Platforms & Services Analyst

We have a rare and exciting opportunity to join the Platforms and Services team at one of the world's leading Russell Group universities. Newcastle University's IT department (NUIT) is looking for an enthusiastic and passionate IT professional who will join an existing team of analysts working in a hybridised environment supporting IT services running from a mix of local data centres and Microsoft Azure., * Design, implement and maintain the University server infrastructure to host multiple virtual servers which underpin all University IT service - Windows and UNIX / UNIX like

• Manage critical infrastructure elements including our file store, UNIX / UNIX like services, the Microsoft software stack, PKI, database services, backup infrastructure, remote access, identity management, IT monitoring etc.
• Gather requirements from stakeholders and design, implement and maintain IT solutions to meet those requirements. Ensure all systems are resilient and highly available. Perform regular disaster recovery testing of critical systems and report to University audit committee.
• Maintain working knowledge of all systems and services provided by the infrastructure systems team to perform incident management, root cause analysis of problems, and continual service improvement
• Maintain awareness of current cyber security threats and implement technologies to strengthen the University's cyber security posture.
• Enforce and monitor the security and patch compliance of 1500+ Windows Servers and 15,000 Windows Desktops to protect against malicious cyber-attack and mitigate risk.
• Create and keep service documentation up to date.
• Operate all necessary proactive and reactive measures in place to ensure service continuity and effectiveness
• Ensure any issues are escalated efficiently and ensure management is aware of any issues and the consequences thereof
• Act as a platforms & services SME and use this knowledge to deliver excellence in operational support, project and change delivery and help in defining the future strategy
• Understand the Technology Roadmap and assist in its implementation as directed
• Deliver any project or change related activity as part of wider NUIT or NU project teams as required
• Ensure that policies, standards, procedures and guidelines are followed
• Any other reasonable duties that fall within the scope of the post, as allocated by the line manager, * Supports organizational change agents to improve maturity and practices, in support of University goals and strategy
• Mobilizes themselves to support and enable change efforts

Finding Solutions

• Analyses situations quickly and effectively to determine the best way to deliver the required result
• Keeps their technical knowledge up to date and has a wider understanding of the technology landscape inside and outside their area

Delivering Services

• Sets and accomplishes challenging goals
• Defines standards in terms of doing what is appropriate and doing it well
• Leads by example in delivering high quality outcomes that they take responsibilityn for

Do you have experience in UNIX?, A successful candidate will have demonstrable hands-on experience working in a large complex organisation, supporting Microsoft technologies including:

• Active Directory
• Azure Active Directory
• MSSQL
• IIS
• Azure Web Apps
• Windows Server
• PowerShell

Experience working with enterprise storage and backup technologies including Veeam and Dell EMC PowerScale is desirable.

You will be responsible for implementing the IT roadmap to ensure systems and services are supported throughout their lifecycle, working closely with the University Cyber Security team to ensure systems and services adhere to Cyber Essentials. On occasion you will be asked to act as the subject matter expert to projects requiring your expertise., * Extensive Technical background in our core technologies including physical and virtualised server management, Windows, UNIX / UNIX like, Azure cloud services, SQL database management, Windows and UNIX / UNIX like user administration

• Experience of supporting and delivering Platforms & Services in a complex and geographically diverse organisation
• Experience of working with third party vendors and delivering an effective Platforms & Services service using their services
• Interest in identifying and implementing new and innovative technologies to support customer needs, drive up quality and improve value
• A working knowledge of Cybersecurity processes and practices is essential
• Experience of working with multiple support and resolver groups across a wide variety of technologies
• Able to demonstrate focus on customer needs

Attributes and Behaviour

Team Working

• Encourages and facilitates collaboration, cooperation and results
• Inspires, motivates and guides more junior team members, * A relevant technical qualification (degree equivalent) or equivalent technical experience

Salary: £35,608.00 - £37,694.00 per annum with progression to £46,049.00

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution. We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population. At Newcastle University we hold a Gold Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme. In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.