Senior Infrastructure Engineer (Forward Deployed)

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Senior Infrastructure Engineer (Forward Deployed)

Application Deadline: 18 January 2025

Department: Tech Services

Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time

Location: West Midlands, UK

Compensation: GBP 80,000 - GBP 90,000 / year

Description

We're building the next UK-headquartered engineering powerhouse.

There is a gulf between the needs of mission-focused organisations and the development and delivery of the critical technology they rely on. The consequences of this are felt acutely by underserved frontline operators, demanding a new breed of engineering enterprise to bridge this divide.

Rowden exists to meet this need. We design and build systems, infrastructure, and applications to deliver mission advantage to those working to protect the security of the UK and its allies. Rowden is setting a new standard in government technology provision: hyper-efficient engineering, better customer relationships, and rapid assimilation of commercial technology.

Our team of Forward Deployed Specialists

Join Rowden's Forward Deployed Team and work where the action is.

You'll collaborate directly with customers on-site, tackling their most complex technology challenges. From diagnosing critical issues to deploying innovative solutions, you'll be at the forefront of solving real-world problems that matter. If you're hands-on, thrive in fast-paced environments, and want to see the impact of your work up close - this is the team for you.

What's in It for You:

• Impact and Purpose: Your work makes a difference - directly supporting defence, national security, and frontline operators.
• Professional Growth: Experience faster learning, deeper technical challenges, and exposure to real-world constraints that sharpen your skills.
• Team Expansion: Be part of a growing team that's delivering results and scaling up. Help us shape what forward deployment looks like as we expand into new projects and new regions.

The Role: Senior Infrastructure Engineer

As a Forward Deployed Senior Infrastructure Engineer, you will design, build, manage and support critical on-premises IT infrastructure for our customer. You'll be expected to work as part of a specialist IT engineering team, managing a system relied upon by hundreds of deployed users. This is a unique opportunity to deliver real impact in a fast-paced, mission-critical environment.

You will require extensive knowledge across a wide range of security classification domains, including workload virtualisation, enterprise operating systems, advanced networking concepts, and hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI). Breadth of experience in areas such as high availability (HA), fault-tolerant systems, and software-defined networking (e.g., SD-WAN) is highly valuable. Key skills include strong troubleshooting capabilities, effective problem management, and the ability to communicate clearly with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Your initial deployment is anticipated to be on-site in the West Midlands for approximately two years, working within a hybrid team of contractors and military personnel for a government organisation. While this role offers hybrid working options, it requires a minimum of 4 days per week on-site. Candidates must be willing to obtain a UKNSV security clearance with SC being essential, and DV clearance desirable. You do not have to have worked on customer sites or in a consultancy role previously.

More information about security clearance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetti...

Key areas of responsibility

• Maintain and optimise the hybrid cloud IT infrastructure, ensuring it remains robust and scalable. This includes managing configuration changes, performing system upgrades, and implementing infrastructure-as-code (IaC) practices to streamline deployment and consistency.
• Conduct troubleshooting and fault resolution processes using systematic and logical approaches. Ensure timely identification and resolution of issues to minimise downtime and improve overall system reliability.
• Develop and deploy new infrastructure components such as network devices, virtual machines, containers, and orchestration workflows. Use tools such as CI/CD pipelines to automate and enhance deployment efficiency. Produce detailed system diagrams and documentation, adhering to high standards of accuracy and diligence.
• Maintain robust monitoring, logging, and alerting solutions to provide real-time insights into system performance. Enable proactive responses to potential issues, preventing system outages and optimising uptime.
• Conduct Agile and DevOps processes within the team, promoting iterative workflows, continuous feedback, and cross-functional collaboration. Foster a culture of adaptability, shared ownership, and continuous improvement to enhance operational efficiency and delivery quality.
• Conduct the build/provision of end-user devices to ensure secure and consistent integration with Private and Public Cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, OCI etc).

About you

Key skills, experience and behaviours

• Degree or equivalent education in computer science, IT, or related field.
• Extensive experience as an infrastructure engineer with a strong understanding of networking, Enterprise operating systems, and virtualisation technologies. Proficient with networking equipment from multiple OEMs.
• Extensive experience with public cloud solutions such as AWS, Azure and OCI. Certification in these areas such as AWS Certified Solutions Architect or Azure Solution Architect Export is desirable not mandatory.
• Extensive experience as an infrastructure engineer with a strong understanding of networking, Enterprise operating systems, and virtualisation technologies. Proficient in private cloud solutions such as VMware vSphere, Tanzu, Linux KVM, OpenShift or KubeVirt are desired but not mandatory.
• Knowledge of scripting languages (e.g., Python, Bash) and automation tools such as Ansible, Terraform, or similar is highly valuable. Experience in implementing infrastructure-as-code (IaC) practices and tooling is preferred.
• Proven experience in adopting and implementing Agile and DevOps processes to enhance efficiency, collaboration, and delivery. This includes fostering a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging iterative workflows, managing cross-functional team collaboration, and ensuring alignment between development and operational goals.
• Work as part of a high performing engineering team and work independently when necessary.
• Ability to breakdown complex tasks into manageable work packages for junior engineers and oversee their execution.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, to explain complex IT concepts to various stakeholders.

Key Attributes

• Problem-solver: demonstrated ability to troubleshoot, debug, and resolve complex issues in a timely manner.
• Detail-oriented: strong attention to detail and adherence to best practices.
• Adaptable and self-motivated: ability to quickly learn new technologies and continuously develop technical skills.
• Mentor and teacher: able to develop more junior engineers.
• Collaborative team player: excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with a willingness to collaborate and share knowledge.
• Continuous improvement mindset: a proactive approach to identifying opportunities for improvement, seeking growth both personally and for the team.
• Agile Mindset: Demonstrates a strong commitment to Agile principles. Exhibits excellent facilitation skills to align teams around shared goals, prioritise effectively, and foster a collaborative and innovative working environment.

Working at Rowden

We are committed to building a flexible, inclusive, and enabling company. Our aim is to create a diverse team of talented people with unique skills, experience, and backgrounds, so please apply and come as you are!

Rowden is a Disability Confident Committed company, and we actively encourage people with disabilities and health conditions to apply for our roles. Please let us know your requirements early on so that we can make sure you have everything you need up front to help make the recruitment process and experience as easy as possible.

Finally, if you feel that you don't meet all the criteria included above but have transferable skills and relevant experience, we'd still love to hear from you!