Infrastructure Specialist / Senior Infrastructure Specialist

Description

The University Library is essential to the intellectual vitality of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and attracts talented students, faculty, and scholars to the Urbana-Champaign campus. With more than 14 million volumes, it is one of the world’s great research libraries and renowned for the depth and breadth of its collections. The Library is central to the University’s mission of teaching, research, and public service, and it is one campus unit that serves all academic disciplines. The Library is looking for a candidate who is flexible, eager to learn, and collaborative to join our Infrastructure Management and Support (IMS) team in Library IT. IMS administers over 150 hosts and 700 TB’s of storage across 3 main platforms (VMware, AWS, and MS Azure) in support of a wide variety of activities from home grown enterprise applications to boutique research projects. 

PRIMARY POSITION FUNCTION/SUMMARY:

Infrastructure Specialist - The Infrastructure Specialist will assist with the maintenance of IT infrastructure including virtual machines, databases, infrastructure as code (i.e. playbooks), cloud infrastructure resources, security configurations, backups, monitoring, and logging. The Infrastructure Specialist will also participate in installation of third party software applications, software version upgrades/migrations, software patching and general troubleshooting. They will serve as a technology consultant to our Library customers regarding infrastructure needs, and as a security liaison to campus.

Senior Infrastructure Specialist - The Senior Infrastructure Specialist will plan and execute day-to-day service operations for Library IT infrastructure including virtual machines, databases, infrastructure as code (i.e. playbooks), cloud infrastructure resources, security configurations, backups, monitoring, and logging. The Senior Infrastructure Specialist will also perform installation of third-party software applications, software version upgrades/migrations, software patching and general troubleshooting. In addition to serving as a consultant to our Library customers regarding infrastructure needs, the Senior Infrastructure Specialist will play a significant role in identifying roadmaps for our services. 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: Infrastructure Specialist

System Administration

• Provision, maintain, and administer virtual and cloud systems and services as assigned.
• Establish and maintain patching schedule for all applicable systems.
• Perform configuration and automation for common services.
• Establish and maintain suitable resource and performance monitoring on all related systems.
• Ensure appropriate logging and backup solutions are in place for managed resources.
• Adhere to best practice change control processes.

Application Administration

• Install and support third party software applications.
• Participate in software application patching, upgrades and migrations.

Support

• Address and resolve issues with production and developmental systems and services.
• Communicate with vendors or other third parties using predefined methods for ticket submission, support, and enhancements requests.
• Create and maintain written documentation for various audiences.
• Serve as a technology consultant to our Library customers regarding infrastructure needs.

Security

• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of security related issues, industry standards, and IT infrastructure best practices.
• Maintain system access control and other security aspects of Library systems.
• Participate as a security liaison with campus.
• Appropriately respond to security incidents as needed.

Other Duties as Assigned

•  Research new technologies and analyze them for fit and value to our environment.

Environmental Demands

• Most work will be accomplished in a typical office work environment.  Some travel may be involved to attend conferences and other collaboration activities. This position is eligible to be fully or partially remote.

• On occasion, incumbent may need to work outside normal business hours in cases of system failure or scheduled updates.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:  Senior Infrastructure Specialist
These duties are in addition to the Infrastructure Specialist position:

System Administration

• Provision, maintain, and administer virtual and cloud systems and services.
• Provide direction and oversight of patching schedule for all applicable systems.
• Create and maintain infrastructure as code (i.e. playbooks) to provision and update resources, leveraging best practices for version control of code.
• Identify and implement appropriate security measures for each environment.
• Facilitate cost management for virtualized resources.

Application Administration

• Evaluate third party software applications and collaborate in selection processes as needed.
• Complete software application patching, upgrades and migrations.
• Define, build, implement, and support automated deployment pipelines.

Support

• Communicate with vendors or other third parties through normal means, escalating with them if necessary.
• Create and publish reports or technical documents for management as requested.

Leadership

• Plan and coordinate a number of projects simultaneously.
• Help cultivate skills and knowledge in less experienced colleagues.
• Represent projects and work at meetings, give presentations at conferences or other venues, and contribute to publications and/or grant proposals.
• Participate in relevant communities at the campus, national, or international level.
• Provide research, analysis, and suggestions to product roadmaps for infrastructure services.

