Travis N.
Forward Deployed Engineer | GCP, Terraform, Kubernetes, Cloud Security
I'm a Forward Deployed Engineer for cloud infrastructure and security. I embed with your team, work in your environment, and leave you with running, audited infrastructure, not a findings report and an invoice. AWS, GCP, Terraform, Kubernetes, and CI/CD automation, with HIPAA, CMMC, and PCI DSS built into the build rather than bolted on after an audit fails. 10+ years across Fortune 100 enterprises, funded startups, healthcare organizations, and SMBs. If you need someone to architect your AWS or GCP environment, automate infrastructure with Terraform, and make sure the whole stack holds up to HIPAA, SOC 2, CMMC, or PCI scrutiny, that's exactly what I do. ▌CORE EXPERTISE ▪ Cloud Architecture & Security (AWS, GCP, Azure): Production environments with security built in: hardened VPCs, multi-account AWS Organizations, least-privilege IAM, KMS encryption, AWS WAF, GCP Security Command Center, and guardrails that scale. ▪ Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation): Reusable, peer-reviewed modules with built-in security controls, policy-as-code (OPA, Sentinel, Checkov), and drift detection. ▪ CI/CD Pipeline Automation: GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Azure DevOps, and AWS CodePipeline with integrated SAST, SCA, secret scanning, and container image scanning. Pipelines that ship fast and safely. ▪ Kubernetes & Container Security: Docker, EKS, GKE, ECS, image hardening, runtime security, network policies, and admission controllers. ▪ DevSecOps & Compliance Automation: HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II, PCI DSS 4.0.1, CMMC, and HITRUST controls automated into the build. I've taken multiple organizations through audits with zero findings by making compliance a build artifact, not a quarterly fire drill. ▪ AI & LLM Infrastructure: Secure deployment paths for AI-assisted applications and LLM workloads: API key and secrets management, network egress controls, data-handling boundaries for PHI and regulated data, and getting AI-generated codebases production-ready. ▪ Zero Trust & Cloud Networking: Identity-based micro-segmentation, Cloudflare, site-to-site VPNs, and secure networking for distributed teams. ▪ Monitoring & Incident Response: CloudWatch, Datadog, security event monitoring, and runbooks that turn alerts into action. ▌WHY CLIENTS HIRE ME Most consultants either build cloud infrastructure or audit it. I do both, so what I deliver is production-ready and audit-ready on day one. Whether it's a greenfield AWS build or debugging deployment issues on an AI-assisted web app, the goal is the same: leave your stack automated, secure, and easy for your team to own. Message me to discuss your cloud migration, DevOps automation, or compliance readiness project. Specialties: AWS, GCP, Azure, Terraform, Kubernetes, Docker, EKS, GKE, CI/CD, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, DevOps, DevSecOps, Cloud Security, Infrastructure as Code, HIPAA, SOC 2, PCI DSS, CMMC, HITRUST, Zero Trust, IAM, Cloud Migration, Site Reliability Engineering, LLM Infrastructure
Earnings and projects
Last 6 months ÷ 6
Last 6 months: $19k
Billed in all: $74,734$75k
$2.4k in the last 6 months
Across 9 contracts
Across 17 contracts
Earnings, last 30 days
Skill rankings: Top 2% in Report Writing
Ranked by MRR among everyone on Upwork with the skill.
- Real Time Stream Processing62 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #1Top 5%🇺🇸#1 of 8
- #4System Deployment172 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #2Top 2%🇺🇸#2 of 21
- #7System Security242 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #1Top 3%🇺🇸#1 of 50
- #12PCI DSS109 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #3Top 11%🇺🇸#3 of 22
- #23Vulnerability Assessment519 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #7Top 4%🇺🇸#7 of 98
- #27Report590 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #7Top 5%🇺🇸#7 of 99
- #33Cybersecurity Management728 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #15Top 5%🇺🇸#15 of 187
- #43Report Writing2,074 freelancers · 🇺🇸 #14Top 2%🇺🇸#14 of 420