Sr Database Administrator (HYBRID--Richmond, VA)

Position Accountabilities

• Database Administration & Operations
  • Administer, monitor, and maintain MS SQL Server (primary) and PostgreSQL (secondary) database environments across development, QA, and production.
  • Manage and optimize query performance through index tuning, execution plan analysis, statistics management, and query rewrites.
  • Implement and maintain database security, including role-based access control, auditing, and encryption at rest and in transit.
  • Manage database capacity planning, storage allocation, and growth forecasting.
  • Perform routine database maintenance including integrity checks, index rebuilding/reorganization, and statistics updates.
• High Availability, Disaster Recovery & Replication
  • Design, implement, and maintain HA/DR solutions including SQL Server Always On Availability Groups, Failover Clustering, and PostgreSQL Streaming Replication.
  • Develop and maintain comprehensive backup and recovery strategies; conduct regular recovery testing to validate RPO/RTO objectives.
  • Configure and manage log shipping, database mirroring, and replication topologies as appropriate.
  • Maintain and test disaster recovery runbooks and failover procedures.
• Database Development & Architecture
  • Collaborate with application and data engineering teams on schema design, data modeling, and database object development (stored procedures, functions, views, triggers).
  • Design and develop ETL/ELT pipelines and data movement solutions using T-SQL, PL/pgSQL, and Python.
  • Analyze data requirements and translate them into optimized, scalable database designs consistent with enterprise data warehouse best practices.
  • Review and validate database-related code from development teams; participate in code reviews and enforce standards.
  • Develop and maintain data dictionaries, database documentation, and architectural diagrams.
• Infrastructure & Cloud Readiness
  • Manage on-premises database infrastructure including patching, upgrades, and configuration management.
  • Support cloud readiness initiatives; contribute to planning and executing database migrations to cloud platforms (Azure SQL, AWS RDS/Aurora, or equivalent).
  • Work with IaC tooling (Terraform or equivalent) to define and version-control database infrastructure.
  • Participate in CI/CD pipeline design for database change management (schema migrations, release automation).
  • Collaborate with infrastructure and DevOps teams on environment provisioning, monitoring, and alerting.
• Python & Automation
  • Develop Python-based data pipeline and ETL solutions for data ingestion, transformation, and loading workflows.
  • Write automation scripts for routine DBA tasks including health checks, backup validation, and alerting.
  • Integrate database workflows with orchestration tools and data platform components.
• Agile Collaboration & Quality
  • Work within an Agile/Scrum framework; participate in sprint planning, stand-ups, retrospectives, and backlog grooming.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional Agile teams as well as independently managing assigned work items.
  • Perform and coordinate unit and integration testing for database changes.
  • Troubleshoot database application issues and resolve defects in a timely manner.
  • Escalate issues and impediments proactively; communicate clearly in both technical and non-technical terms.
  • Update and maintain database runbooks, standards documentation, and operational procedures.

Position Qualifications

• Education & Experience
  • A Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field, or equivalent work experience.
  • 10+ years of experience in information technology, preferably within financial services or another highly regulated industry.
  • 7+ years of hands-on database administration experience with MS SQL Server as the primary platform.
  • 3+ years of PostgreSQL administration and development experience.
  • 3+ years of Python development experience focused on data pipelines and ETL.
  • 3+ years of experience working within an Agile environment.
  • Demonstrated experience with HA/DR technologies including Always On Availability Groups, Failover Clustering, and PostgreSQL replication.
  • Experience with infrastructure-as-code tooling (Terraform or equivalent) and CI/CD pipeline participation.
• Preferred Qualifications
  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Database Administrator Associate or equivalent SQL Server certification.
  • Experience with cloud database services (Azure SQL Managed Instance, AWS RDS for SQL Server or PostgreSQL, or equivalent).
  • Master's Degree in Computer Science, MIS, or a related technology discipline.
  • Experience with database change management tools (Flyway, Liquibase, or equivalent).
  • Familiarity with data warehouse design patterns and dimensional modeling.
  • Knowledge & Skills
    • Deep expertise in MS SQL Server internals: query optimizer, locking/blocking, wait statistics, and storage engine.
    • Strong proficiency in T-SQL and PL/pgSQL development and performance tuning.
    • Working knowledge of Python for ETL, data manipulation, and automation tasks.
    • Understanding of networking fundamentals, Windows Server, and Linux as they relate to database hosting.
    • Familiarity with monitoring and observability tooling (SQL Server Profiler, DMVs, pg_stat_*, Prometheus, Grafana, or equivalent).
    • Creative problem solver with excellent communication and collaboration skills.
    • Methodical and structured approach to design, change management, and incident response.
    • Delivery focused with ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
    • Strong attention to detail; proactive, self-starting work style.
    • Business acumen and professionalism appropriate to a regulated financial services environment.

Organizational Relationship

• This position reports to the Sr. Data Architect.

General information on our comprehensive benefits package

• Can be found by visiting https://www.atlanticunionbank.com/about/careers/benefits.

We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.

We maintain a drug-free workplace.