Postgres SME

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Postgres Subject Matter Expert (SME) to join our team in support of a federal client. The ideal candidate will have deep hands-on expertise in architecting, administering, and optimizing mission-critical Postgres databases in secure, regulated environments. The Postgres SME will be responsible for ensuring the performance, reliability, security, and scalability of Postgres platforms that underpin our enterprise applications and analytics.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain secure, high-performance Postgres database environments (on-premises and/or cloud) to support production, test, and development workloads.
• Plan and execute database architecture, schema design, indexing strategies, and partitioning to support high-availability, high-throughput transactional and analytical solutions.
• Monitor, troubleshoot, and resolve database performance, capacity, and reliability issues using Postgres-native tools and enterprise monitoring platforms.
• Implement and maintain robust backup, recovery, and disaster recovery strategies, including point-in-time recovery, replication, and failover solutions.
• Configure and enforce database security controls, including role-based access, encryption, auditing, and compliance with applicable federal security requirements.
• Develop, review, and optimize complex SQL and PL/pgSQL queries, functions, and stored procedures to improve application performance and stability.
• Collaborate closely with application developers, data engineers, infrastructure, and security teams to design and implement database solutions that align with system, data, and integration architectures.
• Support data migration and modernization efforts, including schema refactoring, data conversion, and upgrades across Postgres versions and platforms.
• Establish and maintain database standards, best practices, runbooks, and documentation for configuration, operations, and change management.
• Stay current with Postgres ecosystem advancements (extensions, tooling, cloud offerings) and recommend enhancements to improve performance, resilience, and automation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Proven experience as a Postgres database administrator or Postgres SME supporting complex, enterprise-scale environments.
• Advanced knowledge of Postgres administration, including installation, configuration, performance tuning, replication, high availability, and monitoring.
• Demonstrated proficiency in SQL and PL/pgSQL, including performance tuning of complex queries and stored procedures.
• Experience operating Postgres in secure environments, including implementation of database security controls, auditing, and compliance with federal or highly regulated standards.
• Hands-on experience with database backup and recovery strategies, including point-in-time recovery and disaster recovery planning and testing.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to diagnose and resolve complex database and performance issues.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills with the ability to partner effectively with cross-functional technical and business stakeholders.
• U.S. Citizen.
• Active Secret Clearance required (or the ability to transfer an active Secret Clearance).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting Postgres databases for enterprise applications, data warehouses, or analytics platforms in federal or defense environments.
• Familiarity with cloud-hosted Postgres services (e.g., AWS RDS for PostgreSQL, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, or similar) and hybrid on-prem/cloud architectures.
• Experience integrating Postgres with CI/CD pipelines, DevOps practices, and infrastructure-as-code tools.
• Knowledge of related data technologies and ecosystems such as ETL/ELT tools, reporting and analytics platforms, and message queues.
• Experience with monitoring and observability tools for databases (e.g., pg_stat_statements, pgBadger, Prometheus/Grafana, or equivalent enterprise tools).
• Relevant certifications such as PostgreSQL Certified Professional, cloud database certifications, or related database administration certifications.
• Experience working within ITIL, CMMI, or other structured process frameworks in a federal contracting environment.

Job-Specific Skills

• Advanced Postgres database administration and performance tuning in enterprise environments.
• Design and implementation of high availability, replication, and disaster recovery solutions for Postgres.
• SQL and PL/pgSQL development, optimization, and code review for mission-critical applications.
• Implementation of database security, encryption, and auditing aligned to federal security requirements and best practices.
• Cross-functional collaboration with development, infrastructure, and security teams to deliver resilient, scalable Postgres solutions.

Compensation Ranges

Compensation ranges for ASM Research positions vary depending on multiple factors; including but not limited to, location, skill set, level of education, certifications, client requirements, contract-specific affordability, government clearance and investigation level, and years of experience. The compensation displayed for this role is a general guideline based on these factors and is unique to each role. Monetary compensation is one component of ASM's overall compensation and benefits package for employees.

EEO Requirements

It is the policy of ASM that an individual's race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation or national origin are not and will not be considered in any personnel or management decisions. We affirm our commitment to these fundamental policies.

All recruiting, hiring, training, and promoting for all job classifications is done without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, or age. All decisions on employment are made to abide by the principle of equal employment.

Physical Requirements

The physical requirements described in "Knowledge, Skills and Abilities" above are representative of those which must be met by an employee to successfully perform the primary functions of this job. (For example, "light office duties' or "lifting up to 50 pounds" or "some travel" required.) Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with qualifying disabilities, who are otherwise qualified, to perform the primary functions.

Disclaimer

The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job.