Senior Operational Database Engineer

Virgin Money; Glasgow; Hybrid; GBP 41,000 - 51,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday (30 with service)

Private medical insurance

Competitive pension

Annual bonus

Training and development

Flexible benefits

Life assurance

Volunteer days

Job summary

Virgin Money in the UK hybrid Data Platform Unit seeks an experienced Database Administrator to support critical production databases across on-prem, hybrid and cloud environments.

Role covers performance tuning, HA/DR, patching, upgrades, incident handling and automation. On-call rotation may apply; flexible hours are required in a fast-paced setting.

Qualifications

• We need strong production experience with Oracle and SQL Server databases.
• Ability to troubleshoot production issues quickly and propose fixes.
• Experience with database builds, patching, migrations and upgrades.
• Experience with high availability and disaster recovery including Oracle RAC, Data Guard and SQL Server Always On.
• Database performance tuning and optimisation skills.
• Experience using Oracle Enterprise Manager.
• Experience with Linux, Windows, AIX or Solaris operating systems.
• Self-motivated with a commitment to continuous learning in database technologies.
• Bonus: cloud databases (OCI, Exadata Cloud @ Customer, Azure) and other technologies (Cosmos, PostgreSQL).
• Bonus: scripting (Bash, PowerShell, Python) and Dynatrace / ServiceNow experience.

Responsibilities

• Support and problem solve Production databases and Pre-Production databases.
• Identify risks and resolve live issues with future improvements.
• Upgrade, decommission and deliver new databases; support deployments, patching, tuning and DR testing.
• Improve processes through automation and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with Lead Database Engineers, Infrastructure Designers and Project Managers.
• Escalate to ensure SLAs are met and provide excellent customer service.
• Self-manage in a fast-paced, high-profile environment.
• Potential on-call rotation after training; possible non-core hours work.

Skills

Oracle

SQL Server

Database Administration

High Availability

Disaster Recovery

Oracle RAC

Oracle Data Guard

Performance Tuning

Oracle Enterprise Manager

Linux

Windows

Bash

PowerShell

Python

Dynatrace

ServiceNow

Cloud (OCI, Azure)

Exadata

Scripting

Tools

Oracle Enterprise Manager

Dynatrace

ServiceNow

Job description

Salary: £35,000 - 60,000 per year

Requirements:

• We need you to have a strong understanding and experience of database administration across Oracle and SQL Server technologies in a Production setting.
• You must be able to troubleshoot Production issues quickly in an analytical manner and make recommendations to resolve issues or deliver enhancements.
• Experience undertaking database builds, patching, migrations and upgrades is required.
• Experience of High Availability and Disaster Recovery methods, including setup, troubleshooting and support, is required, including Oracle RAC, Oracle Restart, ASM, Oracle Data Guard, flashback technologies and SQL Server Always On High Availability.
• You should have database performance tuning and optimisation skills.
• Experience using Oracle Enterprise Manager is required.
• You should have experience with Oracle / Red Hat Linux, Windows, AIX and Solaris operating systems.
• You must be able to take ownership of your own development and proactively improve and maintain your skills, knowledge and behaviours.
• You should demonstrate collaborative behaviours and excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• ITIL Service Management awareness, including Incident, Change and Problem Management processes, is required.
• You should be self-motivated and keep your knowledge current in database technologies including Oracle, SQL, Exadata and OCI.
• It is a bonus if you have experience managing databases in cloud or cloud @ customer environments such as Oracle OCI, Oracle Exadata Cloud @ Customer and/or Microsoft Azure.
• It is a bonus if you have experience working with other database technologies such as Cosmos, PostgreSQL or similar.
• It is a bonus if you have competence in scripting languages such as Bash, PowerShell or Python.
• It is a bonus if you have experience with Dynatrace tooling.
• It is a bonus if you have ServiceNow usage experience.
• It is a bonus if you have knowledge of the full software development lifecycle, from business and systems analysis through requirements gathering, functional specification authoring, development, testing and delivery.

Responsibilities:

• We support and problem solve on all Production databases as a priority, alongside supporting databases within the Pre-Production environment.
• We proactively identify risk, resolve live issues swiftly and propose appropriate fixes and improvements for the future.
• We upgrade, decommission and deliver new databases, and support changes to existing databases including deployments, patching, tuning, optimisation and disaster recovery testing.
• We improve our processes through process automation, innovation and continuous improvement.
• We work with Lead Database Engineers, Infrastructure Designers and Project Managers to ensure solutions meet the organisations strategic needs and keep services safe.
• We collaborate with internal and external parties, escalating where necessary to Lead Database Engineers and Team Leads, to ensure operational issues are resolved within agreed SLAs and we provide excellent customer service.
• We self-manage in a professional and proactive manner in a highly specialised, high profile and fast paced environment.
• After training, we would join a 24/7 on-call rota.
• Due to the operational nature of the role, we may need to work outside our core hours, so flexibility is key.

Technologies:

• Azure
• Bash
• Cloud
• Dynatrace
• Support
• ITIL
• Linux
• Oracle
• PostgreSQL
• PowerShell
• Python
• SQL
• Security
• ServiceNow
• Windows
• IaaS
• PaaS
• Swift

More:

We are Virgin Money, part of the Nationwide group and the UKs first full-service mutual bank serving millions of retail and business customers. Our Data Platform Unit sits within Technology Operations and Cyber Security and supports database environments across on-prem, hybrid and cloud infrastructure. This is a permanent, full-time UK hybrid role with the flexibility to work from anywhere in the UK and occasionally visit a Virgin Money hub. We offer a salary of £40,800 to £51,000 per annum DOE, plus 25 days holiday increasing over time to 30, the option to buy more, private medical insurance, a competitive pension, an annual performance-related bonus, training and development, flexible benefits, life assurance and up to 2 days of paid volunteering each year. We value an inclusive culture where colleagues feel safe to contribute and be heard, and we are committed to removing barriers to inclusion.

last updated 36 week of 2026