Azure Platform Senior Consultant

Avanade is the leading provider of innovative digital, cloud, and advisory services, business solutions, and design-led experiences across the Microsoft ecosystem. Every day, our 60,000+ professionals in 26 countries make a genuine human impact on our clients, their employees, and their customers.

We are currently expanding our Infrastructure Community in Portugal to drive a strategic, large-scale digital transformation project for a major player in the insurance sector. This project focuses on modernizing core life insurance systems, optimizing hybrid environments, and accelerating secure cloud adoption.

Role Purpose

As a Senior Infrastructure Consultant, you will serve as a technical anchor and trusted advisor. You will design, build, and migrate enterprise-grade cloud environments using the Microsoft Azure ecosystem. You will ensure that the infrastructure supporting core insurance operations is secure, highly available, compliant with financial regulations, and fully automated.

Key Responsibilities:

Architecture & Cloud Engineering

• Design & Deploy: Create high-level and low-level designs (HLD/LLD) for scalable enterprise infrastructure on Microsoft Azure (IaaS and PaaS).
• Hybrid Integration: Architect secure connectivity between on-premises datacenters and Azure cloud services using ExpressRoute, VPNs, and Azure Virtual WAN.
• Core Modernization: Support the migration of legacy insurance applications and workloads to modern cloud native architectures.

Automation & DevOps

• Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Standardize environment provisioning using Terraform, Bicep, or ARM Templates to eliminate manual configuration drift.
• CI/CD Pipelines: Collaborate with DevOps teams to integrate infrastructure deployments into Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions pipelines.
• Scripting: Develop robust PowerShell or Azure CLI scripts to automate routine operations, compliance checks, and patching tasks.

Security, Compliance & Business Continuity

• Identity & Access: Implement strict Zero Trust models using Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD), RBAC, PIM, and Conditional Access policies.
• Data Protection: Configure Azure Key Vault, disk encryption, and data-at-rest/in-transit protection to safeguard sensitive policyholder information.
• Resilience: Design and test rigorous Disaster Recovery (DR) and Backup strategies utilizing Azure Backup and Azure Site Recovery (ASR) to meet strict insurance RTO/RPO metrics.

Consultative Leadership & Stakeholder Management

• Trusted Advisor: Act as the main technical point of contact for the client’s IT leadership team, aligning infrastructure choices with business goals.
• Mentorship: Guide and mentor junior team members within the Avanade delivery unit.
• Cost Optimization: Monitor cloud spends and resource utilization using Azure Advisor and Microsoft Cost Management to deliver FinOps recommendations.

.

Required Technical Skills

• Experience: 5+ years of experience in IT Infrastructure engineering, with at least 3 years focused heavily on Microsoft Azure enterprise deployments.
• Networking & Security: Deep understanding of Azure networking (VNet peering, NSGs, Azure Firewall, Application Gateways) and cloud security best practices.
• Systems Administration: Strong background in Windows Server and/or Linux administration within enterprise environments.
• Automation Mastery: Proven hands-on experience with Terraform or Bicep, along with PowerShell scripting.

Professional & Soft Skills

• Industry Context: Experience working within regulated environments (Financial Services, Insurance, or Banking) is highly valued.
• Consulting Mindset: Ability to articulate complex technical architectures to non-technical business stakeholders clearly.
• Methodologies: Solid understanding of Agile frameworks (Scrum/Kanban) and ITIL service management concepts.
• Languages: Fluency in English (written and spoken) is mandatory for internal collaboration. Professional proficiency in Portuguese is required for day-to-day client interaction.

Preferred Certifications

• Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305).
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Infrastructure Associate (AZ-104).
• HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to work on a critical, high-visibility digital transformation project with a tangible impact on the Portuguese insurance market.
• A dedicated training budget and clear pathways to achieve top-tier Microsoft certifications.
• Flexible hybrid working model matching the project’s collaboration needs.
• Competitive benefits package and a collaborative culture that values diversity and continuous learning.

.