Consultant – Infrastructure Automation Developer, HQ Gaza (Local)

BACKGROUND

UNRWA Information Management and Technology Department (IMTD) is seeking an Infrastructure Automation Developer to automate operational on-premise tasks with Ansible and other tools. The consultant must have experience, software development and the design and implementation of automating full end-to-end processes. The person will also spend time in supporting International Computing Center (ICC) administrators on how to script and automate operational tasks with Ansible playbooks, plugins, modules, inventories, templates and shell scripts.

The consultant will report administratively to Head Information Technology Service Centre at Headquarter Gaza and technically to International Computing Center (ICC).

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Design and develop Ansible playbooks for automating end-to-end processes
• Design and develop new modules if required
• Setup best practices for development and documentation for automation projects
• Design inventories for different systems and use cases based on experience and implement through an inventory file or a plugin.
• Define development best practices for automation with Ansible.
• Automate Storage tasks in Ansible to:

1.  Manage the lifecycle of luns (SAN)
2. Manage the lifecycle of share (NAS);
3. Patching

• Automate Network related tasks in Ansible such as:

1. VLAN provisioning and configuration;
2. Firewall rules configuration;
3. Switch configuration; o Load balancer configuration;

• Automate Application and Database tasks in Ansible such as:

1. o Installing ;
2. o Stopping and starting;
3. o Configuring
4. o Hardening;
5. o Patching;

• Automate OS/Server (Linux and Windows) tasks in Ansible such as::

1. Configuring ;
2. Hardening;
3. Patching;

• Working with Ansible Vault to encrypt sensitive data.
• Manage Credentials in Ansible AWX.
• Integrate with ticketing systems (Remedy ITSM).
• Enabling/configuring hosts and systems for automation with Ansible
• Configuring CI/CD pipelines
• Automated testing of playbooks, modules and plugins
• Error handling of automated tasks
• Perform other duties as maybe required.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• A university degree from an accredited educational institution in software development, Computer Science, Information Technology or related discipline;
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in automation and software development;
• Experience in the automation tasks for one or more of the following areas:

1. Application and database deployments and provisioning
2. Linux OS tasks
3. Windows OS tasks
4. Network tasks
5. Infrastructure tasks

• Extensive knowledge in software development best practices
• Strong software development skills in programming languages (Python, yaml, jinja …)
• General web services development skills HTTP/HTTPS, RESTful APIs
• Knowledge and experience in developing infrastructure solutions and of automating infrastructure tasks
• Good Linux/Windows skills
• Experience with central infrastructure services (DNS, LDAP, NTP, mail)
• Knowledge in CI/CD best practices for fully automated integration, deployment and testing
• Strong analytical, logical skills and problem-solving skills.
• Fluency in spoken and written English.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

• Linux System Administration;
• Windows System Administration;
• Network Administration.
• Ansible Automation.
• Previous experience with UNRWA or other UN agency;
• Fluency in spoken and written Arabic.

DESIRABLE EXPERIENCE

• Setting up an Ansible platform with AWX/Ansible Tower and integrate with a full CI/CD pipeline
• Integrating AWX/Ansible tower with an LDAP system
• Securing the Ansible platform and the execution of the playbooks on the targets
• Automating tasks in one or more of these systems:

1. Cisco IOS
2. BigIP/F5 equipment
3. Par storage
4. Compellent storage.
5. Checkpoint firewall
6. HP servers

• Automating server provisioning
• Automating tasks on databases and/or applications:

1. o Web Applications: Apache, Tomcat, Nginx, etc.
2. o Databases: MySQL, Postgres, MariaDB, MongoDB
3. o Oracle software: Database and Applications

• Training and/or coaching administrators on best practices for development and automation.
• Good understanding Of Ansible Awx/Ansible tower
• Good knowledge in various Ansible modules
• Knowledge in other automation tools (puppet, terraform, chef, etc.)
• Experience with usage of public cloud infrastructures (google cloud platform, AWS, AZURE etc.)

COMPETENCIES

• Applying technical expertise;
• Strong ability to drive for results, to manage and deliver against multiple priorities on time;
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills;
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills; verbal and written;
• Excellent planning and organizing skills;
• Communicating in a credible and effective way: Expresses oneself clearly in conversations and interactions with others; listens actively
• Produces effective written communications. Ensures that information is shared
• Producing results: Produces and delivers quality results. Is action oriented and committed to achieving outcomes
• Moving forward in a changing environment: Is open to and proposes new approaches and ideas. Adapts and responds positively to change
• Knowing and managing yourself: Manages ambiguity and pressure in a self-reflective way. Uses criticism as a development opportunity. Seeks opportunities for continuous learning and professional growth
• Flexibility and adaptability.

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

• The duration of the consultancy is from 6 to 11 months with the expected start date of July 2020; extendable according to performance and availability of funds;
• This consultancy is equivalent to an area staff post at grade (15)
• Remuneration for this consultancy will depend on the qualifications and experience of the candidate.
• The incumbent will be based in Gaza.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Applicants should submit a cover letter and CV or UN Personal History Form demonstrating clearly the knowledge and experience required to meet the consultancy requirements via consultancy@unrwa.org indicating the title of this consultancy “Infrastructure Automation Developer, HQ Gaza (Local), in the subject line of the message. The deadline for the submission of applications is 7 Jun 2020.