Sr Staff Engineer - Software Defined Storage

Position Overview:
The Senior Staff Engineer, Software Defined Storage will be part of a team responsible for designing, implementing, administering, and optimizing advanced enterprise storage solutions. This role will help evolve the customer s storage infrastructure across software defined storage, Storage Area Network environments, and private cloud service models.

The ideal candidate will bring strong expertise with software defined storage platforms such as Ceph, Swift, and OpenStack, along with deep knowledge of object, block, and file storage. This role requires a forward thinking engineer who can integrate complex storage solutions into scalable, secure, and resilient platforms that support business critical infrastructure.

Responsibilities:

• Architect the Software Defined Protocol Abstraction Layer to provide unified access through NVMe over Fabrics using TCP, S3 object storage, NFS, and CIFS protocols.
• Design and optimize Ceph storage environments to support N plus three resilience and rack awareness, helping the storage platform absorb up to three simultaneous node failures.
• Contribute to the design, implementation, and administration of highly available storage solutions across software defined storage, Storage Area Network environments, and Storage as a Service systems for private cloud environments.
• Integrate object, block, and file storage solutions with bare metal, Infrastructure as a Service, and Platform as a Service environments to optimize performance and scalability.
• Conduct performance analysis and optimization of Storage Area Network environments, with a focus on efficiency, reliability, and integration with software defined storage initiatives.
• Support the strategy and implementation of data protection, disaster recovery, and security protocols across storage infrastructure.
• Collaborate with network engineers, developers, cloud architects, and other technical teams to ensure storage solutions align with overall system architecture.
• Provide technical leadership and support for software defined storage environments, including troubleshooting and resolving system issues to maintain availability and performance.
• Stay current with emerging software defined storage trends, technologies, and industry best practices.
• Drive continuous improvement across storage architecture, system security, platform stability, and scalability.
• Be accountable for the quality, usability, and performance of storage solutions.
• Share best practices and improve processes within and across technical teams.
• Mentor junior team members and provide guidance on cloud infrastructure, storage engineering, and systems management practices.

Qualifications:

• Deep understanding of storage architectures, including object storage such as Amazon S3 and OpenStack Swift, block storage using protocols such as NVMe over TCP, iSCSI, and Fibre Channel, and file storage such as NFS and SMB or CIFS.
• Proficiency with data management and storage protocols and services, including Fibre Channel, NVMe over TCP, iSCSI, NFS, SMB, and CIFS.
• Familiarity with virtualization technologies such as VMware, Hyper V, and KVM, as well as container technologies such as Kubernetes and OpenShift.
• Strong understanding of software defined storage services such as Ceph, Swift, and OpenStack.
• Strong background with enterprise storage hardware, including Dell PowerEdge R660, Dell PowerEdge R760, or equivalent enterprise storage servers.
• Experience with public cloud, private cloud, and infrastructure services.
• Knowledge of traditional storage technologies and how they integrate with software defined solutions.
• Experience with Linux, Windows operating systems, and scripting languages such as Python, Bash, or Perl.
• Ability to plan and execute migration strategies from traditional Storage Area Network platforms to software defined storage while maintaining data integrity, reducing downtime, and optimizing system performance.
• Ability to troubleshoot complex storage issues, including performance bottlenecks, data recovery challenges, and optimization needs.
• Excellent interpersonal and collaboration skills with the ability to work effectively across multiple teams.
• Strong analytical and problem solving skills with a proactive approach to identifying and resolving issues.
• Proven ability to overcome complex technical challenges.
• Effective communication skills with the ability to build strong relationships with team members, stakeholders, and external partners.
• Bachelor s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or equivalent education or work experience.
• Certifications related to cloud services, OpenStack, Ceph, software defined storage, or related technologies are highly preferred.

Tools and Technologies:

• Ceph - Mandatory skill
• Swift
• OpenStack
• Amazon S3
• NVMe over Fabrics using TCP
• iSCSI
• Fibre Channel
• NFS
• SMB and CIFS
• VMware
• Hyper V
• KVM
• Kubernetes
• OpenShift
• Linux
• Windows
• Python
• Bash
• Perl
• Go
• C and C plus plus
• Dell PowerEdge R660 and R760
• Storage Area Network platforms
• Direct attached storage
• JBOD storage
• Public and private cloud environments
• Active Directory
• Windows Authentication
• SAML
• OAuth