Job Purpose       

The Senior Systems Engineer leads advancements in research computing technology, software, storage, instrumentation, visualisation, and data analytics within the College of Science and Engineering's research network. Collaborating with stakeholders, the role holder ensures reliability, security, and efficiency of Research Computing resources. Responsibilities include overseeing system design, lifecycle management, and customisation to meet research project needs while driving continuous improvement efforts. The Senior Systems Engineer is primarily responsible for managing and maintaining the Research Computing Systems, including software library administration, user support, and development.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

1.       Lead in the management, monitoring & patching of the HPC clusters ensuring the College’s HPC Infrastructure has overall availability.

2.       Provide expert support with research-based applications operating across a diverse platform covering a broad range of commercial, open source and custom tools and applications.

3.       Working with the Principal Engineer, manage multiple complex Research Computing/Cluster-based projects, ensuring timely and budget-friendly delivery for cutting-edge research support.

4.       Foster strong relationships with Researchers to understand their specific needs and requirements, regularly engaging with researchers to gather feedback, address concerns, and ensure satisfaction with IT services.

5.       Develop a deep understanding of the subject-specific research needs and software used by researchers within the College.

6.       Lead in HPC infrastructure development, including capacity planning and software upgrades, while ensuring security compliance and uninterrupted research activities.

7.       Ensure service accessibility and compliance with relevant legislation, addressing recommendations from audits or compliance bodies, and manage staff effectively to support service delivery.

8.       Serve as a catalyst for change, leading College, and University IT initiatives, promoting collaborative approaches, and championing the implementation of collective strategies like Research Computing as a Service.

9.       Any other duties and projects which may from time to time be required by the Line Manager or Head of College IT.

10.     Contribute to the enhancement of the University’s international profile in line with the University’s Strategic Plan, World Changers Together.

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 knowledge and skills in a similar role. Or: Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 9, (Ordinary Degree, Scottish Vocational Qualification level 4), or equivalent (including professional accreditation with relevant formal training), and experience of personal development in a similar or related role(s).

A2 Substantial technical knowledge across a range of IT areas with specialist knowledge, such as Linux/Unix enterprise server and storage technology.

A3 Extensive knowledge of the computing requirements of researchers with a high-level of ability and broad range of data processing needs.

A4 Significant knowledge of the inner workings of a queuing system e.g. slurm, SGE, PBS.

A5 Specialist knowledge of scientific computing packages, their installation and operation, e.g. LAPACK, OpenMPI, CUDA.

Desirable:

B1 Relevant professional certifications from recognised technical bodies, e.g. CompTIA Linux+ or RHCP.

Skills

Essential:

C1 Proficient in utilising scripting languages, such as Windows PowerShell/Linux shell script.

C2 Expert technical problem-solving skills gained over a substantial period of working at higher levels of complexity and influence and enacted quickly whilst under pressure.

C3 Proficient in organising and maintaining computing resources, managing multiple systems concurrently and in a timely manner to adhere to deadlines.

C4 Extensive experience of server maintenance and the management, and application of updates to Linux server infrastructure.

C5 Excellent analytical skills with confidence to challenge and continually improve, diving into the detail as necessary to understand issues (people, process, and technology).

C6 Highly effective communication and interpersonal skills, demonstrating creative and innovative thinking and influencing senior members of an organisation.

C7 Solid individual contributor who is highly self-motivated encompassing good workload management skills, with the ability to collaborate with a wider team and support the development of junior staff.

C8 Ability to build and maintain broad network of business relationships with a good knowledge of customer behaviours, needs and expectations building an environment of trust/integrity.

C9 Be able to set clear technical requirements to achieve goals, delegate tasks, provide feedback, and be able to lead and motivate a team of professionals.

Desirable:

D1 Able to demonstrate the application of orchestration skills such as Ansible.

D2 Able to demonstrate the deployment of containerisation technologies such as Docker.

D3 Able to demonstrate knowledge in languages relevant for research computing such as Julia,

D4 Python, C, C++, Fortran, R or MATLAB.

Experience

Essential:

E1 Extensive experience in a relevant technical IT role.

E2 Substantial experience of managing Linux/Unix in a complex heterogeneous environment.

E3 Proven experience of taking responsibility for actions that can have considerable impact on the user community.

E4 Significant experience of supporting users with common research applications and compilers.

Desirable:

F1 Experience of providing technical support in a University or Educational Institution.

F2 Supporting Research in an academic environment.

F3 Supporting the handling and processing of large data sets.

F4 Experience of GDPR and the processing of personal and medical data, including imaging data.

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 7, £40,497 - £45,413 per annum.

This post is full time (35 hours p/w) and open ended.

Relocation assistance will be provided where appropriate.

The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.  If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

Closing date: 28 April 2025 @ 23.45