QUALIFICATIONS – Infrastructure Specialist

Minimum:

• Two (2) years of progressively more responsible experience in an IT related profession.
   
  • College course work which included Information Technology (IT), IT Management, or a closely related discipline may be substituted as follows: 60 semester hours or Associate’s Degree equals one (1) year, 90-120 semester hours or Bachelor’s Degree equals two (2) years.
• Demonstrated experience in system administration. 

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s or advanced degree.
• Experience working in a UNIX/Linux or Windows command-line environment.
• Experience using or knowledge of version control.
• Experience using or knowledge of various shell scripting environments such as bash or PowerShell.
• Experience with or certifications for AWS, MS Azure, Terraform, or other cloud platform administration.
• Demonstrated experience in gathering stakeholder needs and adjusting to changes. 

Successful Candidates will have:

• Enthusiasm for learning new skills.
• Ability to troubleshoot problems encountered in Library systems.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to effectively communicate and collaborate.
• Ability to work in an environment with diverse staff and students.
• Ability to provide excellent customer service.

QUALIFICATIONS – Senior Infrastructure Specialist

Minimum:

• Five (5) years of work experience in IT‐related functions such as hardware/software support, programming, network design, network engineering, IT systems integration, or closely related field.
   
  • College coursework which includes Information Technology (IT), IT Management, Programming, IT systems, or a closely related discipline may be substituted as follows: 30 semester hours equals one (1) year, Associate’s Degree equals eighteen (18) months, 90 semester hours equals two (2) years, Bachelor’s Degree equals three (3) years.
• Demonstrated experience administering UNIX/Linux or Windows operating systems.
• Demonstrated experience with version control systems such as Git.
• Demonstrated experience utilizing performance monitoring tools.  

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s or advanced degree.
• Experience using various shell scripting environments such as bash or PowerShell.
• Experience working in or knowledge of database systems such as MySQL/MariaDB, Postgres, or Microsoft SQL Server.
• Experience with or certifications for AWS, MS Azure, Terraform, or other cloud platform administration.
• Demonstrated use or knowledge of automation tools, i.e. Ansible.
• Familiarity with GitHub Actions or other tools for creating and automating deployment pipelines.
• Demonstrated skill in building container images and orchestrating containers using relevant tools, i.e. Docker, Podman, Docker Compose, Swarm, Kubernetes.
• Experience managing projects using project management best practices.
• Demonstrated experience in gathering stakeholder needs and adjusting to changes. 

Successful Candidates will have:

• Enthusiasm for learning new skills.
• Ability to troubleshoot problems encountered in Library systems.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to effectively communicate and collaborate.
• Ability to work in an environment with diverse staff and students.
• Ability to provide excellent customer service.

Appointment Information

This is a 100% full-time Civil Service Professional, IT Technical Associate position, appointed on a 12-month basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after the close of the search.  Salary is commensurate with credentials and experience.

Immigration sponsorship is not available for this position

For more information on Civil Service classifications, please visit the SUCSS web site at https://www.sucss.illinois.gov/pages/classspec/default.aspx.

Application Procedures & Deadline Information

Applications must be received by 6:00 pm (CST) on June 15, 2023 to ensure full consideration.  Please create your candidate profile, upload a cover letter, your curriculum vitae, and the names and email addresses of four professional references by the close date.  In order to be considered as a transfer candidate, you must apply for this position. Applications must be submitted through https://illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/1/home/requisition/5272?c=illinois . Any applications not submitted through the Illinois Job portal will not be considered.

The University of Illinois System is an equal opportunity employer, including but not limited to disability and/or veteran status, and complies with all applicable state and federal employment mandates. Please visit Required Employment Notices and Posters to view our non-discrimination statement and find additional information about required background checks, sexual harassment/misconduct disclosures, COVID-19 vaccination requirement, and employment eligibility review through E-Verify.

Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply and may request a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (2008) to complete the application and/or interview process. Requests may be submitted through the reasonable accommodations portal.