Senior database administrator Jobs in Portland, OR

Description:

Our not-so-secret sauce.

Award-winning, inclusive, Top Workplace culture doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a result of hard work by extraordinary people. The industry’s brightest talent drive our efforts to deliver purposeful work and meaningful impact every day. Learn more about what makes us different and how you can make your mark as a Database Administrator at MMA.

Marsh McLennan Agency (MMA) provides business insurance, employee health & benefits, retirement, and private client insurance solutions to organizations and individuals seeking limitless possibilities. With offices across North America, we combine the personalized service model of a local consultant with the global resources of the world’s leading professional services firm, Marsh (NYSE: MRSH).

A day in the life.

As a SQL Server Database Administrator at MMA, you will additionally need to possess strong Microsoft Azure experience. Your work will be vital to the success of the organization and will add value to our client's experience. You will be responsible to build, operate, secure, and continuously improve SQL Server database platforms supporting business-critical applications. Your role will be responsible for database reliability, performance, availability, backup/recovery, and security, with a strong focus on Azure-hosted SQL Server workloads and automation.

• Administer and support Microsoft SQL Server platforms across non-production and production environments.

• Provision, configure, and manage SQL Server on Azure (primarily Azure IaaS VMs) including storage layout, connectivity, and performance best practices.

• Implement and operate High Availability / Disaster Recovery solutions (e.g., Always On Availability Groups , Windows Server Failover Clustering, multi-region DR patterns as applicable).

• Own backup, restore, and recovery strategy and execution (full/diff/log), including validation restores and meeting defined RTO/RPO objectives.

• Perform performance monitoring and tuning : index and statistics maintenance, wait analysis, query tuning, execution plan review, tempdb configuration, and capacity planning.

• Implement database security controls : least-privilege access, role-based permissions, encryption (e.g., TDE ), auditing, and secure credential/secrets management.

• Apply and coordinate patching and upgrades for SQL Server and underlying Windows OS; plan and execute version upgrades and migrations with minimal downtime.

• Support application releases by coordinating database changes, ensuring deployment readiness, and assisting with troubleshooting and incident response.

• Build and maintain automation for operational tasks using PowerShell , T-SQL, and Azure-native capabilities (runbooks/automation as applicable).

• Establish and maintain operational documentation (runbooks, SOPs, HA/DR procedures, monitoring standards, architecture diagrams).

• Participate in on-call/production support rotations; conduct root-cause analysis and drive permanent corrective actions.

• Collaborate with engineering, infrastructure, network, and security teams to deliver resilient and compliant database services.

Our future colleague.

We’d love to meet you if your professional track record includes these skills:

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science / Engineering (or equivalent practical experience).

• 5+ years of hands-on experience administering Microsoft SQL Server in an enterprise environment.

• Strong expertise in T-SQL and SQL Server internals (indexing, statistics, query plans, locking/blocking, waits).

• Demonstrated experience implementing and operating Always On Availability Groups and backup/recovery in production.

• Hands-on experience running SQL Server on Azure (IaaS VMs) , including:

• Availability patterns (Availability Sets/Zones) and DR planning

• Experience with monitoring and troubleshooting using tools such as SQL Server DMVs , Extended Events, and/or monitoring platforms.

• Strong operational discipline (change management, incident management, documentation, and stakeholder communication).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Azure SQL Managed Instance and/or Azure SQL Database , including migration considerations.

• Experience with Azure Monitor/Log Analytics, dashboards, alert tuning, and SLO/SLA reporting.

• Experience with database DevOps practices (schema/version control, automated deployments, CI/CD integration).

• Scripting and automation depth (PowerShell modules, desired state concepts, repeatable builds).

• Microsoft certifications such as Azure Database Administrator Associate and/or SQL Server–related certifications.

• Familiarity with compliance/security standards (e.g., SOC, ISO 27001) and audit evidence collection.

Behavioral Competencies

• Ownership mindset and strong accountability for reliability, data protection, and uptime.

• Calm, structured approach to diagnosing high-severity production issues.

• Strong collaboration skills across application, infrastructure, and security teams.

We know there are excellent candidates who might not check all of these boxes. Don’t be shy. If you’re close, we’d be very interested in meeting you.

Valuable benefits.

We value and respect the impact our colleagues make every day both inside and outside our organization. We’ve built a culture that promotes colleague well-being through robust benefit programs and resources, encourages professional and personal development, and celebrates opportunities to pursue the projects and causes that give colleagues fulfilment outside of work.

Some benefits included in this role are:

• Generous time off, including personal and volunteering

• Tuition reimbursement and professional development opportunities

• Remote work

• Charitable contribution match programs

• Stock purchase opportunities