Lead DBA (SQL / Azure / Postgres)

Vaco; Mount Airy (NC); On-site; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Vaco by Highspring seeks an experienced Lead Database Administrator to own a growing enterprise database environment. This on-site role focuses on taking SQL Server expertise through production and development DBA tasks while transitioning workloads to Microsoft Azure.

Ideal candidates will manage migrations to Azure SQL, Azure SQL MI, or SQL Server on Azure VMs, plus PostgreSQL and cloud DBaaS environments, with strong backup, security, and HA practices.

Qualifications

• Strong experience with Microsoft SQL Server administration.
• Production and development DBA responsibilities in hybrid environments.
• Experience migrating on-prem databases to Azure and cloud DBaaS.
• Knowledge of PostgreSQL and cloud-hosted database platforms.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor DBAs; own database platforms end-to-end.
• Manage, monitor, tune, and troubleshoot SQL Server environments.
• Partner with infra, app teams on design, deployments, and performance.
• Drive migrations from on-prem to Azure and related DBaaS offerings.
• Maintain backups, HA, DR, and security controls for databases.
• Implement standards, documentation, and operational procedures.

Skills

Microsoft SQL Server

Azure SQL Database

Azure SQL Managed Instance

PostgreSQL

DBaaS/PaaS

Cloud migrations

PowerShell

T-SQL

Python

Tools

Azure

SQL Server

PostgreSQL

Job description

On-site 5 days a week in South Charlotte

W2 only- direct placement/full time (no sponsorship)

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Lead Database Administrator (DBA) to own and evolve a growing enterprise database environment. This is a hands-on technical leadership role for someone who has strong experience across both Production and Development DBA responsibilities and is comfortable working across traditional on-premise infrastructure and modern cloud database platforms.

A major focus of this position will be helping drive the organization's continued transition from on-premise database environments into Microsoft Azure, while maintaining the performance, security, reliability, and availability of existing production systems.

The ideal candidate brings deep Microsoft SQL Server expertise along with experience in Azure database technologies, PostgreSQL, and Database-as-a-Service (DBaaS/SaaS) environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical lead and subject matter expert for the organization's database platforms.
• Support both Production DBA and Development DBA responsibilities across business-critical applications.
• Manage, monitor, tune, and troubleshoot Microsoft SQL Server environments.
• Partner with application and development teams on database design, SQL development, deployments, performance optimization, and troubleshooting.
• Help lead the migration and modernization of database workloads from on-premise infrastructure to Microsoft Azure.
• Evaluate and implement appropriate Azure database services, including Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, SQL Server on Azure VMs, and related PaaS/DBaaS solutions.
• Administer and support PostgreSQL environments, including cloud-hosted PostgreSQL platforms.
• Develop and maintain database backup, recovery, high availability, disaster recovery, and business continuity strategies.
• Monitor database health, capacity, performance, security, and availability.
• Troubleshoot complex production database issues and perform root-cause analysis.
• Establish database standards, documentation, security practices, and operational procedures.
• Assist with database upgrades, migrations, patching, automation, and modernization initiatives.
• Work closely with infrastructure, cloud, security, application development, and business teams.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to other database and technology resources.

What We're Looking For

Strong experience with:

• Microsoft SQL Server administration
• Production DBA responsibilities in highly available environments
• Development DBA responsibilities and working directly with software/application development teams
• SQL performance tuning, indexing, query optimization, and troubleshooting
• Backup, recovery, replication, clustering, and high availability
• Microsoft Azure database technologies
• On-premise to Azure/cloud database migrations
• Azure SQL Database and/or Azure SQL Managed Instance
• PostgreSQL administration
• Cloud-hosted database platforms and DBaaS/PaaS database models
• Database security, access management, monitoring, and governance
• Automation and scripting using PowerShell, T-SQL, Python, or similar technologies

Ideal Background

We are particularly interested in candidates who have worked in environments where they have had to wear multiple hats - someone who can keep a mission-critical production database environment running while also partnering with developers and helping architect the organization's future cloud database strategy.

This is not a purely managerial DBA position. The successful candidate should still enjoy being hands-on technically and be comfortable moving between production support, development initiatives, performance tuning, architecture, migrations, and cloud modernization.

Vaco by Highspring is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race (including but not limited to traits historically associated with race such as hair texture and hair style), color, sex (includes pregnancy or related conditions), religion or creed, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, status as a veteran, union membership, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, political affiliation, or any other protected characteristics as required by federal, state or local law.

Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries are committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact [e-mail].

Vaco by Highspring also wants all applicants to know their rights that workplace discrimination is illegal.

Based on Highspring's discussions with its Client, Highspring's understanding is that this position for employment is a current vacancy (either through Highspring as a contractor or with the client directly).

Vaco by Highspring and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries ("we," "our," or "Vaco by Highspring") respects your privacy and are committed to providing transparent notice of your policies.

• California residents may access Vaco by Highspring HR Notice at Collection for California Applicants and Employees here.
• Virginia residents may access our state specific policies here.
• Residents of all other states may access our policies here.
• Canadian residents may access our policies in English here and in French here.
• Residents of countries governed by GDPR may access our policies here.

Additionally, submissions to this position are subject to the use of AI to perform preliminary candidate screenings, focused on ensuring minimum job requirements noted in the position are satisfied. More details about Vaco by Highspring's use of AI can be found here (https://www.highspring.com/ai-use-notices/). Further assessment of candidates beyond this initial phase will be conducted by recruiters and hiring managers. Vaco by Highspring does not know and cannot opine on if its client's use of AI products in hiring.

Determining compensation for this role (and others) at Vaco by Highspring depends upon a wide array of factors including but not limited to:

• the individual's skill sets, experience and training;
• licensure and certification requirements;
• office location and other geographic considerations;
• other business and organizational needs.

With that said, as required by local law, Vaco by Highspring believes that the following salary range referenced above reasonably estimates the base compensation for an individual hired into this position in geographies that require salary range disclosure. The individual may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses.