Ellison Institute of Technology Oxford - Pathogena

DevOps Engineer

Oxford, UK (Hybrid)

About Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT)

The Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) works to develop and deploy advanced technology in pursuit of solving some of humanity’s most challenging and enduring problems. Guided by world-leading scientists and entrepreneurs, EIT seeks to accelerate innovation by driving scientific and technological advancements across four humane endeavours: health and medical science, food security and sustainable agriculture, climate change and clean energy, and government innovation and the era of artificial intelligence.

EIT Oxford is a new interdisciplinary research and development facility that bridges The Oxford Science Park and Littlemore. Set for completion in 2027, the state-of-the-art facility will have 30,000m² of research laboratories, an oncology and preventative care clinic, plus educational and meeting spaces. The new facility will further EIT’s current partnership with the University of Oxford and become the new home for Ellison Scholars.

Please visit eit.org for more details.

At the Ellison Institute, we believe that an inclusive, collaborative team atmosphere is just as important to our mission as our scientific aims and methods. We strive to build a supportive environment where everyone feels confident taking creative risks toward innovation. We value emotional intelligence and communicating with empathy and respect for others. We foster a team that is curious, has a deep sense of commitment, responsibility, and the resilience needed to achieve excellence.

About Pathogens

The EIT Pathogena's Mission aims to revolutionise the diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases by developing Whole Genome Sequencing-based metagenomic and individual pathogen clinical tools with the ultimate aim of developing an ‘always-on global pathogen metagenomics system with the ability to identify Pathogen X and provide early warning of disease epidemics.’  

Built by a long-established world-leading pathogen genomics team from the University of Oxford, supported by the cloud computing scale and security of Oracle Inc, the Pathogen Mission is designing a global, turn-key solution that systematises how data from genomic sequencing is processed. It aims to develop pipelines to analyse a broad range of pathogens and deliver solutions to laboratories, hospitals, and public health organisations around the globe.

The Role:

An exciting opportunity to join the Pathogen Programme at the Ellison Institute Oxford as a DevOps Engineer, contributing to the secure design, development, and automation of our cloud-based infrastructure and products. Working closely with the Product Engineering, Data Engineering and Product teams to implement scalable, secure, and reliable features. In this role, you’ll leverage your experience, especially in OCI, to enhance the security and performance of our cloud environments. Flexibility, a security-first mindset, and a proactive approach will be key to succeeding in this role, as the team operates within a start-up environment.

You will be involved in building and maintaining the infrastructure, designing secure automation pipelines, managing cloud environments, and ensuring the security and compliance of our systems. You will play a critical role in delivering end-to-end solutions that integrate seamlessly, run efficiently, and uphold the highest security standards.

Primary Responsibilities: 

·       Design, implement, and maintain secure cloud infrastructure using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).

·       Develop and maintain infrastructure as code (IaC) solutions using tools such as Terraform, ensuring secure and repeatable cloud deployments.

·       Implement and manage CI/CD pipelines with a focus on automated security testing, deployment, and monitoring.

·       Collaborate with the engineering teams to ensure security is integrated from feature development to deployment.

·       Conduct regular security audits and vulnerability assessments to identify and mitigate risks across systems and environments.

·       Work closely with internal and external R&D teams to integrate security best practices into new and existing features.

·       Ensure compliance with security standards and regulations (e.g., ISO 27001, SOC2).

·       Implement monitoring solutions to detect and respond to security incidents in real-time.

·       Perform root cause analysis and troubleshoot infrastructure and security-related issues in production.

·       Mentor junior engineers in security best practices and DevOps methodologies.

·       Collaborate with Technical leads to continuously improve security processes and internal workflows.

Required qualifications:

·       Strong hands-on experience with Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), including provisioning, configuration, and management of OCI services.

·       Proficiency in Terraform or similar infrastructure automation tools.

·       Experience implementing and maintaining CI/CD pipelines (e.g., Github Actions) with a focus on automated security testing.

·       In-depth knowledge of containerisation technologies (e.g., Docker) and orchestration tools like Kubernetes.

·       Solid understanding of cloud security best practices, including identity and access management (IAM), network security, and encryption.

·       Experience with monitoring and alerting tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, ELK stack).

·       Familiarity with Git or other version control systems.

Preferred Qualifications:

·       Certifications in Oracle Cloud (OCI) or other cloud platforms (AWS, GCP).

·       Hands-on experience with security tools like OWASP ZAP, Burp Suite, or similar.

·       Experience with Jira, Confluence, or similar project management tools.

·       Knowledge of compliance frameworks and standards (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, ISO27001, ISO13485).

·       Previous experience working in start-up or scale-up environments is beneficial.

Skills and Competencies:

·       Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to think critically about security challenges.

·       Excellent communication and teamwork abilities, particularly in cross-functional teams.

·       Ability to manage multiple tasks and meet deadlines in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.

·       Attention to detail and a strong commitment to security and quality assurance.

·       Flexibility to adapt and contribute to a rapidly scaling organisation.

This DevOps Engineer role offers an exciting opportunity for a security-focused engineer with experience inOCIto have a direct impact on the design, security, and scalability of our cloud-based infrastructure. You will be integral in ensuring our systems remain secure, resilient, and scalable as our organisation grows.

Terms of Appointment:

·       Eligible to work in the UK with a willingness to travel as necessary.

·       Based in, or within easy commuting distance of, Oxford.

·       During peak periods, some longer hours may be required and some working across multiple time zones due to the global nature of the programme.

Salary Package Includes:

·       Competitive salary reviewed annually based on performance and market rates.

·       Bonus scheme participation.

·       Travel Allowance.

·       Enhanced sick pay and maternity/paternity after qualifying service.

·       Access to Employee Assistance Programme and also Online and Virtual Therapy services.

·       Employer funded Private Medical Insurance and Hospital Cash Plan

·       Access to Perk Box for high street and online savings as well as other discounts and benefits.

·       Pension salary sacrifice scheme, minimum 5% employee and 7.5% from employer

·       Group life cover 4 times annual base salary

·       Group income protection plan

·       Holiday is 25 days a year plus public holiday. In addition, workplace closure between Christmas and New Year. Employees can also purchase up to five additional days.

Location

Oxford, UK/Hybrid. office based on Oxford Science Park with some remote working