Senior Linux/Unix Systems Engineer

job summary:

Join our team supporting the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as a Senior Linux/Unix Systems Engineer. In this role, you will act as the principal technical authority for the agency's Linux platform, driving engineering decisions, platform modernization, and enterprise automation while ensuring robust security compliance and high system availability.

location: Washington, Washington, D.C.
job type: Contract
salary: $51 - 61 per hour
work hours:
education: Bachelors
responsibilities:

Own architecture, engineering decisions, server builds, and baseline golden images for the FTC RHEL (v8+) and Oracle Linux estate.

Design and maintain enterprise patch and configuration management using Red Hat Satellite and Ansible / Ansible Automation Platform.

Lead major operating system lifecycle migrations (RHEL 7/8/9, Oracle Linux) and support on-premises to cloud modernization paths.

Author and enforce security hardening baselines aligned with CIS Benchmarks, DISA STIGs, FISMA, and NIST SP 800-53 controls, driving vulnerability scan remediations.

Perform proactive performance engineering, capacity planning, and trend analysis to eliminate systemic operational bottlenecks.

Engineer high availability, backup, and disaster recovery solutions, and lead emergency response bridge calls during critical outages with formal RCA generation.

qualifications:

8+ years of progressive Linux/Unix systems engineering and administration experience (focused on RHEL 8+).

Active Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) certification.

Active Security+ certification.

Solid experience with automation tooling (Ansible, Red Hat Satellite) and scripting (Bash, Python).

Active U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain/maintain a Public Trust clearance.

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or equivalent experience.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Active RHCE, LPIC-2, or CompTIA Linux+ certifications.

Hands-on experience with cloud infrastructure platforms (AWS or Azure).

Familiarity with VMware virtualization and Oracle Linux administration.

skills:

AWS,Ansible,Ansible Automation Platform,Ansible Automation,CIS Benchmarks,Cloud Infrastructure,cloud modernization,configuration management,Linux/Unix,Linux platform,Linux,Azure,Oracle Linux,RHEL,Red Hat,Python Scripting,high availability,Systems Engineer,VMware Virtualization,vulnerability scan,authoritative,leadership capabilities,proactive,AWS,Administration,architectural design,architectural experience,architecture,automation,capacity planning,Azure,Security+ Certification,Enterprise Security,client communication,FISMA,security hardening,NIST SP 800-53,emergency response,LPIC-2,mentoring,NIST 800-53,operating system,performance engineering,Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE),Red Hat Certified System Administrator,Satellite,technical mastery,trend analysis

Equal Opportunity Employer: Race, Color, Religion, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, National Origin, Age, Genetic Information, Disability, Protected Veteran Status, or any other legally protected group status.
At Randstad Digital, we welcome people of all abilities and want to ensure that our hiring and interview process meets the needs of all applicants. If you require a reasonable accommodation to make your application or interview experience a great one, please contact
Pay offered to a successful candidate will be based on several factors including the candidate's education, work experience, work location, specific job duties, certifications, etc. In addition, Randstad Digital offers a comprehensive benefits package, including: medical, prescription, dental, vision, AD&D, and life insurance offerings, short-term disability, and a 401K plan (all benefits are based on eligibility).
This posting is open for thirty (30) days.