Data Specialist

Spatial Front, Inc.

$70K — $95K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or related field; equivalent experience is acceptable.
  • 3+ years of experience in systems, middleware, or data platform support, with hands-on experience in Apache Kafka or similar platforms.
  • Expertise in administering on-premises Kafka environments on Linux, familiar with UNIX/Solaris systems.
  • Knowledge of Kafka administration best practices, including broker management, performance tuning, and security configuration.
  • U.S. Citizen with an active Secret security clearance or ability to obtain one; experience in federal or DoD settings is a plus.

Responsibilities

  • Administer and sustain Apache Kafka infrastructure supporting PeopleSoft HCM in a secured environment.
  • Install, configure, upgrade, and maintain Kafka brokers and clusters across Linux and UNIX/Solaris systems.
  • Manage data flow configurations, topic provisioning, and security compliance in a highly secured network.
  • Develop scripts and operational procedures to enhance platform reliability and efficiency.
  • Monitor Kafka cluster performance and troubleshoot incidents timely.
  • Support platform hardening and compliance with security requirements in DISA-aligned environments.
  • Collaborate with various teams to ensure stable production support and complex data integrations.

Benefits

  • Hybrid work environment with on-site requirements based on project needs.
  • Full-time employment with a W2 contract.
  • Opportunity to work in highly secured federal environments.
  • Collaborative work atmosphere across diverse technology teams.
Full Job Description
Job Type

Full-time

Description

The ideal candidate will support the administration, sustainment, security, and continuous improvement of on-premises data integration, streaming, and data operations infrastructure supporting PeopleSoft HCM in a secured federal environment.

This role is centered on Apache Kafka administration across Linux and broader UNIX/Solaris-based environments, while also supporting related data movement, messaging, integration, and operational tooling used to keep enterprise data flowing reliably. The ideal candidate will combine strong Kafka administration and troubleshooting skills with scripting, automation, operational discipline, and experience supporting enterprise data platforms in highly secured networks.

Work Location: Hybrid, On-site - Arlington, VA

Key Responsibilities
  • Administer, monitor, and sustain Apache Kafka infrastructure and related data platform components supporting PeopleSoft HCM and enterprise integrations in a secured, on-premises environment.
  • Install, configure, patch, upgrade, maintain, and troubleshoot Kafka brokers, clusters, topics, partitions, and supporting data services across Linux and UNIX/Solaris-based environments.
  • Manage topic provisioning, replication, retention, consumer groups, access controls, certificates, secure connectivity, and core data flow configurations in accordance with enterprise security and operational requirements.
  • Develop and maintain scripts, automations, runbooks, SOPs, and operational procedures to improve platform reliability, reduce manual effort, and support repeatable data operations administration.
  • Monitor cluster health, throughput, latency, consumer lag, disk utilization, JVM performance, logs, alerts, and related data jobs or interfaces; investigate incidents and coordinate timely resolution.
  • Support platform hardening, audit readiness, change control, and compliance with security requirements in highly secured or DISA-aligned network environments.
  • Support high availability, backup and recovery, capacity planning, failover readiness, and environment support across development, test, and production data environments.
  • Collaborate with application, middleware, ETL, database, infrastructure, and cybersecurity teams to support data movement, integration patterns, operational readiness, and stable production support.


Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
  • 3+ years of systems, middleware, data platform, or integration support experience, including hands-on experience supporting Apache Kafka or similar enterprise messaging, streaming, or data integration platforms.
  • Hands-on experience administering on-premises Kafka environments on Linux, with familiarity supporting broader UNIX/Solaris infrastructure, including monitoring, patching, troubleshooting, and operational support in enterprise data environments.
  • Experience with Kafka administration best practices such as broker and topic management, replication and retention strategy, performance tuning, logging and monitoring, security configuration, and scripting or automation; experience with broader data tools, integration support, or operational data management is a plus.
  • Must be a U.S. Citizen with an active Secret security clearance or the ability to obtain one; experience in secured federal or DoD environments preferred.

Desired Skills
  • Familiarity with PeopleSoft HCM architecture, interfaces, batch processing, enterprise integration patterns, and operational data flows.
  • Experience with Kafka security and operations concepts such as TLS/SSL, SASL, ACLs, certificate management, HA/DR, consumer/producer troubleshooting, and support of related data movement or integration tooling.
  • Knowledge of runbooks, SOPs, change management, backup and recovery, incident management, problem management, and capacity planning for enterprise data and integration platforms.
  • Ability to collaborate across application, integration, data, security, and operations teams in a structured sustainment environment.

Additional Information
  • Clearance: Must be a U.S. Citizen with an active Secret security clearance or the ability to obtain one.
  • Work Environment: Onsite/Hybrid as required by the contract and program environment.
  • This is a full-time, W2 position.
  • No agencies, third parties, or Corp-to-Corp submissions.

Similar Jobs

More Jobs at Spatial Front, Inc.

  • Advanced Monitored Caregiving, Inc.
    Senior Software Developer
    $90K — $130K *
    Stennis Space Center, MS 39522 (Hancock County)
    Information Technology
    Hybrid
  • Business Intelligence Team Lead
    $100K — $130K *
    Arlington, VA 22204 (Arlington County)
    Business Services
    In-Person
  • Data Specialist
    $70K — $95K *
    Arlington, VA 22204 (Arlington County)
    Information Technology
    Hybrid
  • Release Manager
    $100K — $130K *
    Arlington, VA 22204 (Arlington County)
    Education, Government & Non-Profit
    Hybrid
  • Knowledge Management SME
    $80K — $110K *
    Arlington, VA 22204 (Arlington County)
    Information Technology
    Hybrid

More Information Technology Jobs

Find similar Data Specialist jobs: