Senior Systems Engineer - Enterprise IT Infrastructure - M.C. Dean, Inc

M.C. Dean relies on its IT infrastructure and applications to support critical business functions and drive value to the customers. The successful candidate will join a dynamic multidiscipline team responsible for design, implementation, integration, and support of the enterprise IT infrastructure, which includes secure cloud-hosted and on-premises environments. As part of the team, the Senior Systems Engineer's responsibilities will include (but will not be limited to) the following:

• Development of detailed technical and performance specifications for mission-critical information technology solutions based on business needs, operational requirements, and constraints of diverse internal and external stakeholders.
• Researching available technology options and their respective functional, performance, security, and interoperability characteristics; test and evaluate technology components;
• Producing detailed system design, including network and systems infrastructure, application hosting, cloud services, and related components, integration with system monitoring and management, as well as cybersecurity capabilities; work closely with System Architect and other senior members of the technical team to drive best practices across the entirety of the enterprise IT platform;
• System implementation, configuration, including extensive use of automation and Infrastructure as Code (IaC), of key solution components and associated cybersecurity controls, network infrastructure, application software, database instances, and other components;
• Plan, evaluate and execute capacity optimization, updates, upgrades and other lifecycle activities associated with the solution; troubleshoot common infrastructure and application problems; provide escalation support for service availability and performance issues;
• Create and maintain detailed and accurate system documentation, including design and configuration plans, design diagrams, task-oriented procedures, operations and maintenance plans, etc.

Specific qualification requirements for the position include the following:

• 5-7 years of progressive experience performing comparable systems engineering, implementation, and support functions
• Expert knowledge of MS Windows platform and services, including Active Directory / EntraID, Group Policy Objects (GPO), strong authentication methods, conditional access policies, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), application deployment frameworks and components, networking, and storage services;
• Advanced knowledge of secure configuration benchmarks and hands-on experience in system hardening;
• Advanced knowledge and hands-on experience with MS Azure and cloud services and technologies, including compute, database, storage, network virtualization, and security services;
• Advanced knowledge of scripting, Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and automation platforms, such as PowerShell, Ansible, Terraform, and related;
• Thorough understanding of network infrastructure, concepts of operation, and protocols such as TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, SNMP, Syslog, etc.
• Knowledge of zero trust architecture (e.g., Zscaler) implementation, as well as working experience with network routing, switching, and firewall configuration is a plus
• Working knowledge of endpoint security (e.g., Defender, Trend Micro), SIEM (e.g., Splunk, Sentinel), vulnerability scanning (e.g., Tenable Nessus/Security Center), and other systems and security management tools

General:

• Demonstrated time management and organization skills while working in a fast-paced, multidiscipline team environment;

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills;
• Strong communication (oral and written) skills; 
• Proficiency with workflow and lifecycle management systems (e.g. Atlassian Jira)

Education and Certification:

• Education:
• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, or a Related Engineering Discipline
• Certification: 
• Microsoft Certified Professional / Systems Sngineer certification is strongly desired
• Security+ or CISSP certification is strongly desired

Other:

• US Citizenship is a requirement for this position.

Abilities:

• Exposure to computer screens for an extended period of time.
• Sitting for extended periods of time.
• Reach by extending hands or arms in any direction.
• Have finger dexterity in order to manipulate objects with fingers rather than whole hands or arms, for example, using a keyboard.
• Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Identify and understand the speech of another person.