University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Senior VMware Systems Administrator

Job Profile Title

Systems Administrator Senior

Job Description Summary

Information Systems & Computing (ISC) is the University of Pennsylvania’s central IT organization, providing the core network, data, voice, video, and enterprise application infrastructure and services upon which Penn’s numerous Schools and Centers build their unique tools and capabilities.

ISC’s 300-plus employees work closely with the University’s IT organizations in order to create, deliver and support products and services that help Schools and Centers operate efficiently and effectively. We strive to be easy to work with, and to serve as a trusted advisor to Penn’s IT community, faculty, staff and students in support of an environment of discovery and progress.

ISC’s focus on customer service and the high-quality, cost-effective, reliable implementation of modern IT solutions advances the mission of the University, as well as that of each individual School and Center. At Penn, technological freedom and departmental autonomy represent dearly held core values. ISC supports those ideas by providing foundational services and cogent counsel, empowering individuals and departments to employ their distinct strengths in support of their goals. https://www.isc.upenn.edu/about

Technology Services provides systems engineering, operations, networking, telecommunications, and collaboration services for use by the global University community through its four teams:

Communications & Collaboration Technologies

Emerging Solutions

Infrastructure Operations

Platforms Infrastructure & Network Engineering

The VMware Administrator will be responsible for supporting and maintaining our existing VMWare vSphere infrastructure.

Job Description

The Sr. VMWare administrator within the ISC Technology Services group will report to the IT Director Platforms Infrastructure & Network Engineering. This candidate will be responsible for supporting and maintaining our existing VMWare vSphere infrastructure. Responsibilities including but not limited to: Provide critical support as systems administrator for several on premise and off premise vSphere environments. Maintenance, monitoring, upgrades, security patching of both vSphere hardware and software; participate in disaster recovery planning/execution; test new hardware and software technologies, writing reports on findings; communicate regularly on status, progress to supervisors and project teams; maintain regular contact with key vendors via technical support channels. Work with the Virtual Technologies team to implement standards and best practices throughout the environment.

Job Responsibilities

• Installation, configuration, deployment, and maintenance of VMWare vSphere 7.0 & 8.0

• Implement best practices, create documentation and disaster recovery planning in support of projects and services, following organizational best practices

• Provide ongoing system administration including hardware and software upgrades, fixes, security patches, and decommissioning of environments; Maintain existing systems, tracking service and repair history

• Assist with new system designs, testing, and implementation. This includes an on premise and off premise (cloud) strategy.

• Make recommendations for computer hardware and operating system technologies based on market knowledge and hands-on testing.

• Work with internal teams to monitor, analyze and optimize virtualization performance of ESXi hosts and virtual machines.

• Coordinate across other ISC teams to troubleshoot issues.

• Test new computer hardware and operating system technologies and areas, writing reports on findings.

• Communicate regularly on status, progress to supervisors, project teams; maintain contact with key vendors.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree and a minimum of three to five years of operating systems maintenance and analysis experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience

• 3+ years VMWare vSphere 6.0 administration required

• Production vSphere server administration experience, including new system builds and ongoing systems maintenance required

• Basic knowledge (as applies to vSphere environment) of both networking and storage infrastructure required.

• Strong organization skills, and strong written and spoken communications skills required

• Ability to work well in a group setting required

• Amazon VMware Services and Azure VMware service experience preferred

• Demonstrated ability to lead technical projects preferred

• Experience with NSX, vRealize suite, Cloud Foundations, vSAN or Horizon 7.0 a plus

• Experience with DNS, DHCP configuration and management on Windows or Linux a plus

• Experience with vRealize Suite, Cloud Foundations, NSX and/or vSAN a plus

• Enterprise cloud management administration experience a plus

  Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

Information Systems and Computing

Pay Range

$61,046.00 - $110,000.00 Annual Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, as well as internal and market factors and grade profile.

Affirmative Action Statement Penn adheres to a policy that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.

Special Requirements Background check required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.

University Benefits

• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts : Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare. You can also use flexible spending accounts to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

• Tuition : Take advantage of Penn's exceptional tuition benefits . You, your spouse, and your dependent children can get tuition assistance here at Penn. Your dependent children are also eligible for tuition assistance at other institutions.

• Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

• Time Away from Work: Penn provides you with a substantial amount of time away from work during the course of the year. This allows you to relax, take vacations, attend to personal affairs, recover from illness or injury, spend time with family—whatever your personal needs may be.

• Long-Term Care Insurance: In partnership with Genworth Financial, Penn offers faculty and staff (and your eligible family members) long-term care insurance to help you cover some of the costs of long-term care services received at home, in the community or in a nursing facility. If you apply when you’re newly hired, you won’t have to provide proof of good health or be subject to underwriting requirements. Eligible family members must always provide proof of good health and are subject to underwriting.

• Wellness and Work-life Resources : Penn is committed to supporting our faculty and staff as they balance the competing demands of work and personal life. That’s why we offer a wide variety of programs and resources to help you care for your health, your family, and your work-life balance.

• Professional and Personal Development: Penn provides an array of resources to help you advance yourself personally and professionally.

• University Resources: As a member of the Penn community, you have access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities. Take advantage of the University’s libraries and athletic facilities, or visit our arboretum and art galleries. There’s always something going on at Penn, whether it’s a new exhibit at the Penn Museum, the latest music or theater presentation at the Annenberg Center, or the Penn Relays at Franklin Field to name just a few examples. As a member of the Penn community, you’re right in the middle of the excitement—and you and your family can enjoy many of these activities for free.

• Discounts and Special Services : From arts and entertainment to transportation and mortgages, you'll find great deals for University faculty and staff. Not only do Penn arts and cultural centers and museums offer free and discounted admission and memberships to faculty and staff. You can also enjoy substantial savings on other goods and services such as new cars from Ford and General Motors, cellular phone service plans, movie tickets, and admission to theme parks.

• Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work options offer creative approaches for completing work while promoting balance between work and personal commitments. These approaches involve use of non-traditional work hours, locations, and/or job structures.

• Penn Home Ownership Services: Penn offers a forgivable loan for eligible employees interested in buying a home or currently residing in West Philadelphia, which can be used for closing costs or home improvements.

• Adoption Assistance: Penn will reimburse eligible employees on qualified expenses in connection with the legal adoption of an eligible child, such as travel or court fees, for up to two adoptions in your household.

  ​

  To learn more, please visit: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay

  The University of Pennsylvania's special character is reflected in the diversity of the Penn community. We seek talented faculty and staff who will constitute a vibrant community that draws on the strength that comes with a substantive institutional commitment to diversity along dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, disability, veteran status, interests, perspectives, and socioeconomic status. Grounded in equal opportunity, nondiscrimination, and affirmative action, Penn's robust commitment to diversity is fundamental to the University's mission of advancing knowledge, educating leaders for all sectors of society, and public service. The University of Pennsylvania prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.