Lead Site Reliability Engineer
At a glance
Senior Site Reliability role at Cat (CaterpillarCareers). Chicago · full-time · $128,470–$208,770 base.
devopsroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Keep production and QA systems healthy by spotting and resolving performance, scaling, and reliability problems
- Take part in round-the-clock incident coverage for eCommerce systems through the on-call rotation
- Build automation for deployments and releases, and maintain tools that make those workflows smoother
- Create monitoring dashboards that surface live system health, then work with developers on bugs and performance bottlenecks
- Set operational practices with partner teams and keep infrastructure aligned with security and regulatory obligations
What you bring
- At least six years in site reliability, DevOps, QA or another related discipline
- Strong experience with Node or Next.js, AWS, infrastructure as code, and CI/CD tools
- Extensive programming experience, preferably in Python or JavaScript, plus knowledge of networking and web architectures
- Experience with Docker or Kubernetes and the ability to diagnose complex technical problems
Who this fits
This senior role suits someone who can combine hands-on reliability work with coordination across teams. You’ll join an on-call rotation that provides 24/7 incident support. The role is based in Chicago or Peoria; relocation assistance and visa sponsorship are unavailable.
From the employer
Career Area:
Technology, Digital and DataJob Description:
Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.
When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.
Job Summary:
As a Lead Site Reliability Engineer (SRE), you will be responsible for ensuring the reliability, availability, and performance of our eCommerce platform systems and infrastructure. You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop and implement strategies to improve system stability, automate repetitive tasks, and enhance service delivery.
If you have a passion for delivering reliable, high-performance services and thrive in a fast-paced environment, we'd love to hear from you. Apply now to join our team as a Site Reliability Engineer!
What You Will Do:
- Monitor and troubleshoot production and QA systems to identify and resolve performance, scalability, and reliability issues proactively.
- Participate in the on-call rotation to provide 24/7 critical incident support for eCommerce platform systems
- Design, implement, and maintain automated processes and tools to streamline deployment and release processes.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define, document, and implement operational processes, best practices, and procedures.
- Implement and maintain system monitoring tools and dashboards to provide real-time insights into system performance and identify potential issues.
- Work closely with developers to identify and fix bugs and performance bottlenecks in the application code.
- Ensure that systems and infrastructure comply with security, compliance, and regulatory requirements.
- Continuously evaluate systems and processes to identify areas for improvement and implement changes as needed.
What You Will Have:
- Effective Communications: Strong understanding of communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of appropriate communication behaviors.
- Technical Troubleshooting: Extensive knowledge of technical troubleshooting approaches, tools and techniques; ability to anticipate, recognize, and resolve technical issues on hardware, software, application or operation.
- Performance Measurement and Tuning: Knowledge of system performance, testing and programming; ability to monitor, measure, and optimize system performance and network communication.
- Software Release Management: Knowledge of strategies, practices and tools for managing versions and distribution of software products and enhancements; ability to evaluate and improve release management practices and tools.
- Software Reliability Management: Knowledge of software reliability management; ability to develop and use principles, methodologies and metrics that increase software product performance and reliability.
Considerations for top Candidates:
- 6+ years of experience in site reliability engineering, DevOps, QA, or a related field.
- Strong experience with node / next.js solutions
- Experience with AWS infrastructure and services
- Experience with IaC solutions like Cloudformation and Terraform
- Experience with CI/CD solutions - Github, Azure DevOps
- Strong troubleshooting and critical thinking skills
- Extensive experience in one or more programming languages, such as Python (preferred), Javascript (preferred).
- Solid understanding of networking, load balancing, and web application architectures.
- Experience with containerization technologies, such as Docker and Kubernetes.
Additional Details:
- This position has the option to be based out of either our Chicago, IL or Peoria, IL offices.
- Relocation assistance is NOT available for this position
- Visa sponsorship is NOT available with this position.
Summary Pay Range:
$128,470.00 - $208,770.00Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Caterpillar.
Benefits:
Subject to plan eligibility, terms, and guidelines. This is a summary list of benefits.
Medical, dental, and vision benefits*
Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holidays, Volunteer, etc.)*
401(k) savings plans*
Health Savings Account (HSA)*
Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)*
Health Lifestyle Programs*
Employee Assistance Program*
Voluntary Benefits and Employee Discounts*
Career Development*
Incentive bonus*
Disability benefits
Life Insurance
Parental leave
Adoption benefits
Tuition Reimbursement
* These benefits also apply to part-time employees
Visa Sponsorship is not available for this position.
Posting Dates:
October 15, 2026 - October 25, 2026Any offer of employment is conditioned upon the successful completion of a drug screen.
Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer, Including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities. Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply.
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