Senior IT Systems Engineer

Senior It Systems Engineer

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced IT professional to oversee critical infrastructure engineering and deployment within the County of Santa Barbara's Information Technology Department. Come and be a part of a team of talented individuals who are passionate about fostering a culture of teamwork, learning, and respect!

In the IT Department our success is powered by people and technology. Our culture is what makes IT a fun and rewarding place to work! We establish, develop, and nurture partnerships and open communication within our communities. We embrace a willingness to learn and accept new ideas, to actively listen and to be receptive to change. We strive to grow our talents and do our best in the service of others while taking pride in our work. We explore and deliver new and creative ways to pair technology with business needs.

The Service Operations Division keeps the County's technology foundation strong, secure, and always available. We organize our work around a proven operating model: Design, Build, Run. The systems we deliver are thoughtfully architected, expertly engineered, and reliably operated:

• Design - Our Systems Architect drives architecture, strategy, and modernization, setting the technical direction so that solutions are built to last.
• Build - Our engineering and deployment team turns approved designs into secure, production-ready systems, the engineering, deployment, and delivery that bring modernization to life.
• Run - Our Infrastructure Operations team sustains what we deliver, providing the reliable, secure, and resilient operations the County depends on day in and day out.

The Senior IT Systems Engineer sits at the heart of the Build function, translating architectural vision into the dependable infrastructure that County departments, and the communities they serve, rely on every day.

The Senior IT Systems Engineer is responsible for the engineering, implementation, and delivery of the County's enterprise technology infrastructure. This role participates in the Build function within the Service Operations division and is responsible for translating approved architectural designs into secure, reliable, and supportable production systems.

This role works on engineering and deployment activities across core infrastructure platforms including identity and directory services, Microsoft 365 services, endpoint and client computing environments, on-premises and cloud server infrastructure, storage systems, backup and disaster recovery solutions, and Azure cloud services. The Senior IT Systems Engineer ensures solutions are implemented in alignment with architectural standards, cybersecurity requirements, and operational readiness expectations prior to transition to ongoing support.

With guidance from the Engineering and Deployment Supervisor, this role partners closely with the Systems Architect (Design), Infrastructure Operations (Run), network and cybersecurity staff, application teams, vendors, and department stakeholders to deliver enterprise initiatives and modernization efforts on schedule and with high quality.

We are currently recruiting to fill one full-time vacancy. Remote work is permitted and this is a primarily remote role, but onsite work in Santa Barbara, CA is required when needed. Lodging/travel expenses are not provided. Employees of the County must primarily perform work in California. At this time, this position is not eligible for visa sponsorship. Applicants must have permanent (not temporary) work authorization to work in the United States without the need for visa sponsorship by the start date of employment. The payroll title for this role is EDP Office Automation Specialist II.

Highlighted Benefits:

• Primarily remote schedule
• Health Plan: County contributes towards premium; HSA offered
• Pension Retirement
• Reciprocity with other public sector retirement systems (like CalPERS)
• 13 holidays, 12 sick leave days (unlimited accumulation), and 12 to 25 days of vacation (based on length of service) per year
• Time and service credit towards an advanced vacation accrual rate for previous public service.
• For more information on County benefits, please click here.

Examples Of Duties

1. Lead complex system implementations, upgrades, and modernization initiatives.
2. Develop advanced automation, deployment pipelines, and repeatable build processes.
3. Serve as escalation point for complex technical issues.
4. Validate and optimize system builds for performance, security, and compliance.
5. Coordinate with Systems Architects to ensure implementations align with enterprise architecture.
6. Lead technical project teams through major deployments and transformations.
7. Conduct deep testing, troubleshooting, and remediation during system upgrades.
8. Mentor engineers across all levels, sharing expertise in design patterns and advanced build methods.
9. Recommend enhancements to standards and practices based on implementation experience.
10. May provide functional and technical supervision to staff as assigned.
11. Performs related duties as assigned.

Employment Standards

The knowledge, skills, and abilities listed here may be acquired through various types of training, education, and experience. A typical way to acquire the required knowledge and abilities would be:

1. Four years of experience that included analyzing, designing, testing, and implementing enterprise-wide software and hardware on a large scale (about 150 servers), including two years of direct experience with a large wide area network (about 5000 devices); or,
2. Two years of experience performing duties equivalent to those of an EDP Office Automation Specialist I with Santa Barbara County; or,
3. A combination of training, education, and experience that is equivalent to one of the employment standards listed above and that provides the required knowledge and abilities.

Additional Requirements: This role also requires the ability to participate in scheduled after hours work and standby support.