Principal Compute Specialist

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The Bank of Canada has a vision to be a leading central bank—dynamic, engaged and trusted—committed to a better Canada. No other employer in the country offers you the unique opportunity to work at the very center of Canada’s economy, in an organization with significant impact on the economic and financial well-being of all Canadians. You will be challenged, energized and motivated to excel in our environment. 

Building on the principles that have always guided us – excellence, integrity and respect – we strive to be forward-looking and innovative, to welcome people with diverse perspectives and talents, and to earn trust by living up to our commitments and by clearly explaining the intent of our policies and actions.  

With our defined-benefit pension plan, benefits, and high flexibility for work life balance - find out more about why we are annually ranked as one of Canada's top employers:  Working Here - Bank of Canada

Find out more about the next steps in our Recruitment process. 

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are seeking a Principal Compute Specialist to join our Data and Compute Platforms team, which is focused on consolidation and modernization of our compute platforms. This senior role blends deep technical expertise with strategic judgment to shape key platform decisions and accelerate our modernization journey.

This role is hands-on; we are looking for someone with extensive experience across multiple compute platforms and a deep understanding of Linux systems. You will also have the opportunity to leverage AI techniques to help optimize system performance and capacity planning where appropriate.

If you join our team, you will lead high impact initiatives that shape compute strategy at an enterprise scale, influencing the future of platform architecture across multiple business units. Working closely with solution architects, engineers, and infrastructure leaders, you will help deliver enterprise wide solutions while tackling cutting edge, compute intensive workloads and complex infrastructure challenges. This role offers a unique opportunity to bring innovation, AI driven optimization, and deep Linux expertise to modernize and continuously improve compute platforms.

What you will do
You will define and implement enterprise-wide compute architecture standards, optimize performance and scalability across diverse workloads, and lead the migration of legacy and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads to modern cloud environments. You will collaborate closely with solution architects, engineering, and data teams to deliver cohesive, future-ready platforms that support evolving business needs.

More specifically you will:

• Lead the consolidation, modernization, and optimization of enterprise compute platforms 
  
• Establish compute architecture standards, best practices, and governance across diverse workload profiles
  
• Evaluate and recommend fit-for-purpose compute solutions, balancing performance, scalability, reliability, and cost 
  
• Partner with solution architects and cross-functional teams to design and deliver end-to-end compute architectures
  
• Provide deep, hands-on expertise with HPC, cloud-native, and distributed compute environments 
  
• Assess legacy platforms and design migration and modernization strategies for cloud adoption
  
• Apply advanced Linux expertise for system tuning, workload optimization, and resource management 
  
• Identify opportunities to enhance traditional automation with AI-assisted decision-making, particularly in scheduling, workload placement, and system optimization.
  
• Apply AI techniques to analyze system telemetry and workload patterns, improving capacity planning, performance tuning, and resource allocation across HPC and cloud platforms.
  
• Influence the organization’s long-term compute strategy and roadmap, helping guide future platform and investment decisions

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO SUCCEED

• Extensive hands-on experience across multiple compute and cloud platforms, including HPC, Databricks and Azure
• Deep expertise in Linux systems, performance tuning, and resource management 
• Proven track record in designing, consolidating, or modernizing large-scale compute environments 
• Strong understanding of distributed systems, HPC concepts, and cloud architecture 
• Experience with Apache Spark and Databricks data-processing platforms 
• Ability to define standards, evaluate trade-offs, and effectively influence stakeholders 
• Excellent collaboration skills, with experience working closely with Solution Architects and cross-functional teams 

NICE-TO-HAVE

• Experience leveraging AI techniques to improve performance optimization, capacity planning, workload efficiency and operational efficiency
• Familiarity with HPC schedulers (e.g., SLURM) or GPU/accelerated computing environments
• Background in cost-performance optimization across hybrid and multi-cloud environments 

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
This position requires a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, along with 6-8 years of progressive experience in roles such as Solution Architect, Platform Engineer, Systems Engineer, Infrastructure Architect, or High-Performance Computing (HPC) Engineer.

The ideal candidate brings demonstrated hands-on technical leadership, experience designing, building, and operating production-grade compute platforms, and the ability to provide strategic guidance and subject-matter expertise across enterprise-scale environments.

A combination of education and equivalent experience may also be considered.

Innovative Mindset
We value candidates who demonstrate adaptability, curiosity, and a willingness to learn new technologies, including AI and digital tools. We seek individuals who can think critically about data, question existing processes, and find ways to simplify our work while embracing change and new ways of doing things. 

Language requirement
The Bank’s work environment is conducive to the use of both of Canada’s official languages - English and French. Although the position language requirement is English or French essential, we do encourage everyone to improve their second language proficiency for future career growth and to contribute towards fostering a bilingual environment.

What you need to know

• Priority will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents
• Security level required: Be eligible to obtain Secret 
• Relocation assistance may be provided, if required
• Please save a copy of the job poster. Once the closing date has passed, it will no longer be available.
• The official title for this position is “Solution Architect ”

Hybrid Work Model
The Bank offers work arrangements that provide employees with flexibility, enable high-performing teams, and support an excellent workplace culture. Most employees can telework from home for a portion of each month as part of the Bank’s hybrid work model, and they are expected on site at the Bank location a minimum of 12 days per month to help build connections between colleagues. You must live in Canada, and within reasonable commuting distance of the office. 

What you can expect from us
This is a great opportunity to join a leading organization and be part of a high-performing team. We offer a competitive compensation and benefits package designed to meet your needs at every stage of your life and career. For more information on key benefits please visit A great deal to consider. 

• Salaries are based on qualifications and experience and typically range from $126,765 to $149,135 (job grade 18)
• The Bank offers an incentive for successfully meeting expectations at  7 to 10% of your base salary. The Bank offers additional performance pay (5%) for those who exceed expectations. Exceptional performers who far exceed expectations may be eligible for higher performance pay.
• Flexible and comprehensive benefits so you can choose the level of health, dental disability and life and/or accident insurance coverage that meets your needs
• Extra vacation days (up to five each year) that you can purchase to add to your vacation entitlement
• Indexed, defined-benefit pension

We wish to thank all applicants for their interest and effort in applying for this position. Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted.