Our client is looking for an experienced Senior Linux Technical Lead / Senior System Design Engineer to strengthen the Linux platform team and further increase its operational maturity.
This position combines in-depth Linux and infrastructure expertise with technical leadership, operational organization and continuous improvement. The consultant will help establish clear structures, improve operational processes and increase the reliability, availability and efficiency of the Linux environment.
As a Senior System Design Engineer, you will provide technical engineering services based on at least five years of experience with system software and IT infrastructure.
You will work closely with Linux engineers, product owners, service management, security teams, cloud teams, application teams and other stakeholders. The role requires someone who can combine hands-on technical expertise with ownership, accountability and the leadership maturity needed to structure and streamline a growing operational function.
Key Responsibilities
System Design and Engineering
- Analyse business and technical requirements and translate them into appropriate system designs.
- Evaluate design options, benefits, risks and technical trade-offs.
- Validate whether proposed designs comply with technical, security and operational requirements.
- Support the deployment and implementation of designs to ensure that the defined requirements are met.
- Use development and engineering tools to solve complex technical and business challenges.
- Address topics such as technology evolution, capacity management and performance optimisation.
- Propose innovative ideas to improve existing systems, processes and services.
- Maintain and expand technical knowledge through accurate technical documentation.
- Support complex incident resolution and perform root cause analyses.
Technical Leadership
- Provide technical leadership, direction and guidance to the Linux platform team.
- Define and promote best practices for Linux platform operations, maintenance, security and lifecycle management.
- Act as a senior escalation point for critical or complex Linux-related incidents.
- Support engineers during complex troubleshooting and technical investigations.
- Ensure technical decisions are aligned with architectural, security and operational standards.
- Act as a trusted technical advisor to management and key stakeholders.
Operational Excellence
- Help organise and structure the operational activities of the Linux team.
- Improve incident, problem, change and capacity management practices.
- Establish clear ownership, responsibilities and operational processes.
- Drive the use of operational metrics, reporting and service-level indicators.
- Identify and implement continuous improvement initiatives.
- Improve the reliability, availability, stability and operational efficiency of the Linux platform.
- Support the creation and maintenance of operational documentation, procedures, runbooks and knowledge articles.
- Promote effective knowledge management and knowledge sharing within the team.
Team Coaching and Collaboration
- Lead by example and foster a culture of ownership, accountability and operational discipline.
- Coach and mentor Linux engineers in technical best practices and operational excellence.
- Support the professional and technical development of team members.
- Encourage collaboration and structured communication within the Linux team.
- Build strong working relationships across infrastructure, security, cloud and application teams.
- Collaborate closely with engineers, product owners, service management and business stakeholders.
Automation and Continuous Improvement
- Identify repetitive operational activities that can be automated.
- Introduce automation to reduce manual work and operational overhead.
- Reduce operational toil and improve the overall stability of the platform.
- Promote proactive monitoring, observability and preventive maintenance.
- Use scripting, development and automation tools to improve operational efficiency.
- Support the continuous evolution and modernisation of the Linux platform.
Required Experience
- More than five years of technical experience in system engineering, system software or IT infrastructure.
- Strong hands-on expertise with Linux platforms and Linux operations.
- Proven experience in system design, technical engineering and infrastructure management.
- Experience with complex troubleshooting, incident resolution and root cause analysis.
- Experience with operational processes such as incident, problem, change and capacity management.
- Experience with platform maintenance, security, performance optimisation and lifecycle management.
- Experience creating and maintaining technical documentation, procedures and operational runbooks.
- Experience with scripting, automation or software development.
- Previous experience providing technical leadership, coaching or senior-level guidance.
- Ability to operate as a senior escalation point for critical technical issues.
Core Competencies
- Adaptive and able to respond effectively to changing technical and operational circumstances.
- Strong analytical and conceptual thinking.
- Ownership and accountability.
- Result-driven and focused on delivering measurable improvements.
- Strong organisational and structuring skills.
- Collaborative and able to work across technical and non-technical teams.
- Flexible and comfortable working in a changing operational environment.
- Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills.
- Continuous-improvement mindset.
- Software development and automation mindset.
Additional Information
Participation in an on-call rotation may be required for the systems and services under the consultant’s responsibility.
