Sr. Systems

Candidates should be eligible to work for any employer in the United States without needing Visa sponsorship. 6 month contract-to-hire, full benefits/pto available prior to full-time conversion. Job Title: Senior Systems and Azure Administrator Job Summary: We are seeking a Senior Systems Administrator with advanced expertise in Microsoft Azure, enterprise SAN storage systems, and VMware virtualization. This role is ideal for a highly technical professional with a strong DevOps mindset, deep automation skills, and a track record of designing, implementing, and optimizing hybrid cloud infrastructures. The successful candidate will play a key role in managing and securing mission-critical systems while mentoring junior team members and driving technical excellence across the organization. Key Responsibilities: Storage Administration (SAN) Architect, deploy, and manage enterprise SAN solutions (e.g., NetApp, Dell EMC, HPE Nimble, Azure Blob Storage, Azure Files). Lead capacity planning, storage tiering, and performance optimization strategies. Evaluate and recommend new storage technologies for scalability and redundancy. Oversee data lifecycle management and compliance with data retention policies. VMware Administration Design and maintain highly available and resilient VMware environments. Lead VMware environment upgrades, migrations, and optimizations. Implement automation around VM lifecycle and performance monitoring. Establish and enforce best practices for virtualization across the organization. Azure Cloud Administration Architect and administer solutions using key Azure services Azure Virtual Machines, VNETs, NSGs, VPNs, Azure Storage (Blob, Files), Azure Active Directory, Azure Site Recovery, and Azure Security Center. Build and manage CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps, ARM templates, Azure CLI, and PowerShell for infrastructure automation and deployments. Lead the planning and implementation of hybrid cloud infrastructure projects. Manage Azure subscriptions, governance policies and cost control. Design secure and scalable solutions leveraging Azure IaaS, PaaS, and networking components. Leverage Azure Automation, Azure Monitor, Azure Log Analytics, and Azure Policy to optimize performance, ensure compliance, and reduce operational overhead. Systems and Infrastructure Oversight Act as a technical lead on infrastructure projects, including upgrades, integrations, and cloud migrations. Design and enforce policies for patching, configuration management, and system hardening. Support core Windows Server infrastructure including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and Group Policy. Develop and maintain comprehensive system documentation, diagrams, and runbooks. Serve as a senior escalation point for complex infrastructure issues. Strategic Leadership & Mentoring Drive adoption of DevOps methodologies across infrastructure and operations teams. Collaborate with IT leadership to define long-term infrastructure strategies and goals. Provide mentorship and guidance to junior and mid-level administrators. Lead technical evaluations and vendor assessments for infrastructure solutions. Security & Compliance Implement and monitor systems to ensure compliance with industry regulations (e.g., HIPAA, GDPR, SOX). Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to enforce policies around access controls, data protection, and system monitoring. Participate in internal and external audits and remediation efforts. Required Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field (or equivalent experience). 7+ years of progressive systems administration experience, including leadership responsibilities. Deep expertise with enterprise SAN technologies (NetApp, EMC, HPE Nimble or similar). Extensive experience managing large-scale VMware environments. Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Azure infrastructure, tools automation and services. Strong scripting and automation skills; PowerShell, Azure CLI, and infrastructure-as-code tools (ARM templates, CI/CD pipelines). Solid understanding of DevOps principles and modern infrastructure practices. Preferred Certifications: Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert or Azure Administrator Associate; AZ-300, AZ-400, AZ-500 are highly desirable. VMware Certified Professional (VCP) or VMware Advanced Professional (VCAP) Storage vendor certifications (e.g., HPE, NetApp, or Dell EMC)