Associate Lead Database Engineer

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a team of SQL Server Database Engineers, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing.
• Oversee the health, performance, and availability of enterprise-scale SQL Server environments.
• Architect, implement, and maintain HA/DR solutions using Always On, clustering, and multi-data center best practices.
• Drive automation of routine operational tasks to improve team efficiency and reduce manual intervention.
• Review and tune queries, indexes, and server configurations to maximize throughput and minimize latency.
• Collaborate with developers to review database code, schema designs, and deployment pipelines.
• Audit server health, error logs, and system performance to proactively address potential issues.
• Own and maintain detailed documentation for standards, processes, and runbooks.
• Partner with leadership to plan roadmaps, prioritize initiatives, and align database operations with business needs.
• Participate in the 24/7 on-call rotation, providing guidance and support for critical incidents.

Requirements

• 10+ years of experience with Microsoft SQL Server administration and development.
• Proven experience leading or mentoring Database Engineers in enterprise environments.
• Expert understanding of SQL Server internals, performance tuning, and troubleshooting.
• Experience with HA/DR design and multi-data center solutions.
• Experience supporting large-scale, high-concurrency, mission-critical systems.
• Proficiency with database deployment automation and source control integration.
• Advanced T-SQL and query optimization expertise.
• Strong knowledge of indexing strategies, locking, blocking, and concurrency management.
• Hands-on experience with storage, server, and OS-level performance tuning.
• Ability to analyze complex performance issues and drive root cause resolution.
• Skilled at building automation scripts and tools.
• Familiarity with other database technologies (MySQL, MongoDB, Redis).
• Excellent documentation, communication, and cross-team collaboration skills.
• Strategic thinker with a focus on scalability, reliability, and continuous improvement.
• Highly motivated, self-directed, and capable of making data-driven decisions.
• Experience with PowerBI, SSRS, SSIS, or ETL workflows.

Pluses

• Passion for Rockstar Games.
• Familiarity with .NET/C# or application development.
• Experience with SQL Sentry, SolarWinds DPA, or other monitoring tools.
• Experience leading database load testing initiatives.
• Knowledge of Splunk, Datadog, or similar observability platforms.
• Experience in CI/CD environments and database-as-code practices.