Senior Server Engineer

RSM Solutions, Inc; Elkhart (IN); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

RSM Solutions, Inc. is seeking a Senior Server Engineer with a strong focus on VMware and Azure to support a large, largely virtualized environment. The role is hybrid, with periodic onsite work near Elkhart, Indiana as the team expands.

You will migrate on-prem servers to Azure, manage Dell EMC SAN, and strengthen AD, GPO, and scripting using PowerShell and Python. Collaboration with a small, capable team is essential.

Qualifications

• 7+ years managing Microsoft Windows Server and VMware.
• 7+ years building Azure environments.
• 4+ years SAN experience (Dell EMC preferred).
• 4+ years Active Directory, LDAP, ADFS experience.
• Strong PowerShell and Python scripting experience.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex infrastructure initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Manage and optimize Azure and VMware environments across Windows Server.
• Plan and execute migrations of on-premises servers to Azure.
• Administer Dell EMC SAN, storage provisioning and capacity planning.
• Develop automation via PowerShell and Python to improve efficiency.
• Maintain Active Directory, Group Policy, security permissions and trust relationships.
• Collaborate with IT leadership on infrastructure strategy and roadmap.

Skills

Windows Server

VMware

Azure

Active Directory

Group Policy

PowerShell

Python

Networking basics

Tools

O365

ADFS

LDAP

Job description

Thanks for stopping by to take a look at the Senior Server Engineer role I posted here on LinkedIN, I appreciate it. If you have read my job descriptions before, welcome back. If you are new to my job descriptions, allow me to introduce myself a bit.

My name is Tom Welke. I am a real, live, human being writing this. Actually, for fun (just to prove I am a human) I am watching Top Gear reruns as I write this. I know Ai has become quite 'the thing' when it comes to writing job descriptions. If you are anything like me, you look at those Ai written job descriptions and it just looks like a gobledygook of words that essentially say nothing.

So...let's make a deal. I will be human with you...what I ask for in return is a minimization of Ai responses back & Ai generated resumes. I will - if I am interested in learning more - respond with some questions regarding your background. I like to hear candidates points of view in terms of their background (knowing that resumes really tell 35% of the story...the other 65% comes from interaction back and forth). In addition, I don't use any automation tools to review resumes...so, it does take me a little more time to review resumes. Sound good?

So, here are a couple ground rules for this role in particular:

• We are looking for candidates roughly 4 1/2 hours driving distance from Elkhart, Indiana. Yep, this role is being done hybrid. But, you will need to come to Elkhart Indiana from time to time as this role progresses.
• I am not working with external vendors on this role. So, please - if you are a 3rd party - do not send me an email every day saying 'I have an ideal candidate'.
• The client for this role cannot provide immigration sponsorship now or in the future. As a result, I’m only able to work with candidates who have permanent authorization to work in the U.S. and will never require sponsorship (typically U.S. citizens or Green Card holders). With that in mind, would you require employer sponsorship at any point to continue working in the U.S., including under H1, H4, EAD, STEM, OPT, or other time-limited work authorization?

As with every role I work on, social fit is almost as important as the technical fit. Here are some of those key social fit characteristics for this role:

• This is a small highly functioning team of 4 network & systems administrators (you would be the 4th member of this team) and 3 infrastructure engineers that divide their time across this organization's divisions. So, we are seeking that individual that isn't afraid of discussing things if they are incorrect. If you have an alternate approach, please bring it up. This team is highly functioning because they know they don't know everything and know where their blind spots are.
• This is an organization where people 'jump in'...you won't hear someone say 'this isn't my job'. So, that individual who enjoys getting their fingers dirty is what we are seeking here.
• This is not an org where people have enormous egos or think that their opinion is the only one that matters. So, if you are this kind of person, go back to being a Social Media Influencer, because we wont have a fit here.

This role is being done in a hybrid manner. In the first 2-3 months of this role, you will be onsite for roughly 1 or 2 weeks a month. Over time, you will be onsite about 1 week a month. So, we are really only seeking candidates within a driving distance of 4 1/2 hours from Elkhart, Indiana.

Here is what we are looking for in this role: We are looking for a Senior Server Engineer with a strong focus on VMWare and Azure. This role will require a significant amount of hands on experience with Windows Server Engineering (Windows OS), Azure Administration and Engineering, VMs, SAN, O365, AD & Group Policies. As many Senior Server Engineers with this kind of focus know, you will inevitably work with the network as well. So a high level understanding of CISCO routers & switches would be a good thing to see.

This organization has about 50 sites and hundreds of servers...many of them virtualized. The user group size is roughly around 2,800 with 1,500 accounts. Their goal is to move these servers to Azure (or as many as possible). So, a good percentage of your work will be analyzing what is on these servers, how to move them to Azure and the risks involved in doing so. They have a bunch of legacy systems and legacy ERPs as well..so, those analysis skills will be important as you analyze these servers. We are seeking, as you might have guessed that hands on, get your fingers dirty, Server individual who has a great mix of Azure experience....but, not from a perspective of 'let's just flip the switch', but from that perspective of analyzing what makes sense and what doesn't.

In your key first 30, 60 and 90 days, here is what the hiring manager would like to see:

30 days - that ability to work on server migrations and file server migrations autonomously

60 days - further integrations with Azure VDI

90 days - strategizing with regards to on prem and virtual servers into Azure, and sharing that strategy with senior IT leadership

As the future unfolds, we are seeking this individual to not simply keep the lights on. Rather, we are looking for this person to help the organization plan for its future. You will be working on hundreds of servers (most of them virtualized)..some will need updating /upgrading, some will need additional layers of redundancy. In addition, some of the team members you will be working with are relatively junior. So, while there is no team leadership responsibilities for this role, that ability to mentor team members is something we are seeking for this role.

Here are some of the fun stuff you will be working on (rather than putting a zillion bullet points here, I will narrow this down to the real 'meat'):

• Work with the continued buildout of this client's Azure environment. This will include administration, configuration, and troubleshooting on-premises and cloud server environments across Windows Server and VMware in a large, primarily virtualized environment.
• Manage SAN infrastructure (these guys are a Dell EMC environment), including storage provisioning, performance tuning, and capacity planning.
• Write PowerShell and Python scripts to automate those key routine tasks and, as you might guess...the result is increased system efficiency.
• Maintain and administer Active Directory, including user accounts, Group Policy, security permissions, trusts, LDAP, and ADFS.
• Oversee and follow up on all installed systems and infrastructure (on prem and cloud).
• Lend a hand to the design of information and operational support systems.

Here is what we are lookin' for (If you are anything like me, you see some of these requirement lists and your eyes go a little buggy...so, I won't have an exhaustive list...I will state, here, the absolute gotta haves. So, yep, these are all gotta haves):

• 7 or more years of experience with managing Microsoft Windows Server environments and VMWare Infrastructure. However, I am going to be more interested in breadth and depth of experience. If, for example, you have been the only Server Engineer or Server Admin for a good chunk of your career, that counts more than 10 or more years of experience in a team of 20 engineers.
• 7 or more years of experience building and maintaining Azure environments.
• 4 or more years of SAN experience (Dell EMC is preferred)
• 4 or more years of Active Directory, LDAP, ADFS experience.
• Strong PowerShell and Python scripting experience.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex infrastructure initiatives, including platform upgrades, cloud or data migrations, disaster recovery, redundancy, capacity planning, and Tier 2/3 incident escalation.