VMWare Engineer

Apex Systems; Linthicum (MD); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

ESPP

401K

HSA

EAP

Certification discounts

Job summary

Everforth Apex is seeking a Senior VMware/Horizon Engineer for on-site work in Maryland. You will own the design, build, and stabilization of the vSphere and Horizon 8 platforms supporting ~800 users across Annapolis Junction and Linthicum Heights.

Responsibilities include hardening, patching, capacity planning, and automation using PowerCLI and PowerShell. The role requires strong VMware expertise and experience in air-gapped environments.

Qualifications

• 8+ years VMware engineering, including design and build of production vSphere environments.
• 5+ years Horizon design and administration, including connection servers, instant clones, and profiles.
• Experience supporting VDI at scale for hundreds to thousands of users.
• Strong PowerCLI and PowerShell scripting.
• Working knowledge of storage, Windows Server, Active Directory, and virtual networking.
• Experience in isolated, air-gapped environments with offline patching.
• U.S. person due to export-controlled data.

Responsibilities

• Design and build vSphere clusters on transferred Dell and HPE hardware, including ESXi and vCenter.
• Plan capacity for up to 800 users with headroom and VDI density.
• Integrate storage and backup, validate restores, and build templates and content libraries.
• Harden ESXi and vCenter with security baselines and central logging.
• Manage patching and upgrades via offline depots due to no direct Internet access.
• Design and build Horizon 8 environment with session pools and App Volumes or DEM.
• Migrate profiles, validate licensing access, and ensure pilot deployments succeed.
• Automate provisioning with PowerCLI and scripted templates; mentor staff.

Skills

VMware engineering

Horizon design

VDI scaling

PowerCLI

PowerShell

Windows Server

Active Directory

Networking basics

Tools

PowerCLI

PowerShell

Job description

Job Description:

Senior VMware / Horizon Engineer - Onsite, Maryland Virtualization, VDI, and Platform Lifecycle

Job#: 3055935 Job Description: Senior VMware / Horizon Engineer - Onsite, Maryland Virtualization, VDI, and Platform Lifecycle R2Next Design, Build, Migrate, and Operate Program | Annapolis Junction / Linthicum Heights, MD | On site | No clearance required Our client is standing up a new, self-sufficient IT environment for an engineering, research, and microelectronics manufacturing organization of roughly 800 users across sites in Annapolis Junction and Linthicum Heights, Maryland. The environment has no direct internet access, is fully virtualized on VMware, and is being built largely from existing Cisco, Dell, and HPE infrastructure as the organization transitions off a government-operated network, with a target of having the new program network operational by year-end and additional business and manufacturing integration work following over the next two years. Every part of this environment runs on virtual infrastructure, and VMware expertise is the client’s biggest gap. The Senior VMware / Horizon Engineer owns the design, build, and stabilization of the vSphere and Horizon 8 platforms that roughly 800 users, including engineers on specialized lab endpoints, will depend on. The role also advises on platform lifecycle and licensing decisions as current licenses and hardware approach renewal in 2027.

Key Responsibilities

vSphere Platform

• Design and build vSphere clusters on transferred Dell and HPE hardware, including ESXi, vCenter, HA, DRS, vMotion, resource pools, and distributed switching.
• Plan capacity for up to 800 users with headroom, using pilot-wave measurements to refine host, storage, and VDI density.
• Integrate storage and backup, validate restores before migration, and build templates and content libraries for repeatable server builds.
• Harden ESXi and vCenter using VMware security configuration guidance and DISA STIGs; implement role-based access and central logging.
• Manage patching and upgrades through offline depots and the controlled ingress process, since the environment has no direct internet access.

Horizon 8 VDI

• Design and build the Horizon 8 environment, including paired connection servers, desktop pools, instant clones, and App Volumes or Dynamic Environment Manager as appropriate.
• Build and maintain golden images, and tune them for engineering and CAD-type workloads, including GPU or vGPU where needed.
• Re-point thin and zero clients to the new environment, migrate user profiles, and validate engineering applications and license-server access with each migration wave.
• Monitor session performance and user experience, and resolve logon, display protocol, and application issues during hypercare.

Lifecycle, Automation, and Advisory

• Automate provisioning and configuration with PowerCLI, templates, and version-controlled scripts.
• Assess platform health, end-of-life timelines, and licensing ahead of the 2027 renewal, and provide options and cost inputs for platform and refresh decisions.
• Produce as-builts, runbooks, SOPs, and Horizon recommendations on architecture, scaling, and future management.
• Mentor systems administrators and client staff to build in-house virtualization skills before the move to managed operations.

