Job Description: Principal Architect Work Type/Locations:

Hybrid in either Jersey City, NJ/Phoenix, AZ/Fairfax, VA/Panama City, FL

About goTenna

goTenna is advancing universal access to connectivity by building the world's most intelligent and scalable mobile mesh networks. goTenna is the world's leading mobile mesh networking company, providing off-grid connectivity solutions for smartphones and other devices, as well as augmenting traditional communications networks. This technology enables mobile, long-range connectivity without cell, wifi, or satellite connectivity. goTenna's drive to create resilient connectivity began during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, when approximately a third of cell towers and power stations in affected areas failed. goTenna's products are currently used by over 300 law enforcement, military, and public safety agencies worldwide. goTenna is backed by investors, including Union Square Ventures, Founders Fund, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Comcast Ventures, MentorTech Ventures, Walden Venture Capital, and ONE9.

About the Role

This role serves as the Principal Architect across the Full Stack Portal, Full Stack SmartEdge, and DevSecOps (DSO) teams. The Principal Cloud and Edge Architect will define and govern goTenna’s hybrid cloud and edge infrastructure strategy—ensuring scalability, reliability, and security across AWS, on-premises, and field-deployed environments. This position is the technical authority for infrastructure modernization, security architecture, and system integration across all software engineering domains.

Primary Responsibilities:

Architectural Leadership:

• Define the unified cloud and edge architecture strategy supporting goTenna’s product roadmap
• Align infrastructure design across Portal, SmartEdge, and DSO teams to shared standards.
• Establish IaC, observability, and CI/CD frameworks that ensure consistency across environments.

Cloud and Edge Infrastructure:

• Design hybrid and distributed systems that bridge AWS cloud and tactical edge networks
• Define secure data exchange models between disconnected or bandwidth-constrained environments
• Drive scalability, performance, and fault-tolerance improvements across systems.

Security Architecture:

• Embed Zero Trust, encryption, and least-privilege models into all designs
• Collaborate with Security and DSO teams to ensure FedRAMP, CMMC, and NIST 800-53 compliance
• Guide vulnerability management and remediation strategies across infrastructure layers.

Cross-Team Integration:

• Partner with Product, Firmware, Mobile, and QA teams to align system interfaces and dependencies
• Provide architectural oversight during planning, development, and release cycles
• Deliver architecture documentation, design reviews, and leadership briefings

Required Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years in systems or cloud architecture, including AWS and edge systems.
• Expertise in IaC (Terraform, CloudFormation), CI/CD (GitHub Actions, Jenkins), and container orchestration (EKS, ECS, Docker).
• Deep understanding of distributed networking, routing, and security models.
• Proven ability to architect systems across multiple agile teams and environments.

Preferred Experience:

• Experience with tactical or constrained network environments.
• Knowledge of mesh networking, VPN overlays, and secure sync models.
• Familiarity with observability, performance tuning, and cost optimization frameworks.

ITAR: U.S. Citizen or Green Card Required

Placement at the appropriate job level (entry, senior, etc) will be determined by a combination of years of experience, demonstration of proficiency in this field, and other qualifications.

goTenna is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

goTenna Benefits:

• Equity
• 401(k) plan
• Unlimited PTO
• Parental Leave with Pay
• Holiday pay (including December recess)
• Medical, Dental, Vision and life insurance
• Pre-tax benefits
• Short- and Long-term disability plans
• Professional Development Stipend