Systems Administrator, SME

About the Role

The Systems Administrator (SME) serves as the principal authority for enterprise systems architecture, infrastructure modernization, and zero-trust security implementation. This role leads the design, automation, optimization, and governance of highly available infrastructure environments across complex, cross-enclave systems. The SME provides strategic and technical leadership for Infrastructure as Code (IaC), configuration management, disaster recovery, and compliance automation while ensuring resilient, scalable, and secure operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the principal authority for enterprise systems architecture and infrastructure modernization.
• Lead the design, automation, and optimization of highly available infrastructure environments.
• Implement zero-trust security principles and cross-enclave interoperability solutions.
• Drive Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and configuration management initiatives across the enterprise.
• Establish and enforce governance frameworks for disaster recovery and compliance automation.
• Provide strategic technical leadership for enterprise security and operational resilience initiatives.
• Optimize infrastructure for scalability, performance, and security across complex environments.
• Guide teams on best practices for system administration, automation, and infrastructure management.

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Extensive experience supporting Windows, Linux, and hybrid-cloud environments.
• Expertise with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and configuration management tools such as Terraform, Ansible, Puppet, or Chef.
• Experience with cloud platforms including AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud.
• Strong knowledge of system monitoring, disaster recovery, backup solutions, and performance optimization.
• Deep understanding of enterprise security controls, compliance requirements, and infrastructure governance.
• Proven ability to lead enterprise infrastructure initiatives and technical teams.
• Air-gapped hybrid cloud and on-premises operational environments, including complex multi-enclave ecosystems.
• AWS GovCloud/SC2S/C2S and GCP cloud platforms.
• Nutanix host and cluster configuration, management with Prism Central, and NDFS configuration/management.
• Cisco switching, routing, firewalling, and site-to-site functionality (such as IPSEC, DMVPN, and SD-WAN).
• Locally hosted GPU servers.
• Multi-tenant Cross-Domain Solutions (CDS).
• Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform, Ansible).
• Containerization and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes, OpenShift).
• Cloud-native security implementation and security accreditation processes.
• Advanced GitLab CI/CD pipelines and DevSecOps practices.
• Enterprise database services (RDS, RDS Aurora, DynamoDB).
• Serverless architectures (Lambda).
• Cloud networking and VPC configuration.
• Monitoring, logging, and data platforms (Elasticsearch, OpenSearch, Splunk).
• Microservices architecture and API Gateway implementation.
• Development experience with Python, .NET/C#, and related languages.
• Identity and access services (Microsoft Active Directory, LDAP / OpenLDAP, Entra ID, Keycloak).
• High-assurance cross-domain and encryption solutions (TACLANE, NCAP).
• Cloud cost-optimization techniques.
• Operating Systems: Linux (e.g., Rocky, RedHat, Amazon, Ubuntu), Windows, and Mac OS.

Qualifications (Nice to have)

• Master's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or related field.
• Experience supporting federal, defense, intelligence, or highly regulated environments.
• Expertise in zero-trust architecture and secure infrastructure design.
• Experience with containerized platforms such as Docker and Kubernetes.
• Relevant certifications such as AWS Solutions Architect, Azure Administrator/Architect, RHCE, VMware, CISSP, or similar.
• Experience with DevSecOps, CI/CD pipelines, and enterprise automation frameworks.