Job Description

Years of Experience: 5+ years of experience leading IT systems administration

Education Requirements: Bachelor's degree in computer science, information technology, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

Program Description: The contractor provides enterprise IT operations support services for the NCUA OCIO, structured across Tier 1 (Service Desk), Tier 2 (End User and Endpoint Support), and Tier 3 (Server, Platform, and Network Infrastructure Engineering). The Senior Systems Administrator role is a Tier 3 engineering function focused on operating, securing, and sustaining NCUA’s enterprise infrastructure and control plane. This role does not perform Tier 1 or Tier 2 duties and does not own business applications or workflows.

Position Description: The Senior Systems Administrator is responsible for the engineering, administration, and operational integrity of NCUA’s enterprise IT infrastructure. This role ensures that core platforms (compute, identity, endpoint, cloud, and network-adjacent services) are secure, available, compliant, and operable in accordance with NCUA security baselines and service management processes.

The position supports program and mission needs by implementing approved architectures, enforcing access and security controls, maintaining platform stability, and supporting audits, incidents, and change activities. The Senior Systems Administrator operates within established governance and does not serve as an application owner, data owner, or business process authority.

This position is designated Key Personnel.

Responsibilities

The Senior Systems Administrator is responsible for the following Tier 3 duties:

Enterprise Infrastructure Operations

• Administer and maintain enterprise compute, virtualization, Linux and Windows server platforms, identity, and platform services supporting NCUA operations.
• Operate Windows Server and Linux (e.g., RHEL, Rocky, Ubuntu LTS) environments, virtualization platforms, and cloud-hosted infrastructure in accordance with approved architectures and baselines.
• Ensure system availability, reliability, and recoverability through proactive monitoring, patching, backup, and lifecycle management.

Identity, Access, and Security Enforcement

• Implement and maintain role-based access controls across enterprise services.
• Administer Entra ID / Active Directory, Group Policy, and authentication services.
• Implement and enforce Microsoft 365 Conditional Access and related identity protection controls.
• Support vulnerability management, security assessments, and compliance audits.

Cloud and Platform Engineering

• Operate and support Azure-based infrastructure and services, including hybrid integrations.
• Support infrastructure configuration using approved automation and infrastructure-as-code patterns.
• Ensure cloud resources align with availability, security, and cost-management requirements.

Service Management and Operational Support

• Serve as a Tier 3 escalation point for infrastructure incidents and problems.
• Support change, problem, and incident management processes without bypassing established controls.
• Participate in major incident response, root-cause analysis, and service restoration activities.

Continuity and Resilience

• Participate in disaster recovery and continuity planning, testing, and documentation.
• Ensure backups, restore procedures, and recovery mechanisms are operable and tested.
• Documentation and Engineering Discipline
• Develop and maintain technical documentation for system configurations, operational procedures, and support runbooks.
• Support transition, knowledge transfer, and readiness activities as required by the program.

Required Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in enterprise systems administration or infrastructure engineering.
• Demonstrated experience operating Tier 3 infrastructure in regulated or security-sensitive environments.

Required Technical Competencies

• Windows Server administration and enterprise identity services (Active Directory / Entra ID).
• Microsoft 365 platform administration, including Conditional Access.
• Virtualization technologies (e.g., VMware).
• Cloud infrastructure operations (Azure required; AWS/GCP familiarity acceptable).
• Scripting and automation for administration and operations (e.g., PowerShell).
• Monitoring, logging, and troubleshooting of enterprise systems.

Preferred Skills

• Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator or equivalent.
• VMware Certified Professional (VCP/VCF) or equivalent experience.
• Experience supporting ITIL-aligned service management environments.
• Prior experience supporting federal or financial regulatory organizations.

Soft Skills

• Organizational Skills: Can plan and prioritize work. Follows tasks to their logical conclusion and makes sure that everything has been done to the right standard. Good attention to detail.
• Team Work: Able to enthuse and maintain project interest. Comfortable working both individually and as part of a team. Prepared to challenge ideas within a group in a constructive way.
• Communications: Ability to communicate clearly and efficiently to team members and clients, verbally and in writing. Able to present ideas in a variety of ways depending upon audience and context. Excellent active listening skills.
• Quantitative Management: Ability to determine process measures and track to determine process effectiveness and efficiency.
• Problem Solving: Ability to analyze problems and determine root cause, generating alternatives, evaluating and selecting alternatives and implementing solutions.
• Results oriented: Able to drive things forward regardless of personal interest in the task.