Principal Engineer II (Linux team)

ICON Clinical Research Ltd; Ireland; Hybrid; EUR 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage

Retirement plan

Life assurance

Disability coverage

Employee assistance

Career development

Flexible benefits

Job summary

ICON Clinical Research Ltd seeks a Principal Engineer II to lead Linux infrastructure in a hybrid Dublin office. You will shape architecture, drive modernization, and mentor engineers while delivering scalable, secure platforms across on‑premises and virtual environments.

The role demands deep expertise in GPFS, OpenShift/Kubernetes, VMware, and automation, with a focus on reliability, performance, and incident response in a mission‑critical healthcare research setting.

Qualifications

• Extensive Linux system engineering and administration experience.
• Expertise with GPFS/IBM Spectrum Scale and OpenShift/Kubernetes.
• Experience with OpenShift AI and VMware environments.
• Strong scripting and automation skills (Bash, Python, Ansible, Terraform).
• Solid networking knowledge and disaster recovery planning.
• Experience with security hardening and compliance frameworks.
• Familiarity with CI/CD and Platform Engineering practices.
• Knowledge of monitoring/logging tools (Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, SolarWinds).

Responsibilities

• Serve as technical lead for business-critical projects, owning architecture and delivery.
• Design and maintain scalable Linux environments across on-prem and virtualized platforms.
• Administer IBM Spectrum Scale for high-performance storage.
• Deploy and enhance OpenShift/Kubernetes and OpenShift AI, ensuring secure delivery.
• Manage VMware-based infrastructure and optimize performance.
• Implement security hardening and incident response procedures.
• Lead root-cause analysis and drive automation with IaC.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align platform capabilities with business needs.
• Establish engineering standards and comprehensive documentation.
• Mentor engineers and promote knowledge sharing.

Skills

Linux engineering

GPFS (IBM Spectrum Scale)

OpenShift / Kubernetes

OpenShift AI

VMware

Bash scripting

Python

Ansible

Terraform

Networking

Disaster recovery

CI/CD pipelines

Tools

Prometheus

Grafana

ELK stack

SolarWinds

Job description

Principal Engineer II - Office Hybrid in Dublin, Ireland

ICON is a global healthcare intelligence and clinical research organisation united by a mission to bring new medicines and treatments to patients faster. As a values-driven organisation, integrity, collaboration, agility, and inclusion are at the heart of how we work and interact with each other, customers, patients and suppliers.

Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled Principal Engineer II to join our Linux team, and to provide senior technical leadership in designing, implementing, and supporting enterprise-grade Linux platforms. This role is critical to maintaining the reliability, scalability, and security of infrastructure that underpins business-critical services. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in Linux systems, IBM Spectrum Scale (GPFS), Red Hat OpenShift/Kubernetes, OpenShift AI and VMware, and will play a key role in driving innovation, operational excellence, and platform modernization. This role is ideal for a seasoned Linux engineer who thrives in complex environments and is passionate about building resilient, scalable platforms. As a Principal Engineer II, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the infrastructure strategy while acting as a trusted technical leader for mission-critical initiatives. This is an Office Hybrid role with 60% office-attendance (3 times a week) in our HQ in Leopardstown, Dublin 18.May require participation in an on-call rotation. Occasional off-hours work for maintenance or incident response.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical lead for business-critical projects, owning architecture, design decisions, and successful delivery.
• Design, implement, and maintain highly available, scalable Linux environments across on-premises and virtualized platforms.
• Administer and optimize IBM Spectrum Scale (GPFS) for high-performance, distributed storage and data management.
• Deploy, manage, and enhance container platforms using OpenShift/Kubernetes, and OpenShift AI, ensuring secure and efficient application delivery.
• Manage and optimize virtualized infrastructure leveraging VMware technologies.
• Ensure system stability, performance, availability, and data integrity across all Linux-based infrastructure.
• Develop and implement security hardening standards, ensuring compliance with organizational and industry best practices.
• Lead troubleshooting and root cause analysis for complex system and performance issues in distributed environments.
• Drive automation initiatives using scripting and infrastructure-as-code to improve efficiency and reduce operational risk.
• Collaborate with application, DevOps, security, and infrastructure teams to align platform capabilities with business needs.
• Establish and enforce engineering standards, best practices, and documentation.
• Mentor and provide technical guidance to engineers, fostering skill development and knowledge sharing.

Required Qualifications

• Extensive experience in Linux system engineering and administration (e.g., RHEL, CentOS, or equivalent).
• Proven expertise with IBM Spectrum Scale (GPFS), including design, deployment, and performance tuning.
• Proven experience with OpenShift, Kubernetes and OpenShift AI, including cluster management and container orchestration.
• Experience in using VMware environments.
• Deep understanding of system performance tuning, monitoring, and capacity planning.
• Experience implementing security hardening, patching strategies, and compliance frameworks.
• Strong scripting and automation skills (e.g., Bash, Python, Ansible, Terraform).
• Solid networking knowledge (TCP/IP, DNS, load balancing, firewalls).
• Strong understanding of disaster recovery and contingency planning.
• Experience with high-availability architectures.
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and Platform Engineering practices.
• Knowledge of enterprise monitoring and logging tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, ELK stack and Solarwinds).
• Relevant certifications (e.g., RHCE, RHCA, OpenShift, or equivalent).
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex technical projects and influence architectural decisions.
• Strong written and verbal presentation and communication skills, with the ability to engage both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Key Competencies

• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management abilities.
• Leadership mindset with the ability to drive initiatives and mentor teams.
• Proactive approach to continuous improvement and innovation.
• Ability to perform effectively in fast-paced, high-impact environments.

Rewards & Benefits

• Competitive base salary and performance related incentives
• Health and wellbeing programmes including medical, dental, and vision coverage where applicable
• Retirement and pension plans
• Life assurance and disability coverage
• Employee assistance programmes and wellbeing resources
• Learning and development opportunities through structured training and career pathways
• Benefits may vary depending on role and location

Visit our careers site to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

Inclusion and Accessibility

ICON is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building an inclusive and accessible workplace where everyone feels valued and supported. If you require reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process, please let us know or submit a request here.