DBA Team Lead

Reading, Berkshire
AWE PLC

Information Services and Security have a vital role to play in a crucial national mission. We’re here to enable the organisation to deliver through the use of technology. As AWE transforms itself to meet the needs of the UK’s next-generation nuclear deterrent, we need to adapt to deliver data-driven decision making, flexible and future-proofed IT services, adaptable cyber security, support to a multi-billion Pound building programme, and many more.

The scale might be daunting to some, but you’ll find it stimulating. We’ve got a long journey that we’ve only just started and we’re looking for motivated people who can take us in the right direction. Your role will contribute directly to that shared mission. We won’t deceive you, in some areas we’re starting from a low base, but within ten years this organisation will look very different, and you can help make that happen. This is a role where you’ll contribute to a legacy of national security for decades to come. So come and join us.

AWE are embarking upon a business-wide transformation and our databases are central to our success. We seek a forward-thinking DBA team lead to head a team of database administrators looking after SQL Server and Oracle databases across on-premise and cloud platforms. Our databases underpin what we do from 3rd party application support, in-house development, data warehousing and business intelligence capability.

DBA Team Lead

Location: Reading/ Basingstoke area

Salary: £48,250 – £70,000 (dependent on experience)

AWE (one of the best 25 big companies to work for in the UK) offers an attractive array of benefits which include:

• Market leading contributory pension scheme
• Generous holiday entitlement 270 hours a year (inclusive of Bank Holidays) plus every other Friday off
• Flexible working hours
• Salary sacrifice scheme
• Funding for the annual membership of a relevant professional body
• AWE Life Insurance
• Consideration for either full time or part time hours. Just let us know on your application if you wish to work part time

What you’ll do:

• Hands on team leadership, running a team of DBAs in support of business-critical databases.
• Maintain the performance of databases.
• Install, upgrade, and manage database applications.
• Respond to incidents as appropriate to maintain/resume service
• Resolve bottlenecks, low level bugs, design future proof infrastructure
• Working with 3rd party suppliers as necessary to meet operational demands
• Collaborate with other IT teams to ensure integration of databases with other systems and applications is compliant with operational standards and best practice.
• Support the BI and Development Teams using SSRS/SSIS and Power BI
• Devise and test disaster recovery plans
• Manage, coach and mentoring the DBA team whilst helping to shape best practice and standards.

What you’ll be accountable for:

• Leadership and management of a team of 5 DBA’s providing technical guidance and mentorship.
• Responsible for the overall management, availability, performance, and security of the database estate.
• Development, documentation, implementation and maintenance of operational policies / best practice for the database estate.
• Continual process improvement with a focus on automation of repeatable tasks.
• Identification of self-service opportunities and ownership of implementation.
• Ensuring changes to databases and services align with operational standards and business requirements.
• Design and implementation of new database server instances.
• Strategic planning, capacity planning, and implementing best practices for database management

What you’ll need:

• Experience in independently leading a team of database administrators.
• Customer focussed, can-do approach.
• Great leadership skills with an emphasis on building effective teams focused on delivering excellent support.
• An ability to act as a consultant to all the application support teams that develop / implement on the database platforms.
• Good, demonstrable knowledge of administering Microsoft SQL Server (versions 2016, 2019and 2022), Oracle (19c) databases and Oracle Enterprise Manager.
• Knowledge of MS SQL Database services within MS Azure.
• Experience with design/development of databases.
• Excellent problem-solving and troubleshooting skills, with the ability to diagnose and resolve database-related issues quickly.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills to work effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
• Strong command of SQL and SQL server tools
• PowerShell and Unix Shell Scripting skills
• Advanced knowledge of database security, backup and recovery, and performance monitoring standards
• Good understanding of operating systems (MS Windows and Linux) and database infrastructure.
• Stay updated with emerging trends, technologies, and best practices in database administration and recommend innovative solutions to improve system efficiency and performance.

All Candidates must be willing and able to obtain and maintain the necessary security clearance for the role.