Senior IT Systems Engineer

Employer description

K2 is building the largest and highest-power satellites ever flown, unlocking performance levels previously out of reach across every orbit. Backed by over $1 billion in total funding from leading investors including Altimeter Capital, ICONIQ, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, and T. Rowe Price — and with over $1 billion in signed contracts across commercial and US government customers, we're mass-producing the highest-power satellite platforms ever built for missions from LEO to deep space.

The rise of heavy-lift launch vehicles is shifting the industry from an era of mass constraint to one of mass abundance, and we believe this new era demands a fundamentally different class of spacecraft. Engineered to survive the harshest radiation environments and to fully capitalize on today's and tomorrow's massive rockets, K2 satellites deliver unmatched capability at constellation scale and across multiple orbits.

With multiple launches in 2027 and plans to scale to 100 satellites a year, we're Building Bigger — helping develop the solar system and build toward a Kardashev Type II (K2) civilization. If you are a motivated individual who thrives in a fast-paced environment and you're excited about contributing to the success of a high-growth Series D-funded company, we'd love for you to apply.

Step into the backbone of our organization — where your decisions keep the lights on, the data flowing, and the business moving. As our Senior IT Systems Engineer, you're not just maintaining infrastructure; you're the architect of an environment that hundreds of people depend on every single day. You'll own mission-critical systems, drive complex projects from whiteboard to production, and set the technical direction for how we scale. Every server you harden, every cloud migration you lead, and every automation script you ship makes the entire organization faster, safer, and more resilient. This is a high-trust, high-impact role for someone who thrives on solving hard problems, raising the bar for the team around them, and building infrastructure that just works — even when everything else is on fire. 

Responsibilities 

• Architect, deploy, and administer enterprise systems including Windows Server, Linux, Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and virtualization platforms (VMware / Hyper-V) 

• Design and maintain hybrid cloud infrastructure across on-premises and cloud environments (AWS, Azure, or GCP) 

• Lead infrastructure projects from planning through deployment, including migrations, upgrades, and new system rollouts 

• Monitor system performance and availability; proactively identify and resolve bottlenecks and points of failure 

• Develop and enforce IT policies, standards, and best practices across systems and security domains 

• Manage backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity solutions; conduct regular testing and documentation 

• Collaborate with the security team to harden systems, apply patches, and maintain compliance with frameworks such as NIST 800-171, or CMMC 

• Evaluate and onboard new technologies and vendors; provide technical recommendations to leadership 

• Serve as a senior escalation point for Tier 3 support issues across infrastructure and systems 

• Mentor junior and mid-level IT staff; conduct knowledge sharing and contribute to team documentation 

Qualifications 

• 7+ years of experience in IT systems engineering or infrastructure roles 

• Deep expertise in Windows Server (2016/2019/2022) and Linux (RHEL, Ubuntu, or CentOS) administration 

• Strong experience with virtualization technologies (VMware vSphere, Hyper-V) 

• Hands-on experience with at least one major cloud platform (AWS, Azure, or GCP) 

• Proficiency in scripting and automation using PowerShell, Bash, Python, or similar 

• Solid understanding of networking fundamentals: TCP/IP, VLANs, BGP/OSPF, firewalls, and load balancers 

• Experience with identity and access management (Active Directory, Azure AD, LDAP, SSO/MFA) 

• Familiarity with ITSM tools (Jira Service Management) and ITIL practices 

• Strong documentation habits and ability to communicate technical concepts clearly to non-technical stakeholders 

Nice to Have 

• Experience with Powershell, Python or Bash  

• Experience with Identity & Access management principles  

• Experience with IaC tools like Terraform, opentofu or ansible  

• Fluency with Linux systems 

• Exp...