Role : VMware Operations Lead

nLocation: Mumbai/ Navi Mumbai

nYears of experience: 9+

nROLE PURPOSE:

nLead the VMware virtualization and private-cloud operations function, ensuring availability, performance, capacity, security, compliance, lifecycle health and service continuity across Production, Disaster Recovery, UAT and other managed environments. The role combines hands-on technical depth with people leadership, operational governance and platform modernization.

Critical success profile: A hands-on leader who can independently diagnose complex cross-domain issues across compute, storage, networking, backup, operating systems and platform integrations, while guiding the team through restoration and permanent resolution.

nKEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

nVMware Platform Operations:

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- Own day-to-day operations of enterprise VMware environments comprising ESXi hosts, vCenter Server, clusters and virtual machines.
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- Ensure platform availability, reliability, performance, capacity, resiliency and compliance across Production, DR and non-production environments.
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- Lead installation, configuration, hardening, patching, upgrades, lifecycle management, technology refresh and decommissioning activities.
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- Perform proactive health checks, trend analysis, capacity reviews and performance optimization; translate findings into prioritized remediation plans.
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- Act as the senior technical escalation point for critical incidents and coordinate timely service restoration.
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nTroubleshooting & Problem Management :

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- Demonstrate strong hands-on troubleshooting across VMware compute, memory, storage, networking, guest operating systems, backup and hardware layers.
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- Use logs, metrics, events and dependency analysis to isolate root cause, validate hypotheses and implement sustainable fixes.
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- Lead major-incident technical bridges, root-cause analysis, corrective and preventive actions, and knowledge transfer.
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- Troubleshoot complex cross-domain issues without depending solely on OEM or vendor support.
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nVMware Cloud Foundation (VCF):

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- Operate and support VMware Cloud Foundation, including SDDC Manager, vSphere, vCenter, NSX, vSAN and relevant VMware Aria components.
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- Manage VCF workload domains, platform health, certificate/password lifecycle, patching, upgrades and configuration compliance.
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- Contribute to private-cloud standardization, modernization and operational-readiness initiatives.
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nVirtualization Networking:

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- Operate and troubleshoot vSphere Distributed Switches (vDS), port groups, uplinks, teaming, VLANs and virtual network policies.
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- Apply working knowledge of NSX concepts including segments, gateways, routing, distributed firewall, micro-segmentation, overlay/underlay networking and service connectivity.
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- Understand and support NSX VPC concepts, tenant isolation and policy-driven networking where deployed.
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- Coordinate with network and security teams for end-to-end connectivity, firewall and performance troubleshooting.
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nAutomation & Platform Engineering:

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- Identify repetitive operational activities and convert them into controlled, reusable automation.
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- Use or guide automation through PowerCLI, PowerShell, Python, REST APIs, VMware Aria Automation, Aria Orchestrator and relevant Infrastructure-as-Code practices.
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- Promote automated provisioning, Day-2 operations, compliance validation, reporting and evidence generation.
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- Apply version control, peer review, testing, rollback and documentation practices to production automation.
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nStorage, Backup & Disaster Recovery:

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- Work with storage teams on SAN, NAS, vSAN, datastore performance, multipathing, capacity and storage-policy issues.
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- Operate or support integration with enterprise VM backup and recovery tool like Veeam or equivale
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- Participate in recovery validation, DR drills, runbook maintenance and closure of identified gaps.
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nTeam Leadership & Service Management:

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- Lead, mentor and develop VMware administrators and engineers; allocate work and strengthen technical depth within the team.
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- Govern Incident, Problem, Change, Request, Capacity, Availability and Configuration Management processes in line with defined SLAs/OLAs.
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- Coordinate with application, network, security, storage, database, backup, monitoring, hardware and project teams.
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- Manage OEM/vendor escalations and ensure clear ownership, evidence, follow-up and closure.
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nDocumentation, Risk & Compliance:

