Senior Systems Administrator - DAS DevOPs

Sr. System Administrator

UTHealth is looking for a Sr. System Administrator with a focus on DevOps and a well-rounded background in systems and cloud support. The ideal candidate will bring strong experience in AWS resource management, infrastructure-as-code (IaC), system monitoring, and automation, while collaborating closely with application owners and other team members to ensure performance, reliability, and transparency.

This position aligns closely with DevOps principles, emphasizing automation, continuous integration, and cross-functional collaboration to deliver scalable and resilient infrastructure.

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) is the most comprehensive academic health center in the UT System. Data Center Operations (DCO), under the direction of the Infrastructure Team at UTHEALTH, operates the university's primary data centers at UCT (University Center Tower) and Guhn Rd. DCO also administers standards for multiple data centers on the UTHealth campus. DCO comprises three primary areas: Infrastructure & Operational Support, Database & Application Support, and Datacenter & Infrastructure.

What we do here changes the world. UTHealth Houston is Texas's resource for healthcare education, innovation, scientific discovery, and excellence in patient care. That's where you come in.

Once you join us, you won't want to leave. It's because we reward our team for the excellent service they provide. Our total rewards package includes the benefits you'd expect from a top healthcare organization (benefits, insurance, etc.), plus:

• 100% paid medical premiums for our full-time employees
• Generous time off (holidays, preventative leave day, both vacation and sick time – all of which equates to around 37-38 days per year)
• The longer you stay, the more vacation you'll accrue!
• Longevity Pay (Monthly payments after two years of service)
• Build your future with our awesome retirement/pension plan!

We take care of our employees! As a world-renowned institution, our employees' wellbeing is important to us. We offer work/life services such as...

• Free financial and legal counseling
• Free mental health counseling services
• Gym membership discounts and access to wellness programs
• Other employee discounts including entertainment, car rentals, cell phones, etc.
• Resources for child and elder care
• Plus many more!

Position Key Accountabilities:

• Responsible for all procedures and processes necessary to ensure the safety and integrity of organizational servers, data systems, file structures, computer operating systems and computer system software.
• Responsible for all activities related to system administration.
• Assigns personnel to various projects, directs their activities, and evaluates their work
• Responsible for the installation, maintenance, configuration, security and integrity of computer operating systems and supporting software.
• Implements operating system enhancements that will improve the reliability, safety and performance of the system.
• Performs programming and testing.
• Conducts studies of projected enhancements in hardware and software and presents recommendations to management.
• Conducts performance measurement and evaluation of the computer system.
• Determines and implements security and performance improvement activities.
• Participates in all phases of total system planning and in the generation of justifications and specifications for facility requirements and enhancements.
• Implements system software projects.
• Plans and supervises the training of systems administrator personnel.
• Presents technical briefings.
• Participates in the formulation and implementation of installation standards and procedures.
• Attends professional conferences and acts in place of the supervisor as needed.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Technical Qualifications include:

Required:

Customer Service / Collaboration / Transparency: Customer service, collaboration, and transparency are pillars of the Data Center Operations mindset and critical to the success of our mission. Candidates must demonstrate a proactive, communicative, and service-oriented approach to working with stakeholders and end users.

Cloud Administration & Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Experience managing AWS cloud resources. Must be proficient in developing and maintaining Terraform code for provisioning, configuration, and security. Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines, GitHub workflows, and version-controlled infrastructure is expected.

Systems Administration: Experience with virtual and physical server administration is essential for supporting legacy systems and hybrid infrastructure. Foundational knowledge of Active Directory, Group Policy, and DNS is also expected, as these technologies may interact with broader infrastructure workflows.

Monitoring & Observability: Familiarity with monitoring tools such as SolarWinds, AWS CloudWatch, and Dynatrace. Candidates should be comfortable interpreting basic metrics, responding to alerts, and contributing to observability efforts that align with DevOps feedback loops.

Automation & Scripting: Proficiency in Python, PowerShell, and Terraform scripting for automating infrastructure workflows. Familiarity with AWS Step Functions and Lambda functions is necessary, as these services are used in existing automation pipelines. Experience with event-driven architecture and cloud-native automation is a plus.

Organizational Skills: Ability to understand project methodology and planning. Use of Azure DevOps, Microsoft Teams and M365 tools such as Planner. Strong attention to detail and follow-through is essential for maintaining system reliability and supporting cross-functional initiatives.

Communication and Teamwork: Ability to communicate both written and orally to a wide variety of audiences.

Must be able to think logically in solving problems and implement workable solutions.

Must be able to resolve all existing and newly discovered problems to move the project towards completion.

Must be able to work in a team environment and be a self-contributor, meeting all project-related goals.

Candidates should have a broad scope of technical capabilities that will enable them to handle all aspects of application management as well as communicate and discuss technical design issues and problem resolution with Application and System Administrators.

Must be able to work with vendors and clients both internal to IT and external, to understand needs to scope projects and system environments to satisfy the overall objective of any project.

Availability: UTHealth System Administrators support a variety of mission-critical, 24x7 patient-care-focused systems that must be readily available. To support these systems, scheduled and unscheduled after-hours work is often required. There is also an on-call rotation scheduled months in advance to help triage issues after hours and on holidays.

Minimum Education: Bachelor's Degree training in Information Technology required. May substitute required education with equivalent years of experience beyond the minimum experience requirement.

Minimum Experience: 3 years of experience in information technology support and systems administration in various operating environments required

Physical Requirements: Exerts up to 20 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds frequently and/or a negligible amount constantly to move objects.

Security Sensitive: This position is a security-sensitive position pursuant to Texas Education Code §51.215 and Texas Government Code §411.094. To the extent that a position requires the holder to research, work on, or have access to critical infrastructure as defined in Texas Business and Commerce Code §117.001(2), the ability to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure is a minimum qualification to be hired for and to continue to be employed in that position. Personnel in such positions, and similarly situated state contractors, will be routinely reviewed to determine whether things such as criminal history or continuous connections to the government or political apparatus of a foreign adversary might prevent the applicant, employee, or contractor from being able to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure. A foreign adversary is a nation listed in 15 C.F.R. §791.4.

Residency Requirement: Employees must permanently reside and work in the State of Texas. This is an on-site role