infrastructure Manager: Thales

Manor Royal Business District; Crawley; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job description

Location: Crawley, United Kingdom

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales. Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other. In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Job title: Infrastructure engineer

Thales is a great place to work so diversity, integrity and a passion for what we do are very important drivers for us.

Are you looking to have a real impact in your next role, playing a vital part in the evolution and continuous improvement for all Thales businesses around the UK? We would like to welcome you to consider applying to Thales.

We are looking for an Infrastructure engineer that will ensure the secure and efficient delivery of enterprise virtual desktop infrastructure and application hosting services, maintaining high availability and performance while driving continuous service improvements through automation and integration. Working as part of a service organisation, the role focuses on delivering excellent customer experience while maintaining security and compliance standards.

Key tasks & responsibilities:

• Design, implement and maintain virtualised desktop infrastructure components including VMware vSphere, vCenter, and associated technologies.
• Manage Windows desktop operating system deployment, updates, and security patches through SCCM and related tools.
• Monitor and remediate security vulnerabilities through timely patch implementation and security best practices.
• Perform capacity planning and resource optimisation based on usage patterns and growth trends.
• Configure and maintain thin client devices and management platforms to ensure optimal end-user experience.
• Develop and maintain task sequences for automated OS deployment and configuration.
• Monitor and optimise VDI session performance, investigating and resolving end-user experience issues.
• Plan and execute infrastructure component upgrades, including hypervisors, management tools, and desktop operating systems.
• Create and maintain desktop master images and application packaging solutions.
• Develop automation scripts and workflows to streamline operations and reduce manual intervention.
• Collaborate with security teams to implement and maintain security controls and compliance requirements.
• Work with service management to understand customer needs and improve service delivery.
• Participate in service review meetings and customer engagement sessions.
• Participate in agile ceremonies and sprint planning.

About you:

• Strong experience with VMware vSphere and vCenter administration.
• Proven expertise in Windows desktop operating system deployment and management.
• Experience with Microsoft SCCM, including task sequence creation and management.
• Strong understanding of security patching and vulnerability management.
• Experience in capacity planning and resource optimisation.
• Knowledge of thin client technologies and management platforms.
• Experience in troubleshooting virtual desktop performance issues and optimising end-user experience.
• Strong background in infrastructure component upgrade planning and execution.
• Experience with PowerShell scripting and automation tools.
• Knowledge of virtual desktop infrastructure best practices and optimization techniques.
• Understanding of IT service management principles and customer service orientation.
• Experience in analysing usage metrics and capacity trends.
• Strong problem-solving skills with ability to analyse complex technical issues.
• Experience working in an agile environment and participating in sprint cycles.
• Excellent communication skills with ability to explain technical concepts to various stakeholders.
• Strong documentation and technical writing abilities.
• Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team.
• Experience with change management processes and ITIL practices.
• Customer-focused mindset with strong service delivery orientation.
• Ability to balance security requirements with operational needs.
• Proactive approach to service improvement and innovation.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively under pressure.

Security Clearance statement

As standard, all successful candidates must possess the permanent right to work in the UK, and will be required to go through Government security clearance at BPSS (Baseline Personal Security Standard) Level prior to starting with us and then to obtain full Security Clearance (SC) in line with the United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) requirements above.

To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks. As part of the vetting process you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, eligibility to work in the UK, time spent abroad over the last 5 years, as well as employment and / or educational history.

What We Can Offer

We’re committed to giving you opportunities to be your best. We believe in embracing the passion and potential of our people, and to achieve this we offer market leading training, development and experiences, along with the opportunity to be mentored and coached by some of the smartest minds in the industry. We hire from within as our first priority, so you’ll have a variety of opportunities within our diverse, global organisation.

Flexibility

Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Thales is an equal opportunities employer and diversity and inclusion are integral to the success of Thales.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Great journeys start here, apply now!