Data Systems Senior Systems Architect/Engineer

Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Oak Ridge (TN); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plans

Retirement plans

Flexible hours

On-site amenities

Job summary

Oak Ridge National Laboratory seeks a Data Systems Senior Systems Architect/Engineer for the Earth Sciences Informatics portfolio. You will design, deploy, and maintain facility-wide infrastructure supporting HPC, research, instrumentation, and operations across nine DOE labs for the ARM Facility.

You will lead projects spanning the national lab complex, ensure interoperability, security, and performance, and mentor junior staff while adopting DOE/FISMA/NIST controls and IaC tooling.

Qualifications

• BS degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, or related field (or equivalent).
• 5+ years of systems engineering, data center operations, or enterprise infrastructure experience.
• Strong Linux/Unix and Windows Server administration at scale.
• Deep virtualization experience (VMware, KVM, or similar).
• Experience with enterprise storage, SAN/NAS, and backup/DR solutions.
• Solid networking knowledge (TCP/IP, VLANs, routing/switching, firewalls).
• Experience with federal/DOE cybersecurity frameworks (NIST 800-53, RMF, FISMA).
• Ability to work across distributed, multi-site orgs and manage priorities.
• Excellent troubleshooting, documentation, and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain facility-wide systems infra including compute, storage, virtualization, and networking.
• Serve as technical lead for infrastructure projects across the national lab complex.
• Enable data collection, secure transfer, data processing, and distribution.
• Architect high-availability and disaster recovery solutions for mission-critical systems.
• Collaborate with engineers and IT staff at partner labs to align infra with research needs.
• Monitor performance, capacity, and health; proactively resolve issues.
• Research new technologies and design deployments for data center ops.
• Automate provisioning and patching with Ansible, Puppet, or Terraform.
• Support HPC clusters, AI infra, and storage systems (NFS, GPFS, Ceph).
• Address incidents affecting data center ops and interlab connectivity.
• Maintain system docs, SOPs, and disaster recovery plans.
• Mentor junior engineers and promote technical excellence.

Skills

Linux/Unix

Windows Server

Virtualization

Networking

Troubleshooting

Documentation

Communication

Security compliance

Infrastructure-as-code

Education

Bachelor's Degree in CS/CE/IS

Tools

Ansible

Puppet

Terraform

Kubernetes

Ceph

GPFS

NFS

Job description

The Environmental Sciences Division (ESD) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is seeking a Data Systems Senior Systems Architect/Engineer for its Earth Sciences Informatics portfolio. In this role, you will design, deploy, and maintain facility-wide infrastructure that supports high-performance computing (HPC), research, instrumentation, engineering, and operational workloads across a collaborative network spanning nine DOE National Laboratories for the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Facility. This is a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of national security, scientific research, and cutting‑edge infrastructure engineering.

In this role you will design, implement, and maintain the data, compute, storage, virtualization, security controls, and networking infrastructure that supports BER scientific data programs and facilities. As a technical lead on projects spanning the national laboratory complex, you will ensure interoperability, security, and performance while collaborating with partner labs to meet research and operational needs. You will architect high‑availability and disaster recovery solutions, monitor system health proactively, and maintain compliance with DOE orders, NIST 800-53, and FISMA. You will automate provisioning and patching with tools like Ansible, Puppet, or Terraform, support the integration of HPC clusters, AI infrastructure, and storage systems such as NFS, GPFS and Ceph. As part of this role, you will be actively collaborating with diverse teams and mentoring junior staff.

The ARM Data Center processes, archives, and distributes atmospheric observations from observatories around the globe, and provides data, computing and AI infrastructure, and analysis tools to the scientific community. Your work will directly improve how our community accesses and uses vast quantity of atmospheric and earth science data.

