POSITION OVERVIEW / SUMMARY:

The UNIX/Linux Lead Administrator will oversee, is responsible and will manage the enterprise UNIX and Linux infrastructure, focusing on AIX and Red Hat systems. This role provides technical leadership, strategic direction, and hands-on administration to ensure the reliability, performance, and security of mission-critical systems. The ideal candidate is a seasoned systems engineer who excels in automation, standardization, and cross-platform integration. It requires advanced technical expertise, leadership skills, and a proactive mindset to maintain secure, high-performing systems across multiple data centers and cloud environments. The ideal candidate will drive automation, standardization, and innovation across UNIX/Linux platforms while leading a team of skilled administrators.

•   Lead a team of UNIX/Linux system administrators in managing enterprise AIX and RHEL environments.
•   Define and implement operational standards, best practices, and automation frameworks for system builds, configuration, and maintenance.
•  Act as the primary technical escalation point for complex UNIX/Linux infrastructure issues.
• Collaborate with architecture, storage, network, security, and application teams to deliver integrated infrastructure solutions.
• Manage the installation, configuration, patching, and lifecycle management of AIX (Power Systems) and RHEL servers.
• Maintain and administer logical partitions (LPARs), volume groups, and filesystems on AIX systems using tools such as HMC, VIOS, and NIM.
• Administer Red Hat Satellite for patch management and system provisioning.
•  Monitor system health, availability, and performance using enterprise tools (e.g., Nagios, Red Hat Insights, BigFix, or similar).
•  Coordinate and validate OS migrations, upgrades, and hardware refreshes across multiple data centers or cloud environments.
• Develop and maintain automation scripts using Bash, Python, or Ansible to streamline provisioning, patching, and configuration.
• Implement Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices where applicable to improve consistency and scalability.
•  Ensure adherence to corporate and industry security standards (CIS, NIST, SOX, PCI).
• Perform regular security patching, system hardening, and vulnerability remediation.
• Manage access controls, sudo policies, and identity integration with LDAP/Active Directory.
• Participate in security audits and develop corrective action plans as needed.
•  Drive root cause analysis (RCA) for major incidents and implement preventive measures.
• Lead capacity planning, forecasting, and performance tuning efforts.
• Maintain comprehensive system documentation and standard operating procedures (SOPs).
• Provide after-hours or on-call support for high-priority incidents when required.
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• QUALIFICATIONS:
•   Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or equivalent experience.
•   8+ years of UNIX/Linux system administration experience in large-scale enterprise environments.
• 3+ years in a lead or senior-level capacity managing AIX and Red Hat environments.
•   Deep expertise with IBM Power Systems, AIX LPAR/VIOS management, and NIM-based deployments.
•  Strong proficiency in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL 5/6/7/8/9), including package management (YUM/DNF), SELinux, and systemd.
• Experience with automation and configuration tools (Ansible, Puppet, or Chef).
•  Solid understanding of networking, storage (SAN/NFS), and backup/recovery principles.
•  Proven track record in system performance tuning, troubleshooting, and capacity management.
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• Preferred Certifications:
• Certifications such as Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE), Linux Foundation Certified Engineer (LFCE), or IBM Certified AIX System Administrator.
•   Familiarity with cloud and virtualization platforms (VMware, PowerVM, AWS, or Azure).
• Experience integrating UNIX/Linux systems into hybrid cloud or container environments (OpenShift, Kubernetes).
•  Knowledge of monitoring, observability, and ITSM tools (ServiceNow, Dynatrace, etc.).