Senior GIS Database Migration Architect

Role: Senior GIS Database Migration Architect

Location: Houston, TX (hybrid) or Remote
Duration: 6-month Contract-to-Hire

Not looking for a core Developer background. Ideally looking for a Data/Database/DBA background with architecture experience.

Must have the following experience: 

Esri enterprise environment experience

GIS experience 

Experience managing an enterprise Database - must have Postgres/PostgreSQL/PostGIS experience

Migration or Assessment experience

This role is exclusive to Apex. Candidates local to Houston, TX that are open to working hybrid are preferred but open to remote candidates nationwide.
This is a contract to hire role, and the client does not provide any form of be eligible to work in US without sponsorship now or in future.
JD

Apex Systems is seeking a senior, hands-on GIS database migration architect to serve as the primary technical lead for an enterprise Oracle-to-PostgreSQL/PostGIS GIS migration assessment. This person will perform the majority of the technical discovery, analysis, architecture, documentation, and roadmap development required to assess a large Esri Enterprise Geodatabase environment and prepare a defensible migration plan. The engagement is assessment-focused: the role will validate current-state conditions, identify compatibility and dependency risks, define remediation options, and build the phased migration roadmap/runbook. Production migration execution is not part of this phase.
Core Responsibilities
1. Lead Current-State Technical Assessment
Plan and execute technical discovery for the in-scope Lower 48 Esri Enterprise Geodatabase environment, including the Oracle database, ArcGIS Enterprise/Portal services, ETLs, source systems, and downstream consumers.
Create and maintain an inventory of candidate databases, schemas, tables, feature classes, layers, services, schedules, interfaces, and ownership information provided during the assessment.
Analyze Esri geodatabase constructs and relational dependencies, including spatial data types, domains, subtypes, relationship classes, attachments, Global IDs, attribute rules, versioning, and other behavior that must be preserved or redesigned.
Validate available environment documentation through stakeholder interviews, metadata review, SQL analysis, service inspection, and limited exploratory testing in the existing PostgreSQL/PostGIS development environment.

2. Perform Oracle-to-PostgreSQL/PostGIS Compatibility Analysis
Assess Oracle-to-PostgreSQL/PostGIS conversion risks across schemas, data types, date and time handling, sequences and identifiers, spatial references, geometry behavior, indexing, constraints, privileges, and performance considerations.
Evaluate Esri library and platform-functionality gaps between the current Oracle/Esri implementation and the proposed PostgreSQL/PostGIS target.
Determine how attachments, related records, Global IDs, relational integrity, and service dependencies can be preserved and validated.
Identify technical gaps, migration blockers, assumptions, decisions, and remediation options. Clearly distinguish confirmed findings from items requiring client validation.
Assess the feasibility and implications of parallel operations, dual-write ETL patterns, reconciliation, rollback, and phased cutover approaches without executing a production migration.

3. Map Integrations, ETLs, and Operational Dependencies
Document known ETLs, source systems, schedules, transformation logic, and consuming services for candidate layers.
Identify and flag dependencies and reconnection risks involving ArcGIS Portal, Survey123, FME, Spotfire, Power BI, APIs, scheduled jobs, and other real-time or batch consumers.
Work with the GIS Operations Lead to understand operational workflows, service criticality, support patterns, outage tolerance, and sequencing constraints.
Define validation and reconciliation approaches for data completeness, schema conformance, spatial accuracy, service behavior, and downstream connectivity.

4. Develop Governance and Target-State Recommendations
Contribute database-layer recommendations for ETL governance, naming, metadata, lineage, spatial reference and datum standards, access, change control, backup, retention, and lifecycle management.
Support definition of future-state data-domain ownership and an operating model that reduces recurrence of unmanaged data and service sprawl.
Translate assessment evidence into practical architecture decisions, standards, decision logs, risks, and remediation priorities.
Ensure recommendations fit the supported Esri, PostgreSQL/PostGIS, security, networking, monitoring, resilience, and operational requirements identified during the engagement.

5. Build the Migration Roadmap and Runbook
Own the technical content for a phased migration roadmap/runbook covering wave planning, sequencing, prerequisites, resource needs, validation gates, cutover considerations, rollback planning, risk mitigation, and operational transition.
Develop estimates and planning assumptions for a subsequent migration phase based on assessed complexity, dependencies, remediation requirements, and client decisions.
Produce clear diagrams, inventories, findings, decision matrices, risk registers, and executive-ready recommendations that support the three primary assessment deliverables.
Present findings to technical and business stakeholders and incorporate review feedback while maintaining alignment to the agreed assessment scope.
6. Support Future Azure Readiness Without Expanding Scope
Evaluate whether on-premises PostgreSQL/PostGIS recommendations create avoidable rework for a potential later move to Azure Database for PostgreSQL or another approved Azure-hosted pattern.
Partner with the Cloud Architecture Reviewer on targeted questions involving identity, connectivity, security, monitoring, backup, resilience, integration dependencies, and Esri supportability.
Document cloud-related considerations and decision points as future-state guidance. Do not design or execute the subsequent cloud migration during this assessment.
Required Qualifications
8+ years of progressively responsible GIS, spatial database, database architecture, or data migration experience, including substantial hands-on work in enterprise Esri environments.
Demonstrated experience assessing or planning migrations from Oracle Enterprise Geodatabases to PostgreSQL/PostGIS. Direct migration implementation experience is strongly preferred.
Advanced Oracle skills, including SQL, schema and dependency analysis, data types, spatial capabilities, indexing, query analysis, security, and migration risk identification.
Advanced PostgreSQL/PostGIS skills, including spatial types and functions, schema design, indexing, query tuning, permissions, backup and recovery considerations, and operational support patterns.
Strong working knowledge of ArcGIS Enterprise 11.x, Portal for ArcGIS, ArcGIS Server, Enterprise Geodatabases, ArcGIS Pro, services, attachments, Global IDs, relationship classes, versioning, and spatial references.
Experience analyzing ETL and integration patterns using tools such as FME, Python, SQL, ArcPy, APIs, scheduled jobs, or comparable orchestration approaches.
Working knowledge of Azure architecture relevant to PostgreSQL/PostGIS and Esri workloads, including identity, networking, private connectivity, monitoring, backup, resilience, security, and migration planning.
Ability to independently lead technical discovery, facilitate workshops, document complex environments, evaluate trade-offs, and convert findings into client-ready reports and roadmaps.
Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to explain database and GIS risks to architects, operations leaders, project stakeholders, and executives.

Preferred Qualifications
Experience in oil and gas, utilities, infrastructure, or another asset-intensive environment with large enterprise GIS estates.
Experience with ArcGIS Online, Survey123, Power BI, Spotfire, Snowflake-hosted PostgreSQL patterns, and hybrid on-premises/cloud architectures.
Experience designing data validation, reconciliation, profiling, lineage, metadata, and governance controls for spatial data migrations.
Familiarity with Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Azure networking and identity patterns, infrastructure-as-code, CI/CD, and observability practices.
Relevant Esri, PostgreSQL, Oracle, Microsoft Azure, or data architecture certifications. Certifications are valued, but demonstrated delivery experience is more important.