Senior Linux Systems Administrator / GKE Engineer
Hiring: Senior Linux Systems Administrator / GKE EngineerLocation: Phoenix, AZEmployment Type: Contract / Long-Term OpportunityExperience: 8+ YearsWe are seeking a Senior Linux Systems Administrator with strong hands-on expertise in Google Cloud Platform and Kubernetes.The ideal candidate will have extensive experience managing enterprise Linux environments and administering secure, scalable, and highly available Google Kubernetes Engine clusters. This role requires deep technical knowledge of Linux, GCP, container orchestration, automation, cloud security, monitoring, and production support.Key ResponsibilitiesAdminister and support enterprise Linux environments across cloud and hybrid infrastructure.Architect, deploy, configure, and maintain highly available GKE clusters.Design GKE environments that meet scalability, reliability, security, and performance requirements.Integrate GKE with other Google Cloud services and on-premises infrastructure.Build and maintain automated deployment pipelines using CI/CD tools.Implement Kubernetes networking, IAM policies, secrets management, encryption, and security controls.Ensure cloud and Kubernetes environments comply with enterprise and financial-services security requirements.Partner with application, DevOps, infrastructure, networking, and security teams to migrate and deploy applications to GKE.Implement monitoring, logging, health checks, dashboards, and alerting for Kubernetes environments.Optimize cluster resources, autoscaling, performance, and cloud costs.Support containerized applications, microservices, and cloud-native platforms.Lead troubleshooting and resolution of complex Linux, GCP, Kubernetes, and GKE production issues.Conduct root-cause analysis and implement preventive and corrective actions.Support infrastructure automation using Terraform or similar Infrastructure-as-Code tools.Maintain technical documentation, architecture diagrams, operational procedures, and incident-resolution records.Mentor junior engineers and contribute to architecture and design reviews.Required QualificationsBachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field.8+ years of experience in IT infrastructure, systems administration, platform engineering, or related roles.At least 3 years of hands-on experience with Google Cloud Platform.Strong, hands-on Linux administration experience is mandatory.Extensive experience with:Google Kubernetes EngineKubernetes administration and architectureContainer orchestrationMicroservices environmentsGCP infrastructure and servicesStrong understanding of Kubernetes networking, storage, resource management, autoscaling, and self-healing.Experience with Infrastructure as Code using Terraform or Google Cloud Deployment Manager.Experience building and supporting CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins, Google Cloud Build, GitLab CI, or similar tools.Strong knowledge of cloud security, IAM, encryption, vulnerability management, and compliance.Experience with monitoring, logging, alerting, and production incident management.Excellent troubleshooting, analytical, communication, and documentation skills.Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, enterprise environment.Preferred QualificationsGoogle Cloud certification, such as:Professional Cloud ArchitectProfessional Cloud DevOps EngineerProfessional Cloud Security EngineerCertified Kubernetes Administrator certification.Experience supporting technology environments within banking or financial services.Familiarity with hybrid-cloud and multi-cloud architectures.Experience mentoring engineers or providing technical leadership.