SENIOR SYSTEMS SPECIALIST (Infrastructure, Virtualization, Storage & Data Center Operations)

The Senior Systems Specialist is responsible for the design, administration, operation, and continuous improvement of enterprise infrastructure across virtualization, Windows and Linux platforms, directory and network services, storage, backup, server hardware, and data center environments. The role ensures that infrastructure services are secure, resilient, scalable, well documented, and aligned with business continuity, availability, and performance requirements.

Key Responsibilities

Virtualization & Compute: Design, implement, administer, and optimize VMware environments, including ESXi hosts, vCenter Server, clusters, High Availability, Distributed Resource Scheduler, vMotion, virtual networking, templates, snapshots, and virtual machine lifecycle management.

Windows Infrastructure: Install, configure, patch, harden, monitor, and troubleshoot Windows Server operating systems across production, disaster recovery, testing, and development environments.

Identity & Core Services: Administer Active Directory Domain Services, including forests, domains, organizational units, users, groups, service accounts, delegation, replication, trusts, and domain controller health.

DNS, DHCP & Group Policy: Configure, maintain, and troubleshoot DNS zones and records, DHCP scopes and reservations, IP address allocation, and Group Policy Objects, including security baselines and controlled policy deployment.

Linux & Red Hat Platforms: Support Red Hat Virtualization and Linux operating systems, including installation, configuration, patching, services, permissions, file systems, performance monitoring, and incident resolution.

Storage Management: Administer enterprise SAN, NAS, block, file, and object storage where applicable. Perform LUN and volume provisioning, zoning coordination, RAID configuration review, multipathing, capacity forecasting, performance analysis, replication, and storage lifecycle management.

Backup & Recovery: Operate and maintain enterprise backup solutions; define and monitor backup policies, retention, replication, encryption, and recovery jobs; perform regular restore tests; and ensure alignment with approved RPO and RTO targets.

Data Center Management: Coordinate rack-and-stack activities, cabling, labeling, asset placement, power and cooling requirements, environmental monitoring, access controls, capacity utilization, equipment movement, and coordination with facilities and service providers.

Hardware Specifications: Review and validate server and storage hardware specifications, including CPU architecture and sizing, memory configuration, disks and SSDs, RAID controllers, HBAs, NICs, GPUs where applicable, power supplies, firmware, supportability, compatibility matrices, and vendor lifecycle status.

Operations & Support: Monitor infrastructure health, availability, utilization, capacity, and performance; provide Level 3 technical support; lead root cause analysis; and implement permanent corrective and preventive actions.

Lifecycle, Security & Compliance: Plan and execute upgrades, patching, firmware updates, vulnerability remediation, configuration hardening, certificate renewal, and end-of-life or end-of-support replacement activities.

Documentation & Collaboration: Maintain architecture diagrams, build documents, standard operating procedures, recovery procedures, configuration records, asset inventories, and operational reports. Collaborate with network, cybersecurity, cloud, application, database, and vendor teams.

Required Technical Competencies

Advanced hands-on experience with VMware vSphere, ESXi, vCenter Server, clustering, HA, DRS, vMotion, virtual networking, and capacity management.

Strong expertise in Windows Server administration, troubleshooting, performance tuning, patching, and security hardening.

Deep knowledge of Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, Group Policy, authentication, permissions, replication, and enterprise identity services.

Strong understanding of enterprise storage technologies, including SAN/NAS, Fibre Channel or iSCSI, RAID, LUNs, zoning concepts, multipathing, snapshots, replication, and capacity planning.

Hands-on experience with enterprise backup and recovery platforms such as Veeam, Commvault, Veritas NetBackup, Dell PowerProtect, or equivalent.

Working knowledge of Red Hat Virtualization and Linux administration, including command-line operations, services, networking, storage, permissions, and patching.

Practical knowledge of data center operations, server deployment, structured cabling, power, cooling, environmental controls, physical security, and asset management.

Ability to interpret and validate technical specifications, solution designs, bills of materials, compatibility matrices, vendor quotations, and support requirements.

Experience with monitoring, alerting, logging, service management, change management, incident management, problem management, and disaster recovery processes.

Understanding of infrastructure security controls, vulnerability remediation, privileged access, backup security, segmentation, and audit requirements.

Qualifications & Experience

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering, or a related discipline; equivalent professional experience may be considered.

Minimum 7 years of progressive experience in systems administration, infrastructure operations, virtualization, storage, backup, or data center services, including at least 2 years in a senior technical role.

Demonstrated experience supporting highly available, business-critical enterprise environments and participating in planned maintenance and on-call support when required.

Experience in government, regulated, cloud, or large-scale data center environments is an advantage.

Skills: VMware vSphere , Windows Server , Active Directory