Professional Services Engineer

Overview:

This is an incredible opportunity to be part of a company that has been at the forefront of AI and high-performance data storage innovation for over two decades. DataDirect Networks (DDN) is a global market leader renowned for powering many of the world's most demanding AI data centers, in industries ranging from life sciences and healthcare to financial services, autonomous cars, Government, academia, research and manufacturing.

"DDN's A3I solutions are transforming the landscape of AI infrastructure." – IDC 

“The real differentiator is DDN. I never hesitate to recommend DDN. DDN is the de facto name for AI Storage in high performance environments” - Marc Hamilton, VP, Solutions Architecture & Engineering | NVIDIA 

DDN is the global leader in AI and multi-cloud data management at scale. Our cutting-edge data intelligence platform is designed to accelerate AI workloads, enabling organizations to extract maximum value from their data. With a proven track record of performance, reliability, and scalability, DDN empowers businesses to tackle the most challenging AI and data-intensive workloads with confidence. 

Our success is driven by our unwavering commitment to innovation, customer-centricity, and a team of passionate professionals who bring their expertise and dedication to every project. This is a chance to make a significant impact at a company that is shaping the future of AI and data management. 

Our commitment to innovation, customer success, and market leadership makes this an exciting and rewarding role for a driven professional looking to make a lasting impact in the world of AI and data storage. 

Key Responsibilities: 

The key responsibilities for this role include but are not limited to

• Planning, designing, architecting, implementing, and administering value added services and components.
• Engage with pre-sales teams and customers to scope service deliverables with ability to translate customer requirement/need into DDN deliverables.
• Develop a deep understanding of customer environment/Develop a deep understanding of customer environment and industry trends.
• Contribute to the improvement and enhancement of DDN products and consulting best practices.
• Have a thorough technical understanding of the various DDN product lines so that deployments can go smoothly.  Know where to gain assistance from either the SE or engineering when required.  Be prepared to form/lead a Tiger Team with the required SME if a particular challenge is encountered during a deployment.
• Physically install and replace Hardware at a customer site.  On-Site install, configure, tune, support and debug DDN’s HW and SW.
• Remotely or on site install, configure and tune software as required by the solution’s design.
• Install, configure and tune software in system pre-built prior to them being shipped from the factory.
• Provide Transfer of Information (TOI) and training sessions for customer installations and prepare the “as built” and other required customer documentation.
• Lead and run benchmarks and tests bound to project’s acceptance criteria (when required)
• Produce high quality project documentation
• Contribute content to the PS/Deployment related sections of the IPG, TIP, SOW as required by the business.
• Perform internal lab solutions – in person or remotely – to set up configurations for new designs to assure that there is the understanding of how they work.
• Help create hardware and or software documentation as required by the business.
• Teach internal and or customer classes as required by the business.
• Understand the sales process and be prepared to contribute if required by the business.
• Participate in customer-focused seminars, tradeshows, events, and training as required by the business.
• Assist the sales team in providing RFP responses, technical drawings, presentations, and recommendations if required by the business.
• Participate in customer-focused seminars, tradeshows, events, and training as required by the business.
• Manage customer relationship during the deployment phase to ensure the highest caliber customer satisfaction.
• Prepare status report of activities to manager if and when required.
• Participate in product testing and documentation reviews.
• Must be able and willing to travel occasionally.

Requirements:

• Must have proven hand-on experience with Linux based systems and preferably with storage systems (Required)
• Networking infrastructure, topology, DHCP & DNS basics, ideally with Infiniband networks. Be able to plan, install and configure networked systems using standard Linux toolset. (Required)
• Proven knowledge of the storage industry and solutions. (Required)
• Proven experience on Linux Operating System administration including kernel customization, package management, upgrades, mass provisioning. (Required)
• Deep understand and hands on experience with Linux Volume Management, Linux Multipath and Linux Block Device management (Required)
• Proficiency writing shell scripts or python programs (or other high level language) (Required)
• Strong background in SAN/NAS/Parallel Filesystem and deep archive storage. (Desired)
• Understanding of theoretical and practical concepts of adaptive networks and routing and non-adaptive network topologies (Desired)
• Strong knowledge in file system deployment and concepts: XFS, ZFS, EXT3/4. (Desired)
• Understanding of Object Storage based solutions (e.g.: S3) (Desired)
• Desirable knowledge on Parallel file systems, preferably Lustre file system (hands on experience is highly valued). Have a clear understanding about filesystem semantics and topologies. (Desired)
• Deep knowledge of networking concepts is required; NAS protocol levels (CIFS, NFS, SMB, etc...) and ability to integrate and troubleshoot at all layers of OSI model. Specifically understand the Network and Data link layers as well as Session and Application. (Desired)
• Concepts of High Performance Computing architecture (Design and Implementation) – general knowledge and ability to navigate through different aspects of HPC architectures including software stack (Desired)
• Understanding on how Job Scheduler works (hands-on experience is valued) (Desired)
• Understanding of Linux Containers and Linux Containers Orchestration (e.g: Kubernetes) – (Desired)
• Understanding of AI hardware architecture including solutions based on de-facto Industry standards (hands-on is valued) (Desired)
• Understanding of System automation and orchestration layers (e.g.: Puppet, Ansible and similar) (Desired)
• Strong knowledge and hands on experience with Virtualized environments (e.g.: Linux Hypervisor, VMware, etc) (Desired)
• BS or higher degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, Sciences

DDN Core Competencies:

DDN has a very strong orientation towards these four characteristics and any successful employee will demonstrate these capabilities: 

• Self-Starter - Takes independent action to identify and solve problems. Seeks out relevant information needed to make decisions. Gets involved with new initiatives. 
• Success/Achievement Orientation - Delivers quality results consistently. Targets, achieves (or exceeds) measurable results. Sets challenging goals, focuses on critical priorities, and is accountable. 
• Problem Solving - Recognizes problems and responds with a systematic assessment that identifies and addresses cause of issue. Practical, realistic, and resourceful. 
• Innovative - Builds and improves key business processes that enhance the effectiveness of DDN. Generates new ideas, challenges the status quo, and solves problems creatively.

DataDirect Networks, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender, sex stereotyping, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.