System Administrator II (Senior)

Project and Requirements

The project involves the administration, maintenance, and enhancement of enterprise-level IT systems within the Harris County infrastructure. The resource will be responsible for managing Active Directory, Exchange, virtualization platforms, and backup systems while ensuring compliance with county security policies and the Active Directory Tiering model.

Key requirements include:

  • Performing system assessments and implementing security controls.
  • Executing system upgrades and validating disaster recovery procedures.
  • Enhancing monitoring and alerting capabilities.
  • Providing thorough documentation and knowledge transfer to internal staff.
  • Collaborating with cross-functional teams to ensure the stability, security, and performance of critical IT services.

Role and Responsibilities

System Administration & Maintenance

  • Manage and maintain enterprise-level systems including Active Directory, Exchange, virtualization platforms (e.g., VMware), and cloud services (AWS, Azure, M365).
  • Monitor system performance and ensure high availability and reliability.

Security & Compliance

  • Implement and enforce security policies in line with county and federal regulations.
  • Manage access controls, patch management, and vulnerability remediation.

Infrastructure Support

  • Support server infrastructure, storage systems, and backup solutions.
  • Participate in disaster recovery planning and testing.

Project Implementation

  • Lead or support IT projects such as system upgrades, migrations, and new deployments.
  • Collaborate with other departments to assess needs and deliver solutions.

Documentation & Reporting

  • Maintain detailed system documentation, configurations, and procedures.
  • Generate reports for audits, compliance, and performance metrics.

User Support & Training

  • Provide Tier 3 support for escalated technical issues.
  • Train junior staff and end-users on system use and best practices.

Collaboration & Communication

  • Work closely with cybersecurity teams, network engineers, and application developers.
  • Communicate effectively with stakeholders across departments.

Scheduled Milestones and Deliverables

  • Conduct initial assessment of current enterprise systems.
  • Implement security hardening measures per the Active Directory Tiering model.
  • Test and validate backup and disaster recovery procedures.
  • Perform system upgrades on legacy platforms and validate stability post-upgrade.
  • Deploy or enhance monitoring and alerting tools for improved visibility.
  • Deliver knowledge transfer sessions and provide thorough documentation.
  • Conclude with project closeout, including final deliverables, sign-off, and transition to operations.

Performance Metrics

Performance will be evaluated based on:

  • Adherence to project timelines and milestone completion.
  • System uptime, reliability, and reduction in incident response times.
  • Compliance with security and configuration standards.
  • Quality and completeness of documentation.
  • Effectiveness of knowledge transfer to internal staff.
  • Stakeholder satisfaction from periodic reviews and feedback.
  • Successful implementation of system upgrades, security controls, and disaster recovery validation.