Expert Systems Engineer, AIX

About the Role

The AIX Expert System Engineer is a senior technical authority responsible for the architecture, engineering, optimization, and strategic evolution of IBM AIX and Power Systems environments. This role serves as the highest level of technical expertise, owning complex platform decisions, large-scale migrations, performance engineering, automation, and resiliency design for business-critical workloads.

Key Responsibilities

Platform Architecture & Engineering

• Act as technical owner and subject matter expert (SME) for IBM AIX and Power Systems platforms.
• Design, architect, and standardize enterprise-scale AIX and pSeries environments.
• Define and maintain architecture standards, build patterns, and best practices.
• Provide expert guidance for capacity planning, scalability, and platform modernization.
• Review and approve complex designs related to compute, storage, virtualization, and networking.

IBM Power & Virtualization Expertise

• Deep expertise in PowerVM, VIOS, and advanced AIX virtualization.
• Architect and manage:
  • HMC environments (v9 & v10).
  • Power8, Power9, and Power10 systems.
  • DLPAR, LPM, NPIV.
  • Virtual networking, virtual storage, SR-IOV, vNIC adapters.
• Lead VIOS architecture, build, upgrade, and high availability design.
• Perform pSeries hardware commissioning, refresh, and consolidation projects.

Lifecycle Management & Migrations

• Lead AIX OS lifecycle management, including upgrades, patching, and kernel tuning.
• Architect and execute:
  • AIX OS migrations (6.1 → 7.1 → 7.2 → 7.3).
  • Hardware refresh and data center migrations.
  • Storage and SAN migrations.
• Own and optimize NIM (Network Installation Manager) design and usage.
• Design zero-downtime or minimal-impact migration strategies.

Performance, Reliability & Resilience

• Perform advanced performance analysis, workload optimization, and tuning.
• Design high availability, fault tolerance, and resiliency models.
• Define and govern Disaster Recovery (DR) and Business Continuity (BC) strategies.
• Analyze platform risks and implement proactive mitigations.
• Define monitoring standards and performance KPIs.

Incident, RCA & Problem Management

• Act as final escalation authority for critical and recurring AIX incidents.
• Lead Major Incident Management (MIM) and complex RCA investigations.
• Perform trend analysis, identify systemic issues, and drive long-term fixes.
• Coordinate with IBM and hardware/storage vendors for deep technical resolutions.

Automation & Continuous Improvement

• Drive automation-first strategy for AIX operations.
• Develop and review Shell / Perl / Python automation frameworks.
• Integrate automation with Ansible or enterprise orchestration tools.
• Reduce manual effort, improve consistency, and enhance platform reliability.

Governance, Documentation & Compliance

• Ensure adherence to ITIL, security, audit, and compliance requirements.
• Define technical governance and change standards for the AIX platform.
• Author and maintain architecture documents, SOPs, runbooks, and KB articles.
• Support audits and ensure platform compliance with enterprise policies.

Leadership, Consulting & Mentoring

• Provide expert consultation to stakeholders, architects, and senior leadership.
• Mentor and technically guide L3 engineers and system architects.
• Support complex client engagements, audits, and transformation programs.
• Communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical audiences.

Required Skills & Experience

• 12-15 years of hands-on experience in IBM AIX and Power Systems.
• Expert-level knowledge of:
  • AIX OS administration and kernel internals.
  • PowerVM, VIOS, and HMC.
  • pSeries architecture.
• Strong expertise in SAN storage, HA, DR, and enterprise networking.
• Proven experience leading large-scale migrations and transformations.
• Advanced shell scripting / automation skills.
• Excellent troubleshooting and analytical capabilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• IBM Certifications in:
  • AIX System Administration.
  • Power Systems / pSeries Hardware.
  • Performance Tuning.
  • Network Administration.
• Experience in mission-critical, regulated, or global enterprise environments.
• Exposure to hybrid cloud or IBM Power on Cloud architectures.

Professional Attributes

• Strategic thinker with strong technical depth.
• Calm and decisive during critical outages.
• Excellent communication and documentation skills.
• Strong ownership mindset with attention to detail.
• Collaborative leader and trusted technical advisor.
• Comfortable working in rotational on-call models whenever required.

Why Ensono?

Ensono is a place to make better happen -- for our clients and for your career. We are a client-facing business, but we do encourage clients to allow us to work remotely most of the time.

Benefits

• Unlimited Paid Days Off.
• Three health plan options.
• 401k with company match.
• Eligibility for dental, vision, short and long-term disability, life and AD&D coverage, and flexible spending accounts.
• Family Forming Benefit including fertility coverage and adoption/surrogacy reimbursement.
• Paid childbearing and paternal leave.
• Education Reimbursement, Student Loan Assistance or 529 College Funding.
• Sabbatical leave.
• Wellness program.
• Flexible work schedule.

Compensation

As of the date of this posting, a good faith estimate of the current pay scale for this role is $125,000 to $163,000 annually based on a full-time schedule. In addition to base salary, other compensation programs, depending on eligibility, include an annual bonus plan and an equity grant.

Ensono is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. If you need accommodation at any point during the application or interview process, please let your recruiter know or email [email protected].