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System Administrator Level 3

Job Overview

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Compensation

Salary
Range $94,200.00 - $141,200.00
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Benefits

Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Life insurance
Disability insurance
savings plan
Paid Time Off
Company paid holidays

Job Description

Northrop Grumman is a leading global aerospace and defense technology company committed to delivering innovative systems that improve and protect people’s lives worldwide. Known for its pioneering spirit and groundbreaking contributions to technology—from historic achievements like the first transatlantic flight to stealth aircraft and lunar landings—Northrop Grumman continuously pushes the boundaries of what is possible. The company fosters a culture of intellectual curiosity and cognitive diversity where employees are encouraged to bring their full selves to work and collaborate toward inventing the future. Employees at Northrop Grumman are engaged in projects that not only shape history but also secure the nation’s future.

This career opportunity is for the position of Principal System Administrator, Technical Level 3, within Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector. This is a full-time, on-site role based at Schriever Space Force Base, Colorado, emphasizing a national security mission. This position serves as a team lead overseeing the 24/7 operations of a critical IT system ensuring its optimal availability, performance, and reliability essential to space system development and sustainment. The role demands a high level of technical expertise combined with leadership capabilities to manage schedules, coordinate incident management cycles, and maintain seamless communication across teams. The candidate will be responsible for administering, troubleshooting, and enhancing both Windows and Linux virtual environments, ensuring that system enhancements improve overall reliability and stability. Additionally, the role involves supporting DevOps software integrations, maintaining security protocols, and escalating issues when necessary.

Successful candidates will have a strong foundation in IT service management technologies, virtualization, and systems administration with expertise in both Linux and Windows platforms, combined with a current Top Secret clearance with SCI access. The position offers a competitive annual salary range from $94,200 to $141,200, with eligibility for overtime, shift differentials, discretionary bonuses, and long-term incentives for leadership roles. Employees also receive comprehensive benefits including health insurance, life and disability coverage, and paid time off. Relocation assistance may be available. This position requires U.S. citizenship and an active security clearance. Candidates will contribute directly to critical national defense initiatives with opportunities for career growth and skill development in a dynamic, mission-critical environment.

Job Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience
  • Minimum 5 years of relevant IT experience
  • U.S. citizenship
  • Current Top Secret security clearance with SCI eligibility
  • Experience with IT service management tools
  • Strong skills in Linux or Windows system administration
  • Competency in troubleshooting network and application problems
  • Ability to work in a team and build cooperative relationships
  • Current valid CompTIA Security+ or equivalent certification

Job Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree with 5 years of experience or Master’s degree with 3 years of experience or equivalent additional experience
  • U.S. citizenship with current Top Secret clearance and active SCI indoctrination
  • Experience designing and implementing IT Service Management technologies such as Jira Service Management, ServiceNow, or Remedy
  • Experience with Linux (RHEL 7/8) server and workstation administration and VMWare administration or experience with Windows 11+ and Server 2019+ administration
  • Ability to follow troubleshooting routines for network and application issues
  • Proven skills in building collaborative team relationships
  • Current CompTIA Security+ or IAT Level 2 certification per DoDM-8570

Job Duties

  • Lead the day-to-day operations of the 24/7 team ensuring availability, performance, and reliability of the IT system
  • Oversee incident, request, problem, and change management processes
  • Establish the 24/7 team schedule to ensure continuous system administrator coverage for the national security mission
  • Adjust and adapt schedules based on team availability and system outages
  • Create, communicate, and enforce scheduling rules according to program needs and labor practices
  • Assist team members and end users in troubleshooting and problem resolution supporting space system development
  • Document processes and maintain Standard Operating Procedures
  • Install, configure, troubleshoot, and maintain Windows and Linux virtual machines
  • Provide logs to facilitate product stability and improvement
  • Implement system enhancements including upgrades, patching, and configuration management
  • Coordinate operation of multi-user systems with cross-functional teams
  • Maintain virtualized environments including servers and VDI desktops
  • Manage user and computer accounts and modify permissions via Active Directory and Linux
  • Provide Tier 1/2 troubleshooting in virtualized/containerized environments such as VMWare, RedHat OpenStack, and OpenShift
  • Support integration of DevOps tools including Jira, Confluence, Bitbucket, Ansible, and Terraform
  • Escalate unresolved tickets to DevOps team

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