Engineer, Database Administration

Overview of Role

The successful candidate will be a production database-administration competency in our News Technology Services / New Tech Infrastructure team and will take ownership of supporting the Dow Jones/News UK / News Corp Australia/ Realtor  corporate databases including performance, reliability and security of data in a core database competency.

PostgreSQL/MySQL Database Administrator (DBA) with solid experience in managing databases in the AWS Cloud environment. As a DBA, you will be responsible for the installation, configuration, maintenance, performance tuning, and security of PostgreSQL/MySQL databases deployed in the cloud. You will work with cross-functional teams to ensure high availability, scalability, and reliability of databases while maintaining best practices in database management and cloud operations.

Knowledge of a second database technology which could be one of MongoDB or any No-SQL will be an added advantage.

Candidates will need to possess working knowledge of Cloud technologies of AWS and Azure including Compute (EC2, Auto Scaling, Lambda etc), Storage (S3, EFS, EBS etc.), Network (VPC, ELB’s, Route 53 etc).

Preferable candidates will need to possess basic working knowledge of Cloud technologies - AWS EC2 and RDS.

• Candidates should have 4-7 years of experience in a DBA role and are expected to work in a rotating 24 x 5 model and also provide on-call support as required by business. 

Key Responsibilities of an L2 PostgreSQL / MySQL DBA:

PostgreSQL Database Administration: Install, configure, manage, and maintain PostgreSQL databases in the AWS environment using Amazon RDS/Aurora and EC2.

MySQL Database Administration: Install, configure, manage, and maintain MySQL databases in the AWS environment using Amazon RDS/Aurora and EC2.

Database Performance Tuning: Optimize and monitor database performance, query tuning, indexing, and configuration to ensure high performance and low latency.
 

Backup & Recovery: Design, implement, and manage backup and disaster recovery strategies for PostgreSQL databases, leveraging Amazon RDS Automated Backups, Point-in-Time Recovery (PITR), and other AWS services.Manage and implement backup strategies (full, differential, and Binlog backups).

Ensure data integrity by running consistency checks and resolving any corruption issues.

Test and verify backup and restore procedures regularly to ensure fast recovery during failures.

Plan for and execute database restores when necessary, including point-in-time recovery.

High Availability & Scalability: Implement high availability solutions with Amazon RDS Multi-AZ, Amazon Aurora, Read Replicas, and PostgreSQL clustering to ensure minimal downtime and maximum scalability.

Implement and maintain High Availability solutions (e.g., Master-Slave, Multi-Master , Active-Active Cluster, AWS MySQL  Global Clustering).

Design and configure Disaster Recovery solutions for MySQL and Aurora MySQL environments.

Ensure seamless failover operations and minimal downtime during server or database outages like upgrades and DR tests.
 

Security: Ensure database security by implementing data encryption (at rest and in transit), IAM roles, access control policies, and compliance standards.
 

Automation: Automate common database administration tasks (e.g., backups, scaling, monitoring) using AWS Lambda, Python, or Shell scripts.
 

Monitoring & Alerts: Continuously monitor PostgreSQL database performance using AWS CloudWatch, RDS Enhanced Monitoring, and third-party tools to proactively address potential issues.
 

Collaboration: Work closely with development and DevOps teams to integrate database solutions into application architecture, CI/CD pipelines, and overall system design.
 

Database Upgrades & Migrations: Manage PostgreSQL/Mysql version upgrades and migrations to the latest versions or between environments (e.g., on-premise to AWS cloud).
 

Documentation: Maintain detailed documentation on database architecture, configurations, troubleshooting steps, and standard operating procedures.

Required Skills and Expertise:

Technical Skills:

• 4+ years of hands-on experience in PostgreSQL and/or MySQL database administration, with a focus on cloud environments (AWS).

• Strong experience with Amazon RDS (for PostgreSQL/MySQL), Aurora, and EC2 instances.

• Expertise in database performance tuning, query optimization, and index management.

• Proficiency in setting up, managing, and optimizing database replication, clustering, and high availability (HA) solutions in AWS.

• Experience with AWS IAM, CloudWatch, CloudTrail, and AWS Security best practices.

• Experience with data migration (on-premises to AWS, MySQL to PostgreSQL) and implementing backup/recovery strategies.

• Proficiency in scripting languages like Python, Bash, or PowerShell to automate routine database tasks.

• Experience using AWS Lambda for automation, along with AWS CloudFormation or Terraform for provisioning infrastructure.

• Deep understanding of AWS Cloud architecture and services (e.g., EC2, S3, IAM, VPC).

• Experience implementing security measures such as data encryption, role-based access control, and compliance with regulatory standards.

Soft Skills

• Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills for database performance and operational issues.

• Excellent communication skills to work with teams and document complex procedures.

Managing Continuity Producing Results

• Upholds and ensures compliance to departmental policies and procedure

• Escalates issues in a timely fashion

• Utilises expert resources in an effective way

• Response to incident / join bridges

• Owns problem resolution, including managing SIP projects through 3rd parties 

• Ensures very high ownership end to end

• Demonstrates resourcefulness and tenacity 

• Sets high standards for self,and 3rd parties

• Current tier 0 recovery plans maintained

Relating to People Leading Change

• Effectively manages and works with a variety of teams, structures and reporting lines

• Manages conflict constructively

• Develops good relationships with departmental peers and business stakeholders

• Encourages and facilitates open communication

• Challenges current procedure looking for efficiencies

• Identifies areas for improvement providing business case justification

• Identifies stakeholders and the issues that impact them

• Ensuring change is implemented in a seamless manner with minimal disruption

Skills

Key Performance Measures

• Educated to degree level, or equivalent work experience with vendor management experience

• Very high ownership

• Detail orientated

• Demonstrates commitment to quality

• Agile in a fast moving environment

• Strong communication skills

• Incident management

• Problem management

• ITIL qualified

• Service levels and Customer satisfaction levels

• Effective utilization of time

• Objectives and Goals achieved

• Steady progress in resolving outstanding issues

• Must be willing to work 24 x 5 rotational shifts.

• Must be prepared to work flexible hours to cover the change window

Career Path: Typical Previous Role or Background Anecdotal Descriptors

• 4-7  years experience of production Database Administration showing a core competency in a specific RDBMS namely Postgres/MySQL.

• Energy and Enthusiasm

• Passionate about service delivery excellence

• Leadership 

• Positivity and Drive

• Desire to “make things work”