Lead Senior Systems Engineer (Server Lead) - PAE Fires IT Support Services

Job Description

Job Description

PENDING CONTRACT AWARD

Mission Objectives - PAE Fires operates multiple separate networks consisting of ESXi Hosts, VMs/appliances, RedHat OpenShift, and VDI desktops requiring highly secure and available systems on a 24/7 basis. The Lead Senior Systems Engineer directs all server/virtualization/data center operations, backup and recovery, disaster recovery, and configuration management activities.

Position Responsibility Summary:

Own the availability and performance of all server, virtualization, and storage infrastructure that approximately 3,500 users and mission-critical applications depend on daily; when systems go down, lead the recovery and take accountability for restoring service

Architect and evolve the VMware VCF/SDDC environment to meet growing demand; make capacity planning decisions that balance cost, performance, and future scalability without over-provisioning

Drive the adoption and maturation of containerized workloads on Red Hat OpenShift; establish deployment standards, manage the container lifecycle, and ensure the platform remains stable as development teams push new applications into production

Design and validate backup and recovery strategies that actually work under pressure; regularly test restores, validate RPO/RTO compliance, and ensure the team can reconstitute the full IT environment from the COOP site if required

Maintain deep technical mastery across both Windows Server and Red Hat Enterprise Linux; troubleshoot complex cross-platform issues that intermediate administrators cannot resolve and serve as the final escalation point for the team

Build and maintain infrastructure-as-code practices using Ansible and Chef to ensure consistent, repeatable, and auditable system configurations across hundreds of VMs and servers

Think like a defender: harden all systems to DISA STIG standards not because a checklist says so, but because you understand the threat landscape and know that a misconfigured server is an open door

Develop your team; grow intermediate engineers into senior-level performers through mentoring, knowledge sharing, and progressively challenging assignments; create internal documentation and runbooks that reduce single points of knowledge failure

Coordinate closely with the Network and Cybersecurity leads to ensure infrastructure changes are planned holistically; a server migration impacts network routing, firewall rules, and security monitoring simultaneously

Plan and execute complex maintenance windows with zero or minimal mission impact; communicate clearly to stakeholders about what is happening, why, and what the fallback plan is if something goes wrong

Primary Function: Leads systems administration and maintenance across ESXi Hosts, VMs/appliances, RedHat OpenShift, and VDI desktops. Directs the full range of system administration tasks and ensures 24/7 system availability, serving as the critical authority for the lifecycle management of all compute resources.

Cross-Functional Backup and Recovery Oversight (PWS 1.16.8):* Cross-trained in Backup and Recovery Management to directly oversee and validate backup strategy execution. Ensures absolute alignment between server infrastructure changes (VM migrations, storage reconfigurations, OS upgrades) and data protection policies. Provides immediate leadership backup to Storage & Backup administrators during critical recovery events, making authoritative decisions on system restoration priority and resource allocation within BCP guidelines.