Job Purpose

A key member of the Systems and Technologies team responsible for the University's Microsoft Azure and Office 365 eco-system, that in turn underpins the digital infrastructure for all staff and students at the University.

This role has primary responsibility for Microsoft Azure and Office 365 services and applications. You will provide expert specialist and technical knowledge of Windows Server based systems to provide robust services to students and staff. You will design and deliver secure and resilient IT solutions to meet a diverse range of academic, research and business scenarios.

This is a key role in the Systems & Technologies senior team and will be responsible for devising highly secure and effective solutions that meet the changing digital needs of all staff and students.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

1.     Senior technical contact for Microsoft Azure service delivery and support, responsible for designing, implementing and managing Azure public cloud solutions that meet the needs of the University.

2.     Additionally, act as a senior technical contact for the closely related Microsoft Office 365 services delivery and support as a member of the University's Microsoft 365 global platform administration team.

3.     Assess customer needs and provide expert IT solution advice and design for a diverse range of academic and business requirements. Lead in the design of high availability infrastructure to support new corporate applications.

4.     Keep up to date with all relevant security developments for the systems and ensure that risks to the University are pro-actively identified and mitigating actions put in place in collaboration with the Information Security and Networks teams. Further, ensure that the overall security posture of the systems is monitoring and appropriately managed.

5.     Stay abreast of changes in the rapidly advancing Microsoft Azure and O365 services and apply this knowledge to the continuous improvement of University of Glasgow services. Analyse and disseminate relevant insight of the Azure platform roadmap (additions, changes, issues and solutions) to the other members of the team.

6.     Additionally, assist the wider team with the management of the Hyper-V estate taking responsibility for ongoing operations and continuous service improvements.

7.     Utilising expert knowledge of Windows systems undertake installation and configuration of virtual servers for staff.

8.     Assess the suitability of different cloud and physical infrastructure options to meet business needs applying professional judgement to select the best solution and configure applications to deploy the resulting service design.

9.     Plan and implement short and long-term changes to mitigate security vulnerabilities, liaise with the IT Security Team and appropriate technical / business colleagues to agree schedules incorporating effective risk assessment and impact on the service users

10.   Proactive risk management via infrastructure monitoring to minimise service outage by diagnosing and fixing issues before they become critical. Identify complex cross-functional issues and collaborate across different service teams to resolve them.

11.   Analyse and write concise reports for IT management making recommendations on options identified for service improvement for the benefit of users and ensure investment planning is undertaken in line with the planning cycles. Provide regular management highlight reports on plans and progress on the resulting initiatives.

12.   Proactively manage complex escalated calls from first and second line, providing a fast response.

13.   Use authoritative knowledge of Microsoft cloud technologies to Investigate, diagnose & solve problems involving interdependent services on a heterogenous infrastructure, coordinating with colleagues across teams.

Knowledge, Qualifications, Skills and Experience

Knowledge/Qualifications

Essential:

A1 Ability to demonstrate the competencies required to undertake the duties associated with this level of post having acquired the necessary professional knowledge and management skills in a similar or number of different specialist roles OR Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 9, 10 or 11 in Computing Science or a related discipline, (Ordinary/Honours Degree, Post Graduate Qualification), or equivalent (including being professionally qualified in relevant discipline, with a broad range of professional experience in management role(s).

A2 Comprehensive technical knowledge of the Microsoft Azure platform, or equivalent transferable experience in another leading Public Cloud platform.

A3 Comprehensive technical knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 platform global administration.

A4 Knowledge of IT Information Security for confidential data, both research/commercial and personal (e.g. Data Protection Act 2018), and the implications of security-by design in the IT service lifecycle and third part app integration.

A5 Proven track record of operating in large complex environment.

A6 Strong knowledge of IT Security requirements.

A7 Awareness of Orchestration technologies.

Desirable:

B1 Comprehensive technical knowledge of Microsoft Exchange Online.

Skills

Essential:

C1 Excellent programming and scripting ability, e.g. with PowerShell or similar.

C2 Demonstrable ability to organise and maintain computing resources, managing multiple systems concurrently and in a timely manner to adhere to deadlines.

C3 Excellent, highly effective verbal and written communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to challenge assumptions and practices with diplomacy.

C4 Ability to communicate effectively with staff and students of different IT competency and convey complex IT issues in a non-technical language.

C5 Ability to apply excellent analytical insight in order to analyse complex technical issues to identify root cause and propose frequently unique solutions.

C6 Highly self-motivated with excellent time management skills. Ability to use judgement to prioritise workload and deliver to tight deadlines whilst managing competing demands from various stakeholders.

C7 Excellent interpersonal skills, including influencing and negotiation skills.

C8 Resilient and durable, able to effectively deal with ambiguity and to maintain momentum in the face of obstacles/setbacks.

C9 Ability to work independently, demonstrate problem solving skills and ability to understand when it is necessary to collaborate with peers to resolve issues.

C10 Server maintenance and management, application of updates to Windows Server infrastructure.

Desirable:

D1 Orchestration skills in a large environment.

D2 Containerisation technologies in a large environment.

Experience

Essential:

E1 In depth experience of designing and implementing solutions in a Public Cloud.

E2 In depth experience as a Microsoft 365 global systems administrator.

E3 Broad experience of evaluating, integrating & configuring Office 365 Apps.

E4 Experience of managing Windows servers & hypervisors.

E5 Experience of providing guidance and support to customers on the most suitable solution.

E6 Broad experience of configuring applications and hardware to mitigate security vulnerabilities.

E7 Experience of using in-depth technical knowledge of Microsoft technologies to identity options for improvement and influence strategy decisions accordingly.

Desirable:

F1 Experience of supporting Linux, Windows & MacOS devices in a heterogenous environment.

F2 Experience of working in a Higher Education environment.

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 8, £49,559 - £57, 422 per annum.

This post is full time (35 hours p/w) and open ended. Relocation assistance will be provided where appropriate.

Closing Date: 23:45 16th April 2025

As part of Team UofG you will be a member of a world changing, inclusive community, which values ambition, excellence, integrity and curiosity.

 As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.

2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension , benefits and discount packages.

3 A flexible approach to working.

4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing.

We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community here.

We endorse the principles of Athena Swan and hold bronze, silver and gold awards across the University.

We are investing in our organisation, and we will invest in you too. Please visit our website https://www.jobs.gla.ac.uk/benefits-salary-and-flexible-working for more information. 

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