Sr. Systems Administrator

Description

Are you a seasoned Systems Administrator who thrives on solving complex technical challenges and keeping mission-critical environments operating at peak performance? Are you passionate about modern infrastructure, automation, and enabling Agile software development in support of national security?

Leidos is seeking a Senior Systems Administrator to join the Maru Program on a high-performing team supporting an Intelligence Community customer on a fast-paced Agile program. In this role, you'll work alongside talented engineers, DevSecOps practitioners, software developers, and cybersecurity experts to build, secure, and maintain the infrastructure that powers mission success.

This is more than a traditional systems administration role, you'll have the opportunity to modernize enterprise infrastructure, automate operations, strengthen cybersecurity, and directly enable rapid software delivery for systems that make a real-world impact. If you're energized by innovation, collaboration, and solving some of the nation's most challenging technical problems, we'd love to have you on our team.

Position Overview

As a Senior Systems Administrator, you will administer, secure, and optimize enterprise Windows and Linux environments supporting development, test, integration, and production systems. You'll play a critical role in ensuring highly available, resilient, and secure infrastructure while partnering with Agile teams to continuously improve system performance, reliability, and operational efficiency.

Please note Gaithersburg, MD is the program’s primary work location.

Clearance Level Required:

Active Top Secret/SCI with the ability to successfully pass a Polygraph examination.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Administer and maintain Windows and Linux server environments.
• Install, configure, patch, and upgrade operating systems and enterprise applications.
• Monitor system health, performance, capacity, and availability.
• Support Agile development teams by provisioning and maintaining development, test, staging, and production environments.
• Implement infrastructure changes through established configuration management and change control processes.
• Troubleshoot hardware, software, networking, and storage issues to minimize downtime.
• Collaborate with DevSecOps engineers to automate system administration tasks using scripting and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools.
• Maintain compliance with IC cybersecurity requirements, RMF controls, STIGs, and security policies.
• Perform vulnerability remediation, security patching, and system hardening.
• Support virtualization platforms such as VMware vSphere or Nutanix.
• Manage Active Directory, Group Policy, DNS, DHCP, PKI, and identity management services.
• Develop and maintain system documentation, standard operating procedures, and architecture diagrams.
• Participate in Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, backlog refinement, standups, and retrospectives.
• Provide Tier III operational support and participate in after-hours maintenance windows as required.

Required Qualifications:

• US citizenship is required per contract.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology or related field and 8-12 years of prior relevant experience or Master’s with 6-10 years of prior relevant experience.
• 8+ years of systems administration experience supporting enterprise environments.
• Experience supporting Intelligence Community or Department of Defense customers.
• Strong experience administering:
  • Windows Server
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
  • VMware vSphere
  • Active Directory
  • DNS/DHCP
  • Group Policy
• Experience with scripting using PowerShell, Bash, or Python.
• DoD 8140/8570 Compliance: Must possess an active CompTIA Security+ (or higher baseline certification) to satisfy IAM Level I / IAT Level II requirements.
• Must possess at least one active Microsoft/Windows certification, such as:
  • Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate
  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104)
  • Legacy MCSA / MCSE: Windows Server
• Must possess an active Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) certification.
• Knowledge of storage technologies, backup solutions, and disaster recovery.
• Experience applying DISA STIGs and RMF security controls.
• Familiarity with configuration management and automation tools such as Ansible, Puppet, or Chef.
• Experience using Git and supporting CI/CD pipelines.
• Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting cloud technologies such as AWS GovCloud, Azure Government, or C2S.
• Experience with Kubernetes and container platforms.
• Familiarity with Docker and OpenShift.
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation, or Ansible).
• Knowledge of Elastic Stack, Splunk, Grafana, or Prometheus.
• Experience supporting DevSecOps environments.
• Understanding of Zero Trust architecture principles.
• Experience with SAN/NAS administration.
• ITIL Certification (ITIL v3 Foundation, ITIL 4 Foundation, or higher) or an equivalent IT service management framework certification (e.g., COBIT, ISO/IEC 20000).

Desired Competencies:

• Strong customer service orientation.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to prioritize multiple tasks in a dynamic Agile environment.
• Self-motivated with strong attention to detail.
• Collaborative mindset with cross-functional technical teams.
• Commitment to continuous process improvement and automation.

#Maru

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:

Pay Range:

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.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit www.Leidos.com.

Pay and Benefits

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement. More details are available at www.leidos.com/careers/pay-benefits.

Securing Your Data

Beware of fake employment opportunities using Leidos’ name. Leidos will never ask you to provide payment-related information during any part of the employment application process (i.e., ask you for money), nor will Leidos ever advance money as part of the hiring process (i.e., send you a check or money order before doing any work). Further, Leidos will only communicate with you through emails that are generated by the Leidos.com automated system – never from free commercial services (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) or via WhatsApp, Telegram, etc. If you received an email purporting to be from Leidos that asks for payment-related information or any other personal information (e.g., about you or your previous employer), and you are concerned about its legitimacy, please make us aware immediately by emailing us at LeidosCareersFraud@leidos.com.

If you believe you are the victim of a scam, contact your local law enforcement and report the incident to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.