About This Role
Senior Database Administrator (Oracle & MS SQL) | Contract | Hybrid | Livermore, CA
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About the Company
A leading federal government IT company supporting one of the nation's most prestigious scientific research institutions, this organization delivers mission-critical technology infrastructure at the highest levels of reliability and security. Their work underpins cutting-edge research programs that have national and global significance. Joining this team means contributing to technology that genuinely matters.
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The Role
This is a senior-level contract opportunity for an experienced Database Administrator to join a high-performing infrastructure team in Livermore, California. Operating in a hybrid model with occasional onsite presence, you will serve as a subject matter expert across enterprise relational and non-relational database platforms, driving reliability, automation, and performance across a complex, security-conscious environment. This role is ideal for a seasoned DBA who thrives on solving hard problems, building durable systems, and working at the intersection of database engineering and operational excellence.
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What You Will Do
As a core member of the database engineering team, you will own the health, performance, and evolution of enterprise database platforms. Your day-to-day will span a wide range of responsibilities:
• Administer and support Oracle and Microsoft SQL Server environments running on Linux
• Design, build, and maintain reliable database platforms with robust monitoring and alerting
• Automate routine operations including provisioning, patching, backups, upgrades, and compliance workflows
• Tune SQL queries and review data models to improve application performance and system efficiency
• Support database architecture decisions, migrations, and cross-platform transitions including cloud-based and containerized environments
• Maintain non-production environments to support development and QA teams
• Build operational dashboards, runbooks, and alerting frameworks using log and metrics data
• Participate in incident response, root cause analysis, and post-incident reviews
• Support the implementation, configuration, and triage of enterprise commercial off-the-shelf applications
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What We Are Looking For
• 12+ years of hands-on database administration experience
• Deep expertise in Oracle DBA administration
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft SQL Server
• Experience running and managing databases on Linux operating systems
• Bash and Shell scripting for operational automation
• Python scripting for database tooling and workflow automation
• Proven database performance tuning skills across large-scale environments
• Experience building and maintaining database automation frameworks
The ideal candidate brings over a decade of enterprise DBA experience and is equally comfortable architecting a database platform as they are writing a Python script to automate a repetitive operational task. You have a strong command of both Oracle and SQL Server in Linux environments, and you understand how to build systems that are not just functional but observable, resilient, and secure. This role demands someone who can operate independently, communicate clearly with engineering and application teams, and bring a continuous improvement mindset to everything they touch.
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Nice to Have
• Hands-on experience with MongoDB
• Familiarity with Cassandra
• PostgreSQL administration experience
• Exposure to DynamoDB or other AWS-native database services
• MySQL administration background
• Experience with cloud database services (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
Candidates who bring experience across NoSQL platforms such as MongoDB, Cassandra, or DynamoDB will be particularly well-positioned to contribute from day one, as the environment spans both relational and non-relational technologies. Familiarity with cloud-hosted database services is a meaningful advantage given the team's ongoing work supporting cloud migrations and hybrid infrastructure. A background that blends traditional enterprise DBA skills with modern cloud and NoSQL exposure reflects exactly the kind of versatile expertise this team values.
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What We Offer
This is a hybrid contract engagement based in Livermore, California, with the flexibility of primarily remote work and minimal required onsite days each month — making it an excellent fit for local candidates who want meaningful work without a demanding commute. You will have the opportunity to work on technically complex, high-stakes infrastructure supporting federally funded scientific research, giving your work a sense of purpose that is rare in the industry. The role offers strong potential for contract extension and the chance to deepen your expertise across a broad and evolving database technology stack alongside a skilled, collaborative team.