SR. AIX Linux Administrator

Job Description

BCTG's direct client is looking for a Senior AIX/Linux Administrator to provide hands‑on technical support and act as the SME for a large enterprise‑wide AIX and Linux server environment, including daily administration, provision/decommission, backup/restore, monitoring, problem determination and resolution, optimisation, support for highly virtualised environments, and other related systems‑administrator activities.

• Engineer and administer AIX 5.3/7.x on IBM Power7/Power8/Power9 with HMC and Power
  
  VM (LPAR/VIOS); design LPAR layouts, CPU/memory tuning, and I/O virtualization (NPIV, vSCSI, SEA).
• Build and maintain images with NIM; create repeatable mksysb strategies; perform OS upgrades and patching.
• Configure and support High Availability using Power
  
  HA System Mirror (formerly HACMP); document and test fail‑over procedures.
• Plan and execute Live Partition Mobility (where applicable), firmware updates, and frame maintenance with minimal downtime.
• Troubleshoot complex performance issues using nmon, topas, vmstat, sar, and other diagnostic tools; drive root‑cause analysis.
• Administer Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7/8/9 on x86 across VMware ESXi and KVM; standardise gold images and hardening baselines.
• Automate provisioning/configuration with Ansible; codify common tasks and enforce via pipelines.
• Manage kernel/OS patching, package repositories, and vulnerability remediation in partnership with Security.
• Monitor and tune system performance (CPU, memory, I/O, file system); analyse and resolve production incidents.
• Own backup/restore for OS and application data using IBM Spectrum Protect (TSM); run regular restore tests and document RPO/RTO coverage.
• Administer enterprise schedulers (HCL Workload Automation, Broadcom Autosys) on AIX; coordinate with application teams.
• Partner with Network and Storage teams on SAN zoning, multipathing, and throughput optimisation; validate NPIV/vSCSI designs.
• Lead incident, problem, and change management (ITIL‑aligned); write clear change plans, perform post‑incident reviews, maintain runbooks.
• Drive capacity planning and forecasting; provide estimates for new workloads, migrations and refresh projects.
• As an SME mentor junior administrators; review designs and automation for quality and security; champion best practices across the team.
• Participate in an on‑call rotation and after‑hours maintenance windows; continuously reduce toil through automation and better observability.
• Required Experience: 8+ years of progressively responsible experience administering AIX (5.3/7.x) on IBM Power7/Power8/Power9 with Power
  
  VM/VIOS, and administering Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7/8/9 in enterprise environments.
• Hands‑on experience with HMC, NIM, Power
  
  HA System Mirror (HACMP), and Live Partition Mobility.
• Strong skills in scripting (Korn/Bourne shell, Perl, or Python) for automation and process improvement.
• Experience supporting virtualised environments (VMware ESXi, KVM) and enterprise job schedulers (HCL Workload Automation, Broadcom Autosys).
• Knowledge of backup/restore procedures using IBM Spectrum Protect (TSM) and proven ability to execute DR tests.
• Solid foundational knowledge in server hardware, SAN/storage virtualization (NPIV, vSCSI), and networking fundamentals.
• Effective communication, documentation and collaboration skills with cross‑functional teams.
• Ability to participate in on‑call rotation and perform after‑hours maintenance as needed.
• Leadership experience mentoring junior administrators or leading infrastructure projects.
• Preferred
  
  Skills:
  
  Experience with AIX 6.x or legacy AIX 5.3 migrations in production environments; exposure to cloud platforms (AWS, Azure) for hybrid infrastructure integration; experience with Ansible automation at scale, including CI/CD integration of infrastructure code; performance tuning expertise using nmon, topas, vmstat, sar, perf tools; experience with ITIL‑aligned change/incident/problem management processes; familiarity with security compliance frameworks and vulnerability management (e.g., CIS hardening, patch orchestration).

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, or a related IT field.

Mid‑Senior level

Full‑time

Information Technology

IT Services and IT Consulting