Lead Virtualization Engineer

About Us:

FlexTrade Systems is a provider of customized multi-asset execution and order management trading solutions for buy- and sell-side financial institutions. Through deep client partnerships with some of the world's largest, most complex and demanding capital markets firms, we develop the flexible tools, technology and innovation that deliver our clients a competitive edge. Our globally distributed engineering teams focus on adaptable technology and open architecture to develop highly sophisticated trading solutions that can automate and scale with your business strategies.

At FlexTrade, we hold our values close to heart, with pride and gratitude, as they guide us in everything that we do. We are dedicated to giving our clients a competitive edge, taking ownership of our responsibilities, being flexible to adapt to ever changing environment and technology, bringing integrity to ever interaction and we continue to improve, grow together and collaborate as one team. All of these while having Fun truly makes FlexTrade a wonderful place to work.

The Team:

We are actively seeking experienced candidates to lead our Global Virtualization and Infrastructure team that supports FlexTrade’s Global infrastructure hosting operations. As a financial services technology vendor that delivers mission critical Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) to our clients, FlexTrade’s Infrastructure Operations is vital to our business and foundational to customer success. You will be a vital asset to the leadership of FlexTrade’s IT Operations, who play an integral role in the business, keeping our revenue generating SaaS environment free from downtime. This ensures we can deliver a high level of service to our diverse set of clients, including large asset managers, hedge funds, banks and brokers which in turn maintains FlexTrade's reputation as a market leader in Electronic Trading space. This presents an exciting challenge for the Global Infrastructure Lead. The Virtualization Infrastructure Lead will oversee a global team of 3+ members. This role will report to the Head of Global Infrastructure (based in Great Neck, NY).

About You:

The successful applicant will have experience in leading small teams as well as hands on knowledge of running and maintaining a SaaS hosting environment. This position is responsible for ensuring effective delivery of services and successful delivery of key infrastructure and network projects through both team management and direct contribution. This position will also be a key enabler driving collaboration with IT Infrastructure Operations Teams based in AMS and APAC.

The Job:

As Virtualization Infrastructure Lead for a global infrastructure team, you will be responsible for managing a team of infrastructure engineers. The team is part of a global IT organization. You will manage the VMWare Virtualization Infrastructure, drive virtualization design, implementation of best practices solutions, ensure infrastructure reliability and create an overall virtualization strategy. You are also responsible for effective communication to stakeholders with regard to the overall platform including changes, DR testing, recovery, and incident-handling. Job duties may change at any time due to business needs.

• Provide strategic direction for the design, development, implementation, operation, and support of the Virtualization (VMWare) Infrastructure.
• Manage and oversight of a team of engineers to accomplish the strategic direction.
• Provide leadership, coaching and direction to the team, coordinate with the wider, global, infrastructure teams and foster a business-oriented culture and mindset.
• Manage the full end to end technology life cycle of the VMWare infrastructure. This includes running the platform with an optimal configuration. i.e. Design for High Availability, optimize cluster and storage configuration, capacity planning, and ensuring redundancy and recovery capabilities,
• Ensure effective service delivery and management of the platform through timely project delivery and working closely with our SaaS Operations team to implement/ the project-based work.
• Manage the scheduling, as well as participate in the on-call coverage to support the FlexTrade Virtualization environment.
• Manage, and analyze incidents and problems for the production environment, assessing patterns, making recommendations, and providing appropriate escalation and communication.
• Work with other support groups (e.g., development, client services) to define and update workflows, and standard operating procedures.
• Participates in change control committee, providing input into all changes/additions to network to ensure minimal disruption to production system.
• Vendor management and partner relation engagement to ensure that Flextrade is being serviced appropriately.

Knowledge, Skills & Experience: Technical

• Minimum of eight (8) years of VMWare 7 Engineering work experience(experience with older versions is a plus)
• Minimum of six (6) years of VMware Network troubleshooting experience ( VMware distributed switch architecture).
• Minimum of two (2) years of direct management experience
• Proven experience of VMWare Infrastructure design and implementation
• Experience in managing data center environments including installations, patching, lifecycle management, capacity management,
• Experience with process automation, orchestration.
• Managing and hands-on skills in the following
• Physical Infrastructure Stack - Compute, Storage, Networking (e.g., Cisco)
• Virtualization (e.g., VMWare and other (HyperV, Nutanix)
• Linux/Windows OS System administration
• Troubleshooting Network Connectivity issues (VPLS, VPN, Leased Lines, Cross Connects)
• VMWare - VMC in AWS or other Cloud Providers
• Cloud Technologies incl Private/Hybrid Cloud (AWS, Azure)
• PowerCLI scripting skills
• Orchestration Platforms (Jenkins or other)

Leadership/Management/Process:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts and technologies to business leaders, and business concepts to the infrastructure operations team.
• ITIL certification and/or technical certifications
• Familiarity with ITIL processes and standards. Certification in ITIL v3/4 are a plus.
• Familiarity with DELL and HP products. Certification in either vendor is a plus.

Nice to Have:

• Familiarity with emerging technologies including:
  • Monitoring Technologies
  • Continuous Integration/Development Tooling
  • Patching & upgrade management of devices

Education & Qualifications:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in computer science, information systems, or related field, or equivalent work experience.
• 8+ years of relevant experience
• VMWare certification desirable

FlexTrade is renowned for our high performance, open architecture systems that surpass our competition by providing our clients with a highly tailored trading experience. Engineering at FlexTrade is technologically exciting, inspiring and challenging. Engineers have the opportunity to be creative top tier contributors in every area and within every development stage. Our unique office culture creates an environment where engineers can thrive and grow their careers.

**FlexTrade Systems, Inc. does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firm recruiters. Fees will not be paid in the event a candidate submitted by a recruiter without an authorized agreement for a particular SOW (Statement of Work) in place is hired: such resumes are deemed the sole property of FlexTrade Systems, Inc.**

**FlexTrade Systems, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or any other status protected by law.*