Major Duties/Responsibilities:

• Design, implement, and maintain facility-wide systems infrastructure including compute, storage, virtualization, and networking environments supporting DOE BER data programs and facilities.
• Serve as a technical lead for infrastructure projects coordinated across the national laboratory complex, ensuring interoperability, security, and performance standards are met facility-wide.
• Work with distributed teams to enable data collection, secure transfer, data processing, and distribution.
• Architect and support high‑availability and disaster recovery solutions for mission‑critical systems.
• Collaborate with engineers, scientists, and IT staff at partner national laboratories to align infrastructure strategy with research and operational requirements.
• Monitor system performance, capacity, and health; proactively identify and resolve issues before they impact operations.
• Research new and emerging technologies and successfully design and deploy for data center operations.
• Implement and maintain security controls in compliance with DOE orders, NIST 800-53, FISMA, and other applicable federal cybersecurity frameworks.
• Automate infrastructure provisioning, configuration management, and patching using tools such as Ansible, Puppet, or Terraform.
• Support integration of HPC clusters, AI infrastructure, data storage systems (e.g., NFS, GPFS, Ceph), and networking (including high‑speed interconnects) for facility operations.
• Address critical incidents affecting data center operations and/or interlab connectivity.
• Develop and maintain detailed system documentation, standard operating procedures, and disaster recovery plans.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to a culture of technical excellence and continuous improvement.

Basic Qualifications:

• BS degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 5+ years of experience in systems engineering, data center operations, or enterprise infrastructure roles.
• Strong hands‑on experience with Linux/Unix and Windows Server administration at scale.
• Deep understanding of virtualization technologies (VMware, KVM, or similar).
• Experience with enterprise storage systems, SAN/NAS architectures, and backup/DR solutions
• Solid networking knowledge (TCP/IP, VLANs, routing/switching, firewalls).
• Experience working within federal or DOE cybersecurity compliance frameworks (NIST 800-53, RMF, FISMA).
• Demonstrated ability to work across distributed, multi‑site organizations and manage competing stakeholder priorities.
• Excellent troubleshooting, documentation, and communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting HPC environments or scientific computing infrastructure.
• Familiarity with DOE National Laboratory systems, governance, or interlab collaboration models.
• Experience with configuration management and infrastructure-as-code (Ansible, Terraform, Puppet, Chef).
• Relevant certifications (e.g., RHCE, CISSP, VCP, or equivalent).
• Experience with container orchestration (Kubernetes, OpenShift) in a research or federal environment.

Special Requirements:

• Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.
• For employment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a Real ID compliant form of identification will be required. Additionally, ORNL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as mandated by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) and Department of Energy (DOE) Order 473.1A, which requires a favorable post‑employment background investigation.
• To obtain this credential, new employees must successfully complete and pass a Federal Tier 1 background check investigation. This investigation includes a declaration of illegal drug activities, including use, supply, possession, or manufacture within the last year. This includes marijuana and cannabis derivatives, which are still considered illegal under federal law, regardless of state laws.

About ORNL:

As a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science national laboratory, ORNL has an impressive 80-year legacy of addressing the nation’s most pressing challenges. Our team is made up of over 7,000 dedicated and innovative individuals! Our goal is to create an environment where a variety of perspectives and backgrounds are valued, ensuring ORNL is known as a top choice for employment. These principles are essential for supporting our broader mission to drive scientific breakthroughs and translate them into solutions for energy, environmental, and security challenges facing the nation.

ORNL offers competitive pay and benefits programs to attract and retain individuals who demonstrate exceptional work behaviors. The laboratory provides a range of employee benefits, including medical and retirement plans and flexible work hours, to support the well‑being of you and your family. Employee amenities such as on‑site fitness, banking, and cafeteria facilities are also available for added convenience.

• Prescription Drug Plan, Dental Plan, Vision Plan, 401(k) Retirement Plan, Contributory Pension Plan, Life Insurance, Disability Benefits, Generous Vacation and Holidays, Parental Leave, Legal Insurance with Identity Theft Protection, Employee Assistance Plan, Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Accounts, Wellness Programs, Educational Assistance, Relocation Assistance, and Employee Discounts.

This position will remain open for a minimum of 5 days after which it will close when a qualified candidate is identified and/or hired.

We accept Word (.doc, .docx), Adobe (unsecured .pdf), Rich Text Format (.rtf), and HTML (.htm, .html) up to 5MB in size. Resumes from third party vendors will not be accepted; these resumes will be deleted and the candidates submitted will not be considered for employment.

ORNL is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants, including individuals with disabilities and protected veterans, are encouraged to apply. UT‑Battelle is an E‑Verify employer.