Technical Environment

Category

Environment

Virtualization

VMware vSphere, ESXi, vCenter, HA, DRS, vMotion, distributed switching, content libraries.

VDI

VMware Horizon 8 (now Omnissa Horizon), instant clones, golden images, thin and zero clients, specialized lab endpoints.

Infrastructure

Dell servers, HP/HPE high-performance computing, enterprise storage, backup and recovery, Cisco network fabric.

Identity

Active Directory, PKI, tiered administrative access.

Security

No direct internet access, offline update depots, hardened baselines, centralized logging, NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 3.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of VMware engineering, including design and build of production vSphere environments.
• 5+ years of hands‑on Horizon (7 or 8) design and administration, including connection servers, instant clones, golden images, and profile management.
• Experience supporting VDI at scale, ideally hundreds to thousands of users, including thin or zero clients.
• Strong PowerCLI and PowerShell scripting.
• Working knowledge of storage, backup, Windows Server, Active Directory, and virtual networking.
• Experience in isolated, air‑gapped, CUI, or other restricted environments, including offline patching.
• U.S. person, due to export-controlled data in the environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• GPU or vGPU VDI for engineering and CAD workloads.
• Experience with VMware NSX, Aria Operations (vRealize), or Site Recovery Manager.
• Experience with VMware migrations or platform evaluations, including licensing changes and alternative hypervisors.
• Experience applying DISA STIGs to ESXi, vCenter, and Horizon.
• VCP-DCV and VCP-DTM (Desktop/Horizon), VCAP, or VCDX certifications.

What Will Make You Successful

• Ownership of the platform end to end, from build through stable operations.
• A teaching mindset, since part of success is leaving the client team stronger in VMware.
• Calm, methodical troubleshooting during migration waves when users are watching.

Work Location and Conditions

Primarily on site in Annapolis Junction and Linthicum Heights, Maryland, where hands‑on work with racks, endpoints, and lab equipment takes place. No security clearance is required; candidates must be U.S. persons because the environment holds export‑controlled information. Occasional after‑hours support may be needed for cutover windows. The initial engagement runs through March 2027 as part of a multi‑phase, multi‑year program.

Everforth Apex is a world‑class IT services company that serves thousands of clients across the globe. When you join Everforth Apex, you become part of a team that values innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning. We offer quality career resources, training, certifications, development opportunities, and a comprehensive benefits package. Our commitment to excellence is reflected in many awards, including ClearlyRateds Best of Staffing® in Talent Satisfaction in the United States and Great Place to Work® in the United Kingdom and Mexico.

Everforth Apex Benefits Overview: Everforth Apex offers a range of supplemental benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life, disability, and other insurance plans that offer an optional layer of financial protection. We offer an ESPP (employee stock purchase program) and a 401K program which allows you to contribute typically within 30 days of starting, with a company match after 12 months of tenure. Everforth Apex also offers a HSA (Health Savings Account on the HDHP plan), a SupportLinc Employee Assistance Program (EAP) with up to 8 free counseling sessions, a corporate discount savings program and other discounts. In terms of professional development, Everforth Apex hosts an on‑demand training program, provides access to certification prep and a library of technical and leadership courses/books/seminars once you have 6+ months of tenure, and certification discounts and other perks to associations that include CompTIA and IIBA. Everforth Apex has a dedicated customer service team for our Consultants that can address questions around benefits and other resources, as well as a certified Career Coach. You can access a full list of our benefits, programs, support teams and resources within our ‘Welcome Packet’ as well, which an Everforth Apex team member can provide.

Everforth Apex Systems is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate or allow discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, genetic information, registered domestic partner status, marital status, disability, status as a crime victim, protected veteran status, political affiliation, union membership, or any other characteristic protected by law. Everforth Apex will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law.

If you require an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act to participate in an interview with a virtual recruiter or to use our website for a search or application, please contact our Benefits Department at [email protected] or 804-523-8228. Please note that this contact information is strictly to be used for medical ADA accommodations and that no other inquiries will be answered.

UnitedHealthcare creates and publishes the Transparency in Coverage Machine-Readable Files on behalf of Everforth Apex Systems.

© 2026 Everforth, Inc. All rights reserved.

Everforth Apex Systems is part of the Commercial Segment of Everforth, Inc.

NYSE: EFOR

4400 Cox Road

Suite 200

Glen Allen, Virginia 23060

Everforth Apex is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate or allow discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, genetic information, registered domestic partner status, marital status, disability, status as a crime victim, protected veteran status, political affiliation, union membership, or any other characteristic protected by law. Everforth Apex will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law.