System Administrator

Title: Cloud/On Premise System Administrator

Location: Remote/Quincy MA (must have proximity to Quincy MA; role is 30% in office)

Description:

The System Administrator is an experienced, hands-on technical role responsible for the reliable operation, security, and continuous improvement of NFPA’s hybrid infrastructure environment. This position expands the traditional System Administrator function to include DevOps practices and Azure cloud provisioning in direct support of NFPA’s application development teams

In addition to maintaining on-premises and cloud-based systems, this role partners closely with Application Development, Security, and Infrastructure teams to design, provision, automate, and manage Azure resources that enable scalable, secure, and efficient application delivery

Key Responsibilities:

Core System Administration:

• Administer, monitor, and maintain Windows and Linux server environments (on premises and cloud-based).
• Manage Active Directory, Group Policy, identity, access controls, and authentication services.
• Perform system patching, upgrades, backups, and disaster recovery testing.
• Monitor system performance, availability, and capacity; troubleshoot and resolve complex issues.
• Maintain system documentation, standards, and operational procedures.
• Participate in on call and incident response activities as required.

Azure & Cloud Infrastructure:

• Provision, configure, and manage Microsoft Azure resources to support application development and hosting needs (e.g., App Service, compute, storage, networking, identity, and security services).
• Administration of Azure virtual networks, Azure virtual machines, Azure App Services, and additional Azure IaaS and PaaS services.
• Implement and maintain Azure resource governance, cost controls, and best practices.
• Collaborate with Security and Infrastructure teams to ensure Azure environments meet NFPA security and compliance requirements.
• Support hybrid environments integrating on premises infrastructure with Azure services.

DevOps Enablement:

• Partner with Application Development teams to support CI/CD pipelines and DevOps workflows.
• Deploy and maintain self-hosted build and deployment agents where required.
• Automate infrastructure provisioning and configuration using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and scripting tools.
• Improve system reliability, scalability, and deployment consistency through automation and standardization.
• Troubleshoot build, deployment, and environment-related issues in collaboration with developers

Collaboration & Continuous Improvement:

• Serve as a technical advisor to development teams on infrastructure, performance, and operational considerations.
• Identify opportunities to modernize infrastructure and improve operational efficiency.
• Participate in architecture discussions and contribute to infrastructure and DevOps roadmaps.
• Mentor junior administrators and contribute to knowledge sharing within IT.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in information technology, Computer Science, or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of experience as a System Administrator or similar infrastructure-focused role.
• Hands-on experience administering Windows Server environments; Linux experience preferred.
• Experience provisioning and managing Microsoft Azure resources. Experience administrating Azure virtual networks, Azure virtual machines, and Azure App Services is a must.
• Working knowledge of DevOps concepts, CI/CD pipelines, and automation.
• Strong scripting skills (PowerShell required; Bash or Python a plus).
• Experience with monitoring, backup, and disaster recovery solutions.
• Strong troubleshooting, documentation, and communication skills.
• Trustworthy and reliable.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Able to work after-hours when needed and respond to incidents.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience managing and configuring AWS infrastructure and services.
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code tools (e.g., ARM, Terraform).
• Familiarity with Azure DevOps or similar CI/CD platforms.
• Experience supporting application development teams in an Agile/DevOps environment.
• Knowledge of security best practices for cloud and hybrid environments.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., Azure Administrator, Azure DevOps Engineer) are a plus.