Principal Database Administrator - Cassandra, Postgres SQL

Working at Abbott

At Abbott, you can do work that matters, grow, and learn, care for yourself and family, be your true self and live a full life. You’ll also have access to:

• Career development with an international company where you can grow the career you dream of.
• Free medical coverage for employees* via the Health Investment Plan (HIP) PPO
• An excellent retirement savings plan with high employer contribution
• Tuition reimbursement, the Freedom 2 Save student debt program and FreeU education benefit - an affordable and convenient path to getting a bachelor’s degree.
• A company recognized as a great place to work in dozens of countries around the world and named one of the most admired companies in the world by Fortune.
• A company that is recognized as one of the best big companies to work for as well as a best place to work for diversity, working mothers, female executives, and scientists.

This role requires a proactive individual who can troