Senior Linux Systems Engineer

Company: SOUND TRANSIT
Location: Seattle
Posted on: September 17, 2020

Job Description:

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Under general direction, performs at a senior professional level in planning, developing, and implementing the Agency's Information Technology (IT) infrastructure architecture and design; recommends and implements technology and processes to improve system uptime; develops and implements Disaster Recovery architecture; oversees IT systems quality assurance, the IT lab environment, and IT standards; troubleshoots escalated, severity infrastructure issues; mentors and leads less experienced systems engineer and operations staff; and assists the IT Division.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

The following duties are a representative summary of the primary duties and responsibilities. Incumbent(s) may not be required to perform all duties listed and may be required to perform additional, position-specific duties.

• Provides technical team leadership; mentors and coaches less experienced team members; provides the expertise and guidance to peers, leadership and associates on the overall infrastructure architecture; cross train Systems Engineering and other staff on key infrastructure functions; participates in ongoing professional development to enhance technical skills, communication skills, business knowledge, and knowledge of IT products and procedures; and facilitates the initiation of key strategic infrastructure initiatives and develops implementation plans to deliver initiatives.

• Performs information technology (IT) engineering and designs server and back office systems in production and lab environments; performs server consolidation using server virtualization technology; administers, configures and supports Agency LAB and Production VMware and Hyper-V environments; plans for infrastructure growth to meet current and future agency needs; develops and maintains the infrastructure strategies for efficient and effective use of Agency's infrastructure information technology products and services; serves as the infrastructure architect in the analysis, design and planning phases of assigned projects; coordinates with vendors, IT management, IT staff and other Agency partners to evaluate Agency technology needs and design robust technical solutions; and reviews and captures architecture plans for complex environments.

• Develops and maintains infrastructure standards; develops server build and configuration standards; plans and oversees adherence to change management and release management processes; defines and maintains infrastructure architecture principles, policies and standards; coordinates with IT peers to develop and maintain a scalable, cost effective infrastructure roadmap; and ensures proper documentation maintained for all actions, practices, procedures and processes.

• Administers and troubleshoots infrastructure systems; oversees administration of systems maintained by server team including Linux, Backup System, SAN, File Server, Print Servers; provides expertise in advanced/complex technical areas including SAN, VMWare, load balancing, and failover/ clustering; provides technical support and engineering support for Red Hat / CentOS Linux v4.9 to current, NetApp storage infrastructure, VMware technologies (vSphere), Microsoft Hyper-V, Cisco (one or more of the following) UCS; DNS; FTP / SFTP, Linux management in an Active Directory environment, SolarWinds or Nagios monitoring. Troubleshoots escalated, severity infrastructure issues; proactively evaluates the impact of system modifications and enhancements; conducts infrastructure capacity and performance analysis; develops solutions to assure high system availability and performance aligned with SLAs; and leads monthly patch management process for servers.

• Carefully prepares up-to-date software releases and documentation for operating system and database software and all modifications, or for any systems software developed in-house to ensure the systems are complete, accurate and conform to Agency standards. Assures documentation availability to engineers, programmers, analysts and users as needed.

• Participates in the installation of all new, modifications or enhancements to the system hardware, system software and applications software to ensure minimum impact on existing production systems or systems under development. Works with applications analysts when necessary to assist in the installation of new programs.

• Monitors and analyzes computer system performance and utilization to identify and propose new approaches, methods, or technologies for better, faster, more reliable or less expensive ways to do things.

• Serves as an on-call resource during emergencies, able to perform maintenance duties during off-hour maintenance windows, and has a strong sense of urgency about solving problems and getting work done correctly and thoroughly. Effectively applies technical knowledge to recognize problems, identify underlying causes, and provide solutions. Establishes procedures for recovery from experienced and hypothetical system failures.

• Researches and deploys new technologies; maintains expertise in the area of architecture, including industry trends, strategies, and products to ensure that the company's assets are effectively and efficiently utilized; conducts research and makes recommendations on emerging technologies, toolsets, applications, and systems that consider among other factors cost savings, adoption, standardization/ simplification, flexibility and reuse to determine business requirements.

• Implements and maintains effective team processes; serves as process owner responsible for the implementation and continuous improvement of related infrastructure team processes; leads team process improvement efforts; participates in continuous improvement events (Kaizens) within IT; and aligns technical infrastructure to IT Service Level Objectives

• Oversees vendor management; directs consultants responsible for implementing and managing Operational and Infrastructure systems (hardware and software); and conducts monthly and/or quarterly meetings with vendors on their product road maps.

