Systems Integration Senior Specialist

At NTT DATA, we know that with the right people on board, anything is possible. The quality, integrity, and commitment of our employees are key factors in our company's growth, market presence and our ability to help our clients stay a step ahead of the competition. By hiring the best people and helping them grow both professionally and personally, we ensure a bright future for NTT DATA and for the people who work here. NTT DATA, Inc. currently seeks a Ansible Automation Engineer to join our team in Chennai or Bangalore.

Ansible Automation Engineer

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Position Summary :

Key Responsibilities:

Automation Strategy & Architecture:

• Lead the design and architecture of complex, end-to-end automation solutions for VMware vSphere, vSAN, NSX-T, and other virtualization components using Ansible.
• Define and enforce Ansible best practices, coding standards, and architectural patterns for playbooks, roles, collections, and execution environments.
• Collaborate with enterprise architects and other domain experts to integrate Ansible automation into the broader IT ecosystem (e.g., ITSM, CMDB, monitoring, cloud platforms).
• Drive the strategic roadmap for VMware automation, identifying opportunities for optimization, efficiency gains, and new capabilities.

Advanced Automation Development:

• Develop sophisticated and idempotent Ansible playbooks and roles for advanced VMware operations, including Automated provisioning and de-provisioning of entire VMware clusters, ESXi hosts, and distributed switches.
• Complex VM lifecycle management, including automated scaling, disaster recovery (DR) orchestrations, and advanced network/storage configurations.
• Implementation of security hardening and compliance baselines across the VMware estate.
• Automated patching and upgrade orchestration for vCenter, ESXi, and other VMware products with minimal downtime.
• Create custom Ansible modules or plugins as needed to extend functionality and address unique environmental requirements.
• Utilize advanced Ansible features like lookup plugins, filters, workflows, and dynamic inventory scripts for highly flexible and adaptable automation.

Technical Leadership & Mentoring:

• Act as a technical lead and subject matter expert for Ansible and VMware automation, providing guidance and support to other engineers.
• Mentor and cross-train junior automation engineers, fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
• Conduct code reviews, provide constructive feedback, and ensure the quality and maintainability of automation solutions.

Troubleshooting & Optimization:

• Perform advanced troubleshooting and performance tuning of Ansible playbooks and the underlying VMware infrastructure to resolve complex issues.
• Implement monitoring and logging solutions to gain insights into automation execution and identify bottlenecks.

Essential Qualifications:

• 8+ years of progressive experience in IT automation, with at least 5 years focused on Ansible and a significant portion dedicated to VMware environments.
• Expert-level knowledge of VMware vSphere (ESXi, vCenter Server) administration, architecture, and advanced features (vSAN, NSX-T, SRM, vROps).
• Deep mastery of Ansible Automation Platform (formerly Ansible Tower/AWX), including advanced features like custom execution environments, collections, and integration with external systems.
• Extensive experience with Ansible VMware modules and a strong understanding of the vSphere API.
• Strong proficiency in Python for scripting, developing custom modules/plugins, and integrating with APIs.
• Expertise with Git for version control and collaborative development.
• Solid understanding of networking concepts (TCP/IP, routing, firewalls, load balancing, SDN) and storage technologies within virtualized environments.
• Familiarity with other IaC tools (e.g., Terraform) and their integration with Ansible.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and debugging skills for complex, distributed systems.
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.

Desirable Qualifications:

• Relevant industry certifications (e.g., Red Hat Certified Specialist in Ansible Automation, VCP-DCV, VCAP-DCV Deploy/Design).
• Experience with other cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) or container orchestration technologies (Kubernetes).
• Knowledge of configuration management databases (CMDB) and ITSM integration strategies.
• Background in security automation and compliance within virtualized environments.
• Installation and configuration of controller, hub, eda and gateway on ilab cluster for ISRP certification.