Database Administrator II

About the role

Svitla Systems Inc. is seeking a Database Administrator II for a full-time position in the USA. This role supports mission-critical SQL Server workloads hosted on Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) and Always On Availability Groups (AGs).

Responsibilities

• Administer and maintain Microsoft SQL Server instances across Failover Cluster Instance (FCI) and Always On Availability Group (AG) environments, ensuring continuous availability of production databases.
• Maintain and validate full, differential, and transaction log backup strategies across all SQL Server instances; perform and document periodic restore tests to confirm recoverability.
• Monitor AG synchronization health, listener configurations, and failover readiness; execute and document planned failover and failback procedures.
• Proactively monitor SQL Server performance using execution plans, DMVs, wait statistics, and index usage data to identify and resolve bottlenecks.
• Perform query optimization, index tuning, and statistics maintenance; address blocking, deadlocking, and excessive resource consumption in production environments.
• Establish and maintain database maintenance plans, including index rebuild/reorganization and integrity checks (DBCC).
• Administer SQL Server logins, database users, roles, and permissions in accordance with the principle of least privilege and corporate security policy.
• Implement and maintain security controls, including Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), SQL Auditing, and Active Directory / Windows Authentication integration.
• Participate in periodic access reviews and audit responses; remediate findings on time.
• Plan and execute SQL Server Cumulative Updates (CUs) and Service Pack deployments across development, QA, and production environments following ITIL-aligned change management procedures.
• Respond to monitoring alerts, investigate root causes, and implement corrective actions or escalate appropriately.
• Participate in 24/7 on-call rotation, triaging and resolving after-hours SQL Server incidents with documented post-incident analysis.
• Administer SSIS packages for ETL workflows supporting data integration and reporting pipelines.
• Administer SSRS report deployments, subscriptions, and data source configurations to support enterprise reporting needs.
• Develop and maintain T-SQL and PowerShell scripts to automate repetitive DBA tasks such as index maintenance, integrity checks, space reporting, and user provisioning.
• Identify opportunities to reduce manual operational effort through scripting, SQL Agent job automation, and standardized runbooks.
• Partner with application development teams to review T-SQL code, stored procedures, and schema changes before production deployment, providing guidance on performance and best practices.
• Advise developers on index design, data type selection, and query patterns to minimize database-level impact of application releases.
• Support developer access requests and environment provisioning for dev and QA SQL Server instances.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date documentation for database configurations, maintenance procedures, runbooks, and known issue resolutions.
• Contribute to the team's knowledge base and support knowledge transfer across DBA team members.

Requirements

• 2–4 years of hands-on experience with Microsoft SQL Server database administration in a corporate enterprise environment.
• Experience administering SQL Server Failover Cluster Instances (FCI) and Always On Availability Groups (AG).
• Understanding of T-SQL development, including stored procedures, functions, views, and performance troubleshooting.
• Understanding of SQL Server backup and recovery strategies and disaster recovery planning.
• Working knowledge of SSIS and SSRS in a production environment.
• Knowledge of PowerShell or T-SQL scripting for DBA task automation.
• Strong troubleshooting, analytical, and documentation skills.

Nice to have

• Experience with SQL Server performance monitoring tools (e.g., SolarWinds DPA, Redgate SQL Monitor, Idera SQL Diagnostic Manager).
• Familiarity with Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) and SAN/storage fundamentals (e.g., NetApp).
• Exposure to Azure SQL or hybrid cloud database environments.
• Experience collaborating with application development teams on database design and code review.

Benefits

We offer competitive compensation based on skills and experience. Flexibility in workspace, either remote or our welcoming office. Bonuses for article writing, public talks, and other activities. Free tech webinars and meetups organized by Svitla. Regular corporate online activities. Awesome team, friendly and supportive community!