Geospatial Platform Analyst
Job Description
Role Responsibilities
Build the platform behind the maps that power an entire province.
As a Geospatial Platform Analyst, you’ll take a senior, hands-on role in shaping and operating the Government of Alberta’s enterprise GIS platform delivering reliable, scalable geospatial services to ministries, partners, and citizens. Working across the full platform lifecycle, you’ll blend platform engineering with software development to design, build, and continuously improve a modern, high-performing GIS environment.
You’ll lead the configuration, extension, and operation of enterprise geospatial technologies across all environments, while driving automation and standardization at scale. From managing ArcGIS Enterprise and enterprise geodatabases to developing integrations, services, and deployment pipelines, your work will directly influence how geospatial data is delivered, consumed, and trusted across the organization.
As a senior technical contributor, you’ll also guide engineering decisions, mentor team members, and help advance the platform through innovation and practical solutions.
AI-First Mindset
Success in this role depends on your ability to apply and evolve with AI. Practical experience using AI to automate workflows, enhance data quality, and improve system reliability is increasingly essential. A strong foundation, combined with curiosity and a willingness to continuously learn and adopt AI-driven approaches, will be critical to delivering smarter, more resilient geospatial services.
Please click on this link to view the job description for this position
APS Competencies
Competencies are behaviors that are essential to reach our goals in serving Albertans. We encourage you to have an in depth understanding of the competencies that are required for this opportunity and to be prepared to demonstrate them during the recruitment process.
This link will assist you with understanding competencies:
https://www.alberta.ca/system/files/custom_downloaded_images/psc-alberta-public-service-competency-model.pdf.
Some of the competencies critical for this position are:
- Systems Thinking: you will consider how work completed can impact various other groups/projects inside and outside the Alberta Public Service.
- Creative Problem Solving: you will assess options and implications in new ways to achieve outcomes and solutions.
- Agility: you will need to provide results in a complex, diverse and changing environment.
- Drive for Results: you will work with your team to set goals and priorities and deliver outcomes that are consistent with the department's direction.
- Develop Self and Others: you will drive by example a team culture that is focused on continuous learning and growth and encourage self-development through experience sharing.
Qualifications
Requirements:
- A university graduation in Computer Science, Information Technology or a related field.
- A minimum of two (2) years of related experience in:
- Administering multi-tier enterprise GIS platforms (application server, portal, data store, web adaptor) and enterprise geodatabases (SQL Server or PostgreSQL/PostGIS), including versioning, replication, indexing, and performance tuning.
- Owning end-to-end software development lifecycle for geospatial applications, services, and spatial analysis using Python and JavaScript, delivering predictable releases and shorter cycle times.
- Building integration services and ETL pipelines (APIs, events, batch, FME) ingesting and publishing authoritative geospatial datasets across enterprise systems at high transaction volumes.
- Automating platform administration through CI/CD, configuration management, and scripting (Python, PowerShell, Bash), increasing deployment frequency and reducing manual change effort.
- Experience in operating production support for multi-tenant geospatial services with monitoring and telemetry, diagnosing complex failures across infrastructure, application, geodatabase, and network, meeting service-level targets.
- Experience in implementing security controls for enterprise GIS platform’s identity federation, role-based access, certificate management, vulnerability remediation, and audit logging, closing critical findings within defined window.
- Experience in supporting high-availability and disaster recovery for enterprise GIS platforms, meeting defined recovery time and recovery point objectives through regular tested failover.
- Experience in applying AI and agentic AI tools (such as Claude) in geospatial engineering and operations, including code generation, anomaly detection, and runbook automation reducing operational toil.
- Ability to work well in a team environment, take direction, mentor and support team members and work within deadlines.
- Critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making skills
Equivalencies:
- A related two-year diploma in computer technology or a related discipline from a recognized post-secondary institution and four (4) years related experience; or
- A related one-year certificate from a recognized post-secondary institution and five (5) years related experience.
Qualifications continued
Assets:
- Experience in AI-accelerated GIS web application development, including rapid scaffolding of map interfaces, REST clients, and integration adapters using AI coding assistants to reduce time-to-prototype.
- Experience in applying AI and machine learning to spatial analysis, predictive modeling, or natural-language-to-spatial-query interfaces over geospatial datasets.
- Experience in building agent-based or LLM-driven assistants embedded within geospatial workflows, including automation of data quality checks, metadata enrichment, and cartographic generation at scale.
- Experience in end-to-end open-source GIS implementation, including deployment of GeoServer, QGIS Server, or PostGIS for enterprise on-premises environments.
- Experience in custom geospatial web application development, including full-stack development using modern JavaScript frameworks integrated with enterprise authentication and back-end services.
- Experience in extending commercial GIS applications (e.g., Esri Experience Builder, Web AppBuilder, Insights, Geocortex) through widget development and template customization using a configuration-first approach.
- Experience in publishing and consuming OGC-compliant services integrated across open-source and third-party client applications.
- Experience in adopting emerging open standards (e.g., GeoParquet, STAC, OGC API) as part of modernization initiatives to enhance platform analytical capabilities.
- Experience in delivering geospatial platforms within government or regulated, multi-ministry environments serving internal users, industry stakeholders, and citizen-facing digital services.
Preferred Certifications:
- Esri Technical Certifications: Esri Enterprise Administration Associate or Professional; Esri ArcGIS Pro Professional; or equivalent current Esri certification demonstrating advanced platform competency.
- FME Certification: Safe Software FME Desktop or FME Server certification demonstrating proficiency in complex data integration and automation workflows.
- ITIL Foundation: Demonstrates familiarity with IT service management practices applicable to incident, change, and problem management in a government service context.
- Security Certification: CompTIA Security+, or equivalent, demonstrating foundational knowledge of information security principles applicable to government platform operations.
Minimum recruitment standards outline the minimum education and experience required for appointment to a job classification.
Refer to https://www.alberta.ca/alberta-public-service-minimum-recruitment-standards.
Notes
Term of Employment: Permanent, Full-time position
Hours of Work: 7.25hrs/day - 36.25hrs./week – Monday to Friday
Location: Greater Edmonton or Calgary area (Remote)
This position is eligible for remote work from within Greater Edmonton or Calgary area. You must reside in these areas to work remotely for this position.
Final candidates will be required to undergo a security screening.
A written assessment may be required as part of the interview process.
This competition may be used to fill future vacancies, across the Government of Alberta, at the same or lower classification level.
Applicants are advised to provide a cover letter summarizing information that clearly and concisely demonstrates how their qualifications meet the advertised requirements, including education, experience, and relevant examples of required competencies.
Additional Information:
In your resume, please include dates (including months and years) associated with all education and work experience. Also, please indicate whether your work experience is casual, part-time, or full-time. For example, January 15, 2006 - June 25, 2009: Assistant (PT three 8 hrs. shifts/week).
Any costs associated with obtaining the required documents/checks as noted or interview travel expenses, will be the responsibility of the candidate. Out-of-province applicants can obtain the required documents/checks from the province they currently reside in.
Links and information on what the GoA have to offer to prospective employees:
- Working for the Alberta Public Service - https://www.alberta.ca/advantages-working-for-alberta-public-service.aspx.
- Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP) - https://www.pspp.ca.
- Management Employees Pension Plan (MEPP) - https://www.mepp.ca.
- Alberta Public Service Benefit Information - https://www.alberta.ca/alberta-public-service-benefits.
- Professional learning and development - https://www.alberta.ca/professional-development-support-directive.
- Research Alberta Public Service Careers tool – https://researchapscareers.alberta.ca.
- Positive workplace culture and work-life balance.
- Leadership and mentorship programs.