Job Summary

The Cloud Database Administrator (DBA) at Thales is a senior-level technical role based in Ottawa. As a “Guardian of Digital Identity,” you will manage the high-scale Identity and Access Management (IAM) cloud database services that power millions of secure interactions for global banks, governments, and organizations. This role requires the “wit” to orchestrate complex polyglot database environments (SQL and NoSQL) and the “grit” to participate in a global “follow-the-sun” on-call rotation to ensure 24/7 reliability.

Job Details

Employer: Thales (Digital Identity & Security).
Location: Ottawa, ON (Hybrid).
Total Target Compensation (TTC): $114,400 – $143,000 CAD.
Schedule: Core hours + IAM Cloud DevOps on-call rotation.
Core Function: Database Design, Automation (IaC), and Cloud Reliability.

Key Responsibilities: The Cloud Data Lifecycle

You are the architect and operator of the data layer for Thales’ global authentication services.

Database Orchestration: Manage a diverse ecosystem including RDS, Aurora, CloudSQL, MongoDB, and PostgreSQL. You will ensure high availability (HA), failover, and disaster recovery.
Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Develop installation and upgrade scripts as part of a CI/CD pipeline. You will use tools like Terraform, Ansible, and Helm to automate database provisioning.
Performance & Hardening: Optimize database performance and implement rigorous security hardening to protect sensitive identity data.
Migration & Scaling: Strategize and execute large-scale data migrations and provide input to Automation Architects to improve infrastructure scalability.
DevOps Collaboration: Review peer code, manage system/network configurations, and provide L2/L3 support to Service Desk and R&D teams.
AI Integration: Utilize AI concepts and tools in daily operations to accelerate productivity and streamline database maintenance.

Candidate Profile & Qualifications

The “Database Veteran”: 8+ years of experience supporting web-based applications with relational and NoSQL databases is required.
Cloud Native Wit: Deep expertise in cloud database technologies (AWS Aurora, Cloud Spanner, etc.) and managed services (PaaS like Kubernetes/OpenShift).
Automation Grit: 8+ years of experience with orchestration tools (Terraform, Ansible, Python, YAML). You must be able to treat “Infrastructure as Code.”
Security Mindset: Strong understanding of security-relevant protocols and a commitment to security best practices from design to implementation.
Geographic Flexibility: Proven ability to work effectively within an extremely geographically distributed company.

Technical Insights: The Polyglot Database Environment

Thales operates at a scale where a single database technology is rarely enough. You will manage a “Polyglot Persistence” strategy.

- Relational vs. NoSQL: You will balance the “ACID” compliance of SQL (MySQL/PostgreSQL) for transactional identity data with the horizontal scalability of NoSQL (MongoDB) for high-volume metadata.

Replication Methodologies: You must understand synchronous vs. asynchronous replication to manage data consistency across different global regions.
High Availability (HA) Clusters: You will implement multi-AZ (Availability Zone) deployments to ensure that authentication services never go down, even during a regional cloud outage.

Diversity and Culture at Thales

Thales is a global leader that views diversity as a driver of innovation and digital trust.

Global Footprint: With 30,000 organizations relying on Thales, the team is inherently multicultural and distributed. This role specifically looks for local Ottawa talent to join this global network.
Inclusive Recruitment: Thales uses AI-enabled tools to assist in candidate discovery and matching to remove human bias in the early stages, though all final hiring decisions are made by human recruiters.
The Confidence Gap: Thales values “competencies and performance” over a perfect checklist. They encourage senior candidates who have the “grit” for large-scale production systems to apply, even if they don’t hit every single basic qualification.
Equal Opportunity: The company provides extensive accommodations for the interview process and is committed to an accessible candidate experience.

Job Description

Do you believe that digital security is the foundation of modern trust? Thales is seeking a Cloud Database Administrator in Ottawa. We aren’t just looking for someone to “run queries”; we are looking for a Cloud DevOps expert who has the “grit” to manage massive production scales and the “wit” to automate everything in sight. If you want to protect the digital identities of billions of people while working with the latest AI and cloud-native tools, you belong at Thales.

In this role, you are a “Reliability Engineer.” You understand that if the database fails, the trust of thousands of customers fails with it. Your goal is to provide “Excellence in Cloud Data Services,” ensuring that Thales remains the world leader in identity management. We look for “Accountability-first” professionals who are result-oriented, communicative, and ready to contribute to a more secure connected world.

Joining Thales means joining a company that values your well-being with a comprehensive “Day 1” benefits package, including health, dental, and retirement matching with no vesting period. We offer a sophisticated, hybrid work environment in Ottawa where your expertise will be supported by a like-minded, talented team. If you are a DBA with a commitment to “Security, Automation, and Global Scalability,” we invite you to apply and help us protect the heart of digital security.

Thales: Engineering a Future You Can Trust

Thales (pronounced “tah-less”) is a global technology powerhouse whose culture is defined by “Human Intelligence” and “Deep Tech” innovation. Their mission is to build a future that everyone can trust by developing high-stakes solutions in defence, aeronautics, space, and digital identity. The internal environment is intellectually rigorous yet highly flexible, consistently recognized as a “Top Employer” in Canada for its commitment to work-life balance (offering up to 40 days off in some regions) and “lifelong learning” through its internal Learning Hub. Thales fosters a “think outside the box” spirit where employees are treated as pioneers, encouraged to explore uncharted territory in AI, cybersecurity, and quantum technology.

In Ottawa, Thales serves as the strategic head office for Thales Canada and a primary technological partner for the Canadian federal government:

Central Hub: Located at 1 Chrysalis Way (near the intersection of Transitway and Hunt Club Rd), this office acts as the nerve center for their national operations. It is home to a massive concentration of systems, software, and mechanical engineers.
National Defence Partner: The Ottawa team is a Tier-1 supplier to the Canadian Armed Forces. Key projects include the AJISS (Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship In-Service Support) program and the LC4ISR (Land Command, Control, Communications, Computing, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) systems, which provide the “digital backbone” for the Canadian Army.
Digital Identity & Security (DIS): Ottawa is a global competency center for Hardware Security Modules (HSM)—technology that secures everything from satellites to banking transactions. This expertise evolved from Ottawa’s “Silicon Valley North” roots in the 1990s.
Biometrics & Sovereignty: The Ottawa office also drives the production of secure Canadian travel documents (passports) and next-generation biometric identification systems.

Working at Thales in Ottawa means being at the intersection of international diplomacy and cutting-edge engineering. It is a workplace where your project might involve integrating sensors on a Royal Canadian Navy frigate in the morning and discussing the ethics of AI with a global research lab in the afternoon.

To apply for this job please visit careers.thalesgroup.com.