Senior Systems Engineer

Leidos is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer to support the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) under the National Science Foundation's Antarctic Support Contract (ASC). This is a rare opportunity to apply your advanced systems engineering expertise to one of the most unique and mission-critical environments in the world.

As a senior member of the Information Technology & Communications (IT&C) Data Systems Team, you'll design, deploy, and maintain critical Linux-based infrastructure supporting the core production systems for the USAP. This position may include temporary deployments to Antarctica, depending on operational needs and management discretion.

***Due to contract requirements, ship is required.***

Must obtain a Public Trust security clearance prior to start date. This process could take up to 4 months.

The anticipated salary range for this role is $80,000 - $120,000.

This position is expected to be funded on Oct 1, 2025, and there is approximately 1 year left on the Antarctic Support Contract.

Key Responsibilities

System Design & Implementation

• Design, engineer, and implement infrastructure projects aligned with USAP mission requirements.
• Analyze, specify, and document communications and systems requirements for distributed environments.
• Lead installation, configuration, migration, and upgrades across multi-platform systems (Linux, Windows, Hyper-V/VMware).

Operations & Administration

• Administer and maintain Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems and services.
• Manage containerized workloads and Red Hat OpenShift clusters.
• Perform backup and recovery operations, and monitor system performance using tools like Veeam and Elastic Stack.
• Maintain secure configurations aligned with DISA STIGs and other cybersecurity best practices.

Automation & Tooling

• Develop and execute automation using Ansible, bash, and Python scripts.
• Administer Red Hat Satellite and Git environments.
• Manage BIND DNS servers and contribute to DNS/DHCP configurations.

Collaboration & Support

• Work cross-functionally with Architecture, Network Operations, Information Security, and Client Services teams.
• Create and maintain technical documentation for infrastructure and operational procedures.
• Provide mentorship and code reviews for junior technical staff.
• Participate in a 24x7 support rotation and provide escalation-level troubleshooting.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or related field with 4+ years of relevant experience (additional experience may substitute for degree).
• Proven expertise in Linux system administration, especially Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
• Experience with:
  • Virtualization platforms (VMware, Hyper-V)
  • Red Hat OpenShift and container orchestration
  • Bash/Python scripting and automation
  • Git version control and CI/CD workflows
  • Red Hat Satellite
  • Ansible playbook development
  • System security and patch management
  • Elastic Stack or Splunk for system monitoring/log analysis
  • MariaDB/MySQL administration
• Technical engineering design, implementation, and SME experience with complex enterprise application implementation.
• Budget and time management skill set for technical projects.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with a focus on customer service and collaboration.
• Self-motivated with the ability to work independently and prioritize effectively.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with:

• Microsoft 365 / Azure environments
• Microsoft Windows Server administration (2012/2016/2019)
• PowerShell scripting
• Storage Area Networks (SAN) and HP server hardware
• Sensor or weather satellite data acquisition/processing systems
• IBM Maximo OpenShift deployment and management

At Leidos, we don't want someone who "fits the mold"-we want someone who melts it down and builds something better. This is a role for the restless, the over-caffeinated, the ones who ask, "what's next?" before the dust settles on "what's now."

If you're already scheming step 20 while everyone else is still debating step 2... good. You'll fit right in.

Original Posting:
September 12, 2025

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

Pay Range:
Pay Range $89,700.00 - $162,150.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.