Senior SQL Database Architect & Automation Lead

Guardian Life Insurance; Holmdel Township (NJ); On-site; USD 99,000 - 163,000; Full time

Job summary

Guardian Life Insurance is seeking a Senior MS SQL Database Engineer to lead enterprise SQL Server architecture, modernization, and operations across on‑premises and cloud environments. You will partner with application, infrastructure, and security teams to design scalable, secure database solutions and drive modernization initiatives.

The role emphasizes hands-on administration, Always On/DR, performance tuning, and automation using PowerShell and IaC tools such as Terraform in a hybrid cloud

Qualifications

• 10+ years of Microsoft SQL Server administration experience.
• 5+ years of enterprise database architecture experience.
• Expert knowledge of SQL Server 2019, 2022 and 2025.
• Deep understanding of Always On, Clustering, Replication, Backup/Recovery.
• Strong T-SQL development and query optimization skills.
• Experience with SSIS, SSRS, and SQL Server Management Studio.
• Extensive PowerShell scripting and automation experience.
• Strong knowledge of SDLC, DevOps, and Change Management processes.
• Experience with AWS services including RDS, EC2, and cloud migrations.

Responsibilities

• Define and maintain enterprise SQL Server architecture standards.
• Design scalable, secure, and highly available database solutions for critical apps.
• Lead database modernization, including cloud adoption and migrations.
• Develop roadmaps for SQL Server, AWS SQL, and AWS RDS SQL Server.
• Review designs and advise on data modeling, indexing, and performance.
• Administer SQL Server environments: installation, patching, upgrades.
• Manage Always On, Failover Clustering, replication, and DR solutions.
• Monitor health, capacity, and performance; ensure security/compliance.
• Lead governance, audits, and collaboration with dev teams.

Skills

SQL Server administration

Database architecture

Cloud migration (AWS)

PowerShell scripting

DevOps & SDLC

T-SQL development

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Terraform

GitHub

Jenkins

SQL Server Management Studio

AWS RDS

EC2

Job description

Guardian Life Insurance is seeking a Senior MS SQL Database Engineer to lead enterprise SQL Server architecture, modernization, and operations across on‑premises and cloud environments. You will partner with application, infrastructure, and security teams to design scalable, secure database solutions and drive modernization initiatives.

The role emphasizes hands-on administration, Always On/DR, performance tuning, and automation using PowerShell and IaC tools such as Terraform in a hybrid cloud