Senior OpenShift Virtualization Administrator SME

Senior OpenShift Virtualization Administrator

The Senior OpenShift Virtualization Administrator leads enterprise virtualization operations on Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization (Container-native Virtualization / KubeVirt) in support of the SEC ISS contract and SEC OIT infrastructure mission. This role is accountable for the design, administration, and continuous optimization of OpenShift Virtualization to deliver secure, resilient, and high-performing virtual machine services. In alignment with the PWS, the position supports 24x7x365 operational readiness, incident response, and coordination with the Enterprise Operations Center and adjacent infrastructure teams. The role is a key technical leader for SEC's in-flight migration from VMware to OpenShift Virtualization, with responsibility for both steady-state platform operations and execution of migration waves using the Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV / Forklift).

Primary Responsibilities

OpenShift Virtualization Platform Administration and Engineering

• Lead administrative and design activities for OpenShift Virtualization (CNV) deployed on Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform.
• Deploy, configure, and maintain the OpenShift Virtualization operator, KubeVirt components, CDI, and associated cluster services.
• Manage full VM lifecycle operations on KubeVirt, including provisioning from VM templates and DataVolumes, live migration, cloning, snapshots, patching, and decommissioning.
• Configure VM networking (Multus, OVN-Kubernetes, NetworkAttachmentDefinitions) and storage (OpenShift Data Foundation / Ceph, CSI drivers, DataVolumes) to meet SEC performance and availability requirements.
• Ensure platform high availability, node-failure resilience, disaster recovery readiness, and performance tuning across cluster nodes and virtualized workloads.

Operations, Monitoring, and Incident Resolution

• Provide subject matter expertise troubleshooting complex issues across the full stack -- OpenShift cluster layer (nodes, operators, pods, CRDs via oc / kubectl) and the VM guest layer.
• Monitor platform health, performance, and capacity using the OpenShift monitoring stack (Prometheus, Alertmanager, Grafana) and cluster logging to proactively identify and remediate operational risk.
• Coordinate incident triage, escalation, and service restoration with EOC and cross-functional infrastructure teams in a 24x7x365 operating environment.
• Maintain SOPs, runbooks, and knowledge articles for OpenShift Virtualization monitoring, escalation, maintenance, and operational continuity.

Team Leadership and Service Delivery Management

• Lead technical teams supporting daily system operations for OpenShift Virtualization services and concurrent migration-wave execution.
• Plan and manage virtualization team workloads, project tasks, and administrative priorities across both migration delivery and steady-state operations.
• Track and report operational status, migration progress, risks, and performance metrics in support of SLA and governance expectations.
• Coordinate planned changes, maintenance windows, and implementation activities under SEC change control practices.

Security, Compliance, Migration Execution, and Modernization

• Enforce secure configuration and patch compliance across OpenShift and Virtualization components, including SCCs, NetworkPolicies, image policies, and FedRAMP-aligned hardening baselines.
• Align OpenShift Virtualization operations with applicable federal security and compliance requirements (FISMA, NIST SP 800-53, SEC OIT policy).
• Plan and execute VMware-to-OpenShift Virtualization migration waves using the Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV / Forklift), including wave planning, network and storage mapping, cutover execution, and post-migration validation.
• Apply GitOps (Argo CD / OpenShift GitOps) and infrastructure-as-code (Ansible Automation Platform, Helm, Kustomize) patterns to VM and cluster configuration.
• Maintain audit-ready technical documentation for platform configuration baselines, changes, migration records, and recovery procedures.

Required Qualifications

Citizenship/Work Authorization: Must meet contract requirements.

Clearance: Ability to obtain and maintain SEC Public Trust (or higher if required).

Required Certification: Red Hat Certified Specialist in OpenShift Virtualization (EX316) or equivalent. Candidates holding VMware Certified Professional - Data Center Virtualization (VCP-DCV) will be accepted with a commitment to obtain EX316 post-hire within a program-defined window.

Experience

9-12 years of experience supporting server virtualization technology in enterprise environments, including hands-on experience with OpenShift Virtualization / KubeVirt or comparable Kubernetes-native virtualization platforms.

Demonstrated experience leading technical teams supporting system operations.

Experience planning and managing workloads, projects, and administrative functions for virtualization operations.

Hands-on experience administering Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform, including use of oc / kubectl, Operators, CRDs, and RBAC.

Experience with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) system administration.

Technical Skills

Administrative and design leadership for OpenShift Virtualization (CNV / KubeVirt) and the underlying OpenShift Container Platform.

Deployment, configuration, and maintenance of the OpenShift Virtualization operator and dependent cluster services.

Senior troubleshooting expertise across the OpenShift cluster layer and the VM guest layer.

Workload, project, and administrative management for a virtualization team balancing migration delivery with steady-state operations.

Incident coordination with EOC and adjacent infrastructure teams in a 24x7x365 enterprise operations environment.

Operational documentation, runbook maintenance, and change-control execution.

Preferred Qualifications

Hands-on experience executing VMware-to-OpenShift Virtualization migrations using the Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV / Forklift).

Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) on RHEL 9.

Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA).

Red Hat OpenShift Administration training: DO180, DO280, and/or DO380.

Experience with Argo CD / OpenShift GitOps and Ansible Automation Platform applied to VM and cluster configuration.

Red Hat OpenShift Data Foundation (ODF) / Ceph storage administration.

VMware Certified Professional - Data Center Virtualization (VCP-DCV) (valuable during the migration window).

Experience supporting federal civilian agency infrastructure operations under formal SLA and governance models.

Experience supporting hybrid infrastructure environments spanning on-premises and cloud platforms.

ITIL 4 Foundation or similar service management certification in a 24x7 enterprise operations environment.

Work Environment / Other

Operational Support: May require participation in on-call or surge support activities depending on operational needs.

Location: Washington, DC metropolitan area (SEC facilities).

Work Model: Hybrid; regular on-site support is required, with telework permitted only when approved by the government and contract leadership.

Travel: As required per contract direction

Education & Experience

BS degree and 8 – 12 years of prior relevant experience or Masters with 6 – 10 years of prior relevant experience. May possess a Doctorate in technical domain. Degree preferred in a relevant field (e.g., Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering).