Applications Operations Engineer - Bristol Regional Centre - 3 Glass Wharf

About the job

Discover a career in your hands at HMRC. Whether you're seeking purpose, growth, or a workplace that gives you a true sense of belonging, hear from some of our employees as they share their story about what it's really like to work at HMRC. HMRC is transforming the UK's tax system through cutting-edge digital innovation and the Chief Digital and Information Officer (CDIO) Group is at the heart of that mission. We are building high-quality digital services that will enhance the customer experience, enable real-time interactions, and make tax simpler and more intuitive for everyone.

By equipping our colleagues with modern tools and technologies, we are also reshaping how we work - allowing HMRC to focus its resources where they can deliver the greatest impact. CDIO Borders and Trade supports the HMRC Borders and Trade group delivering IT projects that enable HMRC's wider customs strategy and policies. We design, manage and maintain the IT services that support customs and international trade activities. Our team is made up of specialists in delivery, business analysis, engineering, and live service support. We work closely with stakeholders across HMRC to ensure our IT systems meet their needs.

Job description

An Application Operations Engineer (Senior Database Administrator) maintains services and is responsible for conducting user and security administration. They are responsible for development/maintenance and tuning of the department's databases ensuring availability of the department's data and preventing data loss/providing data recovery in event of disaster.

Person specification

As Application Operations Engineer (Senior Database Engineer), you will be expected to:

• Maintain departmental databases ensuring availability, ensuring no data loss, administering access, monitoring and improving performance, ensuring backup and recovery is maintained, providing data extracts and meeting business data exploitation requests.
• Maintain database security and data integrity.
• Incident fix and prevention.
• Deliver change and project deliverables in and out of core hours.
• Support development and test users with test databases and test data.
• Perform 24/7/365 support for priority 1/2 databases incident resolution.

Main Core Duties:

• Database design and administration using relational databases such as Oracle, MySQL, MSSQL and cloud based databases like Oracle and AZURE SQL.
• Experience of relational database design and administration, scripting for database utilities for on premises and cloud based database services.
• Monitor applications and be accountable for batch processes.
• Carry out the duties of an end user computing engineer, such as fixing technical problems, maintaining hardware, and liaising with the problem or incident manager.

Specific Responsibilities are likely to include:

• The installation, configuration, upgrade, administration, monitoring, and maintenance of databases.
• Providing support for operational databases in production use and for internal or interim purposes such as iterative developments and testing.
• Improving the performance of databases and the tools and processes for database administration (including automation).
• Using database management system software and tools to collect agreed performance statistics.
• Carrying out agreed database maintenance and administration tasks.
• Using database management system software and tools, and knowledge of logical database schemata, to investigate problems and collect performance statistics and create reports.
• Carrying out routine configuration, installation, and reconfiguration of database and related products.
• Developing and configuring tools to enable automation of database administration tasks.
• Identifying problems and issues and recommending corrective actions.
• Developing and maintaining procedures and documentation for databases.
• Identifying, evaluating, and managing the adoption of appropriate database administration tools and processes, including automation.
• Contributing to the setting of standards for definition, security and integrity of database objects and ensuring conformance to those standards.
• Managing database configuration including installing and upgrading software and maintaining relevant documentation.
• Monitoring database activity and resource usage.
• Optimising database performance and planning for forecast resource needs.

This role is expected to contribute to the 24/7 cover for Live service operation. Depending on the candidate's skills and knowledge there will be the potential for the individual to be asked to undertake on call support as part of a team rota with immediate effect. However, HMRC would anticipate individuals new to the role and Department requiring significant time to become productive in an on-call capacity and would anticipate that acclimatisation taking up to 12 months. On completion of 12 months in post, or upon the demonstration of sufficient capability, the role would be expected to then help provide 24/7 cover as part of a team on-call Rota. It is expected that the successful applicant, once suitable to do so, may be required to be on call for which there is the appropriate additional remuneration.

Essential Criteria

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate practical knowledge and experience in the following key disciplines:

• Database administration using some or all of the following databases: Oracle, MySQL, MS SQL, Ingres, Azure SQL.
• Database design.
• Good understanding of backup and recovery strategies.
• Good written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong analytical skills.

Desirable Criteria:

• Familiarity with and experience working on Windows, Unix and Linux operating systems.
• Some experience of programming in one of the following languages - Unix/Linux shell scripting, SQL.
• Experience working on traditional on-prem and cloud-based databases in AWS/Azure.

Other Information

Candidates will either have SC level security clearance or be willing to undertake such.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £37,682, HM Revenue and Customs contributes £10,916 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. HMRC operates both Flexible and Hybrid Working policies, allowing you to balance your work and personal commitments. We welcome applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible, considering our operational and customer service needs. We offer a generous leave allowance, starting at 25 days and increasing by a day for every year of qualifying service up to a maximum of 30 days. Pension - We make contributions to our colleagues' Alpha pension equal to at least 28.97% of their salary. Family friendly policies. Personal support. Coaching and development.