership and cost optimisation.
• Experience managing multiple functional areas simultaneously.
• Ability to translate business strategy into clear technical direction.
• Strong communication skills, capable of articulating technical trade-offs to executive and engineering stakeholders alike.
• **Leadership Profile**
• **You are:**
• A systems thinker who sees the full platform, not isolated components.
• Commercially aware and technically credible.
• Calm under pressure in high-availability environments.
• Structured and decisive in prioritisation.
• Comfortable empowering experts while maintaining accountability.
• Confident engaging with C-suite stakeholders while remaining trusted by engineering teams.
• Focused on building durable foundations, not short-term fixes.
• **Nice to Have**
• Experience in high-traffic, high-availability environments.
• Multi-region infrastructure scaling.
• Real-time analytics platforms (e.g., ClickHouse).
• Governance and compliance exposure in regulated industries.
• Experience leading platform modernisation initiatives.

Benefits

• **💰 Compensation & Financial Security**
• **Pension Fund (Liberty Life): **Company-supported retirement plan with employer matching contribution.
• **Medical Aid (Discovery Health): **Company contribution towards your medical cover.
• **Comprehensive Group Risk Cover: **Life insurance, disability income protection, critical illness benefit and funeral cover for you and your family.
• **Performance Bonus: **Discretionary rewards aligned with impact and contribution.
• **🌿 Wellbeing & Support**
• **Employee Wellness Programme (ICAS / October Health): **Confidential counselling and support services for you and your family.
• **Annual Leave & Birthday Day Off: **20 statutory working days per annum plus an additional birthday day off.
• **Work From Anywhere (10 Days): **Up to 10 business days per year working remotely from a location of your choice.
• **🚗 Flexibility & Tools**
• **Hybrid & Flexible Working: **2 days in-office, 3 days remote, with flexibility aligned to team and operational needs.
• **Work Equipment: **Company-provided laptop, plus full access to required systems and infrastructure.
• **Company-supported parking at our office location**, ensuring easy access to a prime, professional workspace.