Who We’re Looking For (Position Overview):
Spry Methods seeks a Senior Systems Engineer to support the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Contracting & Procurement (OCP) and its enterprise acquisition and financial systems.
This role provides advanced engineering, middleware, system integration, and modernization support across applications such as PRISM, Oracle platforms, middleware services, and USDA hybrid cloud environments.
While direct IAS experience is beneficial, it is not required—strong enterprise systems engineering, middleware administration, Azure/cloud migration, and Linux platform expertise are the core needs.
The position plays a key role in USDA’s ongoing modernization, including migrating PRISM from AIX to Azure-based Linux environments and supporting integrations with financial and procurement systems.
What Your Day-To-Day Looks Like (Position Responsibilities):
- A. USDA Procurement System Engineering
- Provide senior-level engineering support for enterprise procurement and financial applications (e.g., PRISM, Oracle platforms).
- Assist with sustainment, configuration, patching, upgrades, and troubleshooting.
- Support workflows, interfaces, and integration with USDA financial systems.
- Develop and maintain architecture, engineering diagrams, and system documentation.
- B. IBM WebSphere / IBM MQ Enterprise Middleware
- Administer and support IBM WebSphere Application Server (WAS) and IBM MQ across enterprise environments.
- Deploy and maintain WebSphere/MQ workloads on Azure Linux VMs or AKS.
- Configure clustering, failover, performance tuning, and secure messaging.
- Automate middleware deployments using Terraform, Ansible, or scripting tools.
- C. PRISM 7.6.2 (AIX → Azure Linux Migration)
- Support PRISM across both AIX and Linux platforms.
- Perform system tuning, patching, remediation, and environment troubleshooting.
- Lead or contribute to PRISM migration from AIX to Azure-based Linux environments (lift-and-shift).
- Integrate PRISM with Oracle databases, financial modules, and enterprise systems.
- Develop migration runbooks, operational procedures, and compliance documentation.
- D. Oracle APEX / Oracle Financials Engineering
- Design and develop applications using Oracle APEX (UI components, dashboards, APIs).
- Develop PL/SQL packages, triggers, and database automation.
- Support integrations between Oracle Financials and procurement platforms.
- Ensure compliance with financial controls (GAAP, IFRS, SOX).
- E. Cloud, Integration, and DevSecOps Support
- Deploy and support solutions in Azure (VMs, AKS, identity, logging).
- Support hybrid hosting strategies between USDA DISC and commercial cloud environments.
- Implement CI/CD automation using Azure DevOps, Terraform, and scripting.
- Contribute to containerization and modernization efforts (Docker, Kubernetes).
- F. Security, Compliance & Governance
- Ensure compliance with FedRAMP, FISMA, NIST 800-53, and USDA OCIO policies.
- Support ATO processes, security assessments, remediation, and audits.
- Implement secure system integration patterns (TLS, LDAP/SSO, RBAC).
- G. Stakeholder Support & Documentation
- Collaborate with OCP, OCIO, developers, architects, and security teams.
- Provide engineering recommendations, diagrams, SOPs, and onboarding materials.
- Participate in Agile ceremonies, sprint planning, and change control.
What You Need to Succeed (Minimum Requirements):
- Public Trust Clearance
- Bachelor’s degree in IT, Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent experience.
- 8+ years systems engineering experience supporting enterprise applications.
- Experience supporting federal, financial, or procurement systems (IAS experience preferred but not required).
- 5+ years administering IBM WebSphere and IBM MQ.
- 5+ years supporting PRISM 7.6.x across AIX and Linux platforms.
- Experience with AIX administration and migration to Azure Linux environments.
- Strong Linux administration (RHEL / Ubuntu / SUSE).
- Experience with Azure cloud deployments (VMs, AKS, hybrid cloud).
- Strong scripting skills (Bash, PowerShell, Python).
- Experience with Oracle APEX, Oracle Database, and PL/SQL.
- Strong understanding of enterprise security and federal compliance frameworks.
Ideally, You Also Have (Preferred Qualifications):
- Experience with USDA systems (IAS, PRISM, FMMI, eAuth) is a plus but not required.
- Experience with Azure DevOps pipelines, Terraform, Ansible, and CI/CD automation.
- Experience with Docker/Kubernetes for middleware or enterprise application hosting.
- Knowledge of hybrid cloud integration (Azure / OCI / USDA DISC).
- Familiarity with Oracle Financials processes and integrations.
- Strong communication skills with ability to interface with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
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