• Provides support to the division/department on matters as directed; serves as staff on a variety of boards, commissions, and committees; serves as staff on a variety of committees as assigned; prepares and presents staff reports and other necessary correspondence; attends and participates in professional group meetings; maintains awareness of new trends and developments in the fields related to area of assignment; incorporates new developments as appropriate; ensures processes, policies and practices are interpreted and applied consistently and effectively; ensures accountability and compliance with all current and applicable state and federal laws, Agency policies and procedures, rules and regulations.

• Works well within a team environment to produce optimal outcomes and performance.

• Well adept at creating and maintaining system documentation and change management procedures.

• It is the responsibility of all employees to follow the Agency safety rules, regulations, and procedures pertaining to their assigned duties and responsibilities, which could include systems, operations, and/or other employees.

• It is the responsibility of all employees to integrate sustainability into everyday business practices.

• Other duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Education and Experience:

Bachelor's Degree in computer science, information technology, business management information systems, or closely related field and five years of IT Systems Engineer experience in a distributed, enterprise production environment including experience implementing, configuring and maintaining advanced/complex infrastructure technology including SAN, VMWare, load balancing, and fail-over/clustering; OR an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Required Licenses or Certifications:

None

Required Knowledge of:

• IT infrastructure systems, distributed, enterprise production environment, Active Directory, group policy, LDAP, WINS, DNS, DHCP, and Linux Server.

• Virtualization including Hyper-V and VMware ESX including server consolidation, server image creation, VM builds, backups, performance monitoring and adjustments, license management, software patches, and driver updates.

• Specific architecture and design including network storage, virtualization, distributed file system, data replication between distributed sites, disaster recovery, and backup systems.

• IT troubleshooting in a production environment.

• Implementing, configuring and administering automation deployment tools in a production environment.

• Major hardware components, including memory configuration, RAID configuration, backup systems, storage technology, clustering and load balancing.

• Pertinent federal, state, and local laws, codes, and regulations.

• Project management practices and principals

• Principles of business letter writing and basic report preparation.

• English usage, spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

• Modern office procedures, methods, and equipment including computers and computer applications such as word processing, spreadsheets, and statistical databases.

• Lead/supervisory principles, methods and techniques.

• Red Hat / CentOS Linux v4.9 to current - experience managing Linux systems in complex environments - NetApp storage infrastructure - Competency in Shell, Perl or Python scripting - VMware technologies (vSphere) - Cisco (one or more of the following) UCS; DNS; FTP / SFTP - Linux management in an Active Directory environment - SolarWinds or Nagios monitoring - CommVault backup system.

Required Skills:

• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with other department staff, management, vendors, outside agencies, community groups and the general public.

• Interpreting and administering policies and procedures sufficient to administer, discuss, resolve, and explain them to staff and other constituencies.

• Utilizing network tools to monitor servers, firewalls, and network components for errors, security issues, and other problems; review device, network, and application logs; review usage and utilization statistics.

• Troubleshooting, resolving, and responding to infrastructure issues and problems; coordinating solutions with outside vendors, users, and information technology staff.

• Leading process improvement efforts, implementing process changes, and improving productivity through process improvement.

• Defining vision and goals for the team, and implementing changes to meet goals.

• Configuring, troubleshooting and managing EMC SAN storage including configuring fiber switches, creating LUNs and replication of storage.

• Communicating and coordinating with co-workers, customers, and vendors.

• Working effectively under pressure, meeting deadlines, and adjusting to changing priorities.

• Managing projects and making decisions in fast-paced, difficult environments.

• Responding to inquiries and in effective oral and written communication.

• Researching, analyzing, and evaluating new service delivery methods and techniques.

• Working cooperatively with other departments, Agency officials, and outside agencies.

Physical Demands / Work Environment:

• Work is performed in a standard office environment.

• Subject to standing, walking, bending, reaching, stooping, and lifting of objects up to 35 pounds; may occasionally be exposed to dangerous machinery and physical harm when working in the field at construction sites and maintenance facilities.

• The Agency promotes a safe and healthy work environment and provides appropriate safety and equipment training for all personnel as required.

Sound Transit is an equal employment opportunity employer. No person is unlawfully excluded from employment action based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status or other protected class.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)

Keywords: SOUND TRANSIT, Seattle , Senior Linux Systems Engineer, Other , Seattle, Washington