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Director Observability Jobs in Rhode Island (NOW HIRING)

Director Observability information

What is the difference between Director Observability vs Site Reliability Engineer?

AspectDirector ObservabilitySite Reliability Engineer
Primary FocusOversees observability strategies, tools, and teams to ensure system visibility and performanceBuilds and maintains reliable systems, automates deployment, and manages incident response
CredentialsTypically requires advanced knowledge of monitoring, cloud platforms, and leadership experienceOften has software engineering background, with skills in scripting, automation, and systems engineering
Work EnvironmentLeads teams in tech companies, focusing on monitoring and analytics toolsWorks closely with development and operations teams to ensure system reliability

While both roles focus on system performance and reliability, the Director Observability primarily manages observability strategies and teams, whereas the Site Reliability Engineer is hands-on, building and maintaining reliable systems. The roles complement each other in ensuring optimal system performance and uptime.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a director of observability, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Director of Observability, you need deep expertise in monitoring, logging, and distributed systems, typically backed by a degree in computer science or a related field and extensive experience in IT or DevOps leadership roles. Proficiency with observability tools such as Prometheus, Grafana, Datadog, Splunk, and APM solutions, along with knowledge of cloud platforms and relevant certifications, is essential. Strong leadership, strategic thinking, and communication skills help drive cross-functional initiatives and foster a culture of reliability. These skills and qualities are crucial for ensuring system health, rapid incident response, and alignment between technical teams and organizational objectives.

How does a director of observability typically collaborate with engineering and operations teams to drive organizational goals?

A Director of Observability works closely with engineering and operations teams to ensure that systems are monitored effectively and issues are identified and resolved quickly. This collaboration often involves developing unified monitoring strategies, aligning observability tools and processes, and facilitating incident response post-mortems. The Director also leads cross-functional meetings to establish best practices, set key performance indicators (KPIs), and ensure observability is integrated into the software development lifecycle. By acting as a bridge between technical teams, they help foster a culture of transparency, reliability, and continuous improvement.

What does a director of observability do?

A Director of Observability leads the strategy and implementation of monitoring, logging, and tracing systems to ensure the health and performance of technical infrastructure. They work with engineering and operations teams to develop best practices, select appropriate tools, and set standards for observability across the organization. Their goal is to provide visibility into system behavior, quickly identify and resolve incidents, and support continuous improvement in system reliability and performance.
What are popular job titles related to Director Observability jobs in Rhode Island? For Director Observability jobs in Rhode Island, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What cities in Rhode Island are hiring for Director Observability jobs? Cities in Rhode Island with the most Director Observability job openings:
Infographic showing various Director Observability job openings in Rhode Island as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 96% Full Time, and 4% Contract. Highlights an 81% In-person, and 19% Remote job distribution.

Executive Director - Site Reliability Engineering - Retail Pharmacy

CVS Health

Woonsocket, RI • On-site

$54.50 - $72.50/hr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Retirement, PTO

Posted 24 days ago


CVS Health rating

5.8

Company rating: 5.8 out of 10

Based on 4,332 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

89th of 112 rated pharmacies


Job description

We're building a world of health around every individual - shaping a more connected, convenient and compassionate health experience. At CVS Health, you'll be surrounded by passionate colleagues who care deeply, innovate with purpose, hold ourselvesaccountable and prioritize safety and quality in everything we do. Join us and be part of something bigger - helping to simplify health care one person, one family and one community at a time.

At CVS Health, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) is fundamental to delivering the reliable, secure, and scalable technology experiences that support millions of patients, customers, pharmacists, and healthcare professionals every day. Our SRE organization drives operational excellence across critical healthcare and retail platforms through innovation, automation, observability, and engineering best practices.

The Executive Director, Site Reliability Engineering serves as the strategic leader responsible for the reliability, resilience, and performance of CVS Health's retail and pharmacy technology ecosystem. This executive will define and execute a comprehensive reliability strategy, oversee large global engineering teams, and establish a long-term vision for observability, automation, and operational excellence across thousands of store locations.

Working closely with senior business and technology leaders, the Executive Director will champion modern SRE practices, accelerate incident response capabilities, and deliver real-time operational visibility that enables proactive issue prevention and exceptional customer and patient experiences.

