Systems Administrator - Xcel Engineering

COMPANY OVERVIEW

XCEL Engineering, Inc. is an award-winning small business that provides trusted information technology, engineering, consulting and project management solutions and services to federal agencies and organizations. Originally founded in 1971 by professional engineers at the University of Tennessee, XCEL was acquired in 2003 by U.S. Army and Navy veterans and in 2023 became a MartinFed company.

XCEL Engineering is a part of IT Lab Partners (ITLP) which was created to support a leading research facility in the East Tennessee region in recruiting the best and the brightest technical talent. Considering joining our impressive team today!

JOB OVERVIEW

Xcel Engineering is seeking an Infrastructure Operations Center Systems Administrator who will provide compute and storage infrastructure for the enterprise operations of the Lab. Additionally we provide a 24/7 monitoring operation for the Critical Systems run by the Laboratory. This role is shiftwork and rotational enabling our team to be staffed 24/7/365.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Document team processes including work instructions and maintain a living knowledge base.
• Monitor infrastructure equipment and servers for uptime as well as performance.
• Assist in Backup Administration and Restore requests.
• Assist in Enterprise Server Patching.
• Assist in Server Vulnerability management.
• Work with a Data Center Infrastructure Management System (DCIM) to help track assets and connections.
• Work with other system engineers and vendors to troubleshoot and resolve hardware and software issues.
• Provide off-hours support, troubleshooting, and escalation.
• Provide suggestions for process improvement and implement when required.
• Install and configure software, both commercial packages and various open-source packages.
• Support data storage systems and backup services.
• Derive results for metrics on technical performance as requested.
• Engage with engineers to automate workflows.
• Locate and execute automation/self-healing solutions.
• Deliver ORNL's mission by aligning behaviors, priorities, and interactions with our core values of Impact, Integrity, Teamwork, Safety, and Service. Promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility by fostering a respectful workplace - in how we treat one another, work together, and measure success.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

• An Associates degree in Information Technology or a related technical field of study and 5+ years of experience. An overall combination of equivalent experience may be considered.
• Experience in the following areas:
  • PowerShell and Scripting via other tools
  • Backup architecture and operations
  • SCCM and server patching
  • Managing a virtualized environment including tuning and maintenance
  • Windows and Linux Server Platforms
  • Enterprise class backup solutions
• Basic understanding of network communication and demonstrated troubleshooting techniques.
• Basic understanding of virtualization environments and operations.
• Excellent interpersonal skills suitable for user support and ability to work well with peer system administrators.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Enterprise automated VM Cluster installation/configuration/management experience.
• Previous experience working in a government, scientific, or other highly technical environment.
• Demonstrated ability to perform job tasks while considering cyber security risk of those tasks, and consulting with security professionals when necessary.
• Experience in an environment requiring change control processes.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Motivated self-starter with the ability to work independently and to participate creatively in collaborative teams across the laboratory.
• Ability to function well in a fast-paced research environment, set priorities to accomplish multiple tasks within deadlines, and adapt to ever changing needs.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS & ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

• Inside office environment.
• Working on a computer for long periods of time.
• May involve long period of sitting at a desk.
• The work environment is fast-paced and sometimes involves extreme deadline pressures.

OTHER DUTIES

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Xcel Engineering is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regards to race, color, religion, religious creed, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, transgender, pregnancy, marital status, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability, protected Veteran Status, genetics or any other characteristics protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

If you are a qualified individual with a disability or disabled veteran, you have the right to request a reasonable accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access Xcel Engineering's current openings as a result of your disability. You can request reasonable accommodations by calling 855.212.1810. Thank you for your interest in Xcel Engineering.

All positions at Xcel Engineering, Inc. are contingent upon passing both a background check and drug screening prior to a start date and are subject to random drug screenings during the employment period. In addition, Xcel Engineering is an E-Verify employer.