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- Create, review and maintain SOPs, runbooks, support matrices, architecture diagrams, build standards, troubleshooting guides and knowledge articles.
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- Ensure changes, approvals, technical evidence and operational records remain traceable and audit-ready.
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- Support security hardening, vulnerability remediation, access review, audit requests and policy compliance.
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- Identify platform risks, lifecycle constraints, capacity concerns and single points of failure; drive treatment plans to closure.
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nMANDATORY QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE:

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- 10+ years of hands-on experience working in VMware-based enterprise virtualization environments.
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- Minimum 4 years of experience managing or technically leading a VMware administration/operations team.
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- Strong and demonstrable knowledge of VMware vSphere fundamentals, including ESXi, vCenter, HA, DRS, vMotion, Storage vMotion, resource management, permissions and lifecycle operations.
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- Practical experience in large VMware environments across multiple deployment models and criticality tiers.
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- End-to-end managed-environment lifecycle experience covering installation, configuration, hardening, monitoring, support, troubleshooting, upgrades and decommissioning.
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- Hands-on working knowledge of vSphere networking, vDS and NSX; understanding of NSX VPC concepts is required or expected to be developed quickly.
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- Working experience with VMware Cloud Foundation and understanding of SDDC Manager and core VCF components. VMware Operations LeadThis is a Confidential document. VMware Operations Lead.
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- Practical knowledge of x86 rack/blade server hardware and associated firmware, BIOS, management-controller and hardware diagnostic concepts.
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- Basic knowledge of enterprise storage, Windows and Linux operating systems.
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- Good understanding of IT service delivery, Incidents, Problems, Changes, Requests and SLAs.
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- Ability to communicate clearly with technical teams, management, vendors and business stakeholders.
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nCORE TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES:

nWorking knowledge:

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- Server Hardware - x86 blade/rack servers, firmware, diagnostics and vendor coordination
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- OS Platforms - Windows and Linux administration and troubleshooting fundamentals
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- Backup & Recovery - VM backup integration, recovery validation and failure troubleshooting
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nAdvanced / hands-on:

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- VMware vSphere - Fundamentals, administration, performance, lifecycle and troubleshooting
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- Troubleshooting - Cross-domain fault isolation, root cause analysis and resolution leadership
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nStrong working knowledge/ Robust aptitude:

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- VCF / SDDC Manager - Workload domains, lifecycle, health and component integration
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- vDS , NSX / NSX VPC - Virtual networking, segmentation, routing, firewall and tenant isolation concepts
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- VMware Aria Suite - Operations, Automation, Orchestrator and Logs / log analytics
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- Automation - PowerCLI, scripting, APIs, orchestration and controlled automation practices
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nPREFERRED / ADDED ADVANTAGE:

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- Understanding of Kubernetes fundamentals; exposure to VMware Kubernetes Service (VKS), Tanzu or another enterprise container platform is preferred.
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- Experience with Infrastructure as Code, configuration management or automation frameworks such as Terraform and Ansible.
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- Exposure to hybrid-cloud, private-cloud operating models, DevOps practices and CI/CD concepts.
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- Experience with HCX, SRM or equivalent migration and disaster-recovery technologies.
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- Experience in BFSI, financial services or another highly regulated enterprise environment.
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- Relevant VMware certifications such as VCP-DCV, VCP-VCF, VCAP or NSX certification.
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nLEADERSHIP & BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES:

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- Provides calm, structured and accountable leadership during critical incidents.
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- Balances operational stability with modernization and automation objectives.
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- Challenges assumptions through evidence and communicates risk in business-relevant language.
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- Develops team capability through coaching, delegation, reviews and knowledge sharing.
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- Collaborates effectively across infrastructure, application, security, audit and vendor teams.
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- Demonstrates ownership, integrity, customer focus and disciplined follow-through.
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📌 VMware Operations Lead (Mumbai)
🏢 Kotak Mahindra Bank
📍 Mumbai