Key ResponsibilitiesStrategic Leadership & Vision
  • Define and lead the enterprise-wide Site Reliability Engineering strategy supporting CVS Health's retail and pharmacy operations.
  • Align reliability and operational objectives with broader business and technology priorities.
  • Develop and execute a multi-year roadmap focused on observability, automation, platform resiliency, and operational excellence.
  • Influence technology investment decisions and architectural direction to advance reliability capabilities across the enterprise.
  • Serve as the executive sponsor and trusted advisor for store reliability, partnering with retail, pharmacy, digital, and corporate leadership.
Reliability Engineering & Operational Excellence
  • Establish and govern Service Level Objectives (SLOs), Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and error budgets for mission-critical store applications and services.
  • Drive continuous improvements in availability, performance, scalability, and resilience across distributed technology environments.
  • Lead enterprise major incident management activities, ensuring rapid detection, effective escalation, root-cause analysis, and lasting remediation.
  • Foster a culture of accountability, operational excellence, and continuous improvement across engineering organizations.
Observability, Monitoring & Automation
  • Establish comprehensive observability capabilities, including advanced monitoring, logging, metrics collection, event correlation, and distributed tracing.
  • Deliver end-to-end visibility into the health and performance of retail and pharmacy systems across thousands of locations.
  • Drive automation initiatives that reduce manual effort, eliminate operational toil, and enable self-healing operational capabilities.
  • Leverage AI and machine learning technologies to improve monitoring, predictive analytics, operational insights, and incident prevention.
Technology & Platform Modernization
  • Champion modern cloud, edge computing, and distributed systems architectures that enhance reliability and scalability.
  • Partner with Product Engineering, Architecture, Infrastructure, Security, and Operations teams to embed reliability practices throughout the software development lifecycle.
  • Ensure technology operations remain secure, compliant, and aligned with healthcare and retail regulatory requirements.
Organizational Leadership & Talent Development
  • Lead, mentor, and inspire large global teams of Site Reliability Engineers and engineering leaders.
  • Build a high-performing, inclusive engineering culture focused on innovation, collaboration, and customer outcomes.
  • Develop workforce planning strategies and talent pipelines to attract, retain, and grow world-class engineering talent.
  • Promote leadership development and succession planning across the organization.
Required Qualifications
  • 15+ years of progressive technology leadership experience across infrastructure, operations, software engineering, or related disciplines.
  • Significant experience leading Site Reliability Engineering, production operations, platform engineering, or large-scale reliability programs.
  • Proven success managing complex, distributed technology environments, preferably in retail, healthcare, pharmacy, or other multi-site enterprise operations.
  • Deep expertise in incident management, observability, automation, resiliency engineering, and operational excellence methodologies.
  • Strong understanding of retail technology ecosystems, including POS systems, pharmacy applications, handheld devices, store servers, and network infrastructure.
  • Demonstrated ability to lead enterprise-wide transformation initiatives and influence executive stakeholders.
  • Exceptional communication, strategic thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.
  • Experience leading large-scale global teams and managing enterprise technology programs.
  • Strong commitment to collaboration, inclusion, innovation, and team development.
Preferred Qualifications
  • Experience leading large SRE, infrastructure, or technology operations organizations within retail, healthcare, pharmacy, or similarly complex environments.
  • Advanced knowledge of cloud platforms including AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
  • Expertise with containerization and orchestration technologies such as Kubernetes and OpenShift.
  • Hands-on familiarity with leading observability and monitoring platforms including Splunk, Dynatrace, Datadog, Prometheus, and Grafana.
  • Strong understanding of regulatory and compliance requirements, including HIPAA, PCI DSS, and ADA standards.
  • Proven experience leveraging AI and machine learning to enhance monitoring, automation, predictive operations, and incident management.
  • Experience utilizing customer experience and digital analytics platforms such as Quantum Metric, Medallia, and Adobe Analytics to connect technology performance with business outcomes and customer experience metrics.
Education
  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or a related technical field preferred.
  • Advanced degree (MBA, Master's, or equivalent) and/or relevant industry certifications are highly desirable.

    Pay Range

    The typical pay range for this role is:

    $175,100.00 - $334,750.00


    This pay range represents the base hourly rate or base annual full-time salary for all positions in the job grade within which this position falls. The actual base salary offer will depend on a variety of factors including experience, education, geography and other relevant factors. This position is eligible for a CVS Health bonus, commission or short-term incentive program in addition to the base pay range listed above. This position also includes an award target in the company's equity award program.

    Our people fuel our future. Our teams reflect the customers, patients, members and communities we serve and we are committed to fostering a workplace where every colleague feels valued and that they belong.

    Great benefits for great people

    We take pride in offering a comprehensive and competitive mix of pay and benefits that reflects our commitment to our colleagues and their families.

    This fulltime position is eligible for a comprehensive benefits package designed to support the physical, emotional, and financial wellbeing of colleagues and their families. The benefits for this position include medical, dental, and vision coverage, paid time off, retirement savings options, wellness programs, and other resources, based on eligibility.


    Additional details about available benefits are provided during the application process and on Benefits Moments.

    We anticipate the application window for this opening will close on: 09/30/2026

    Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state and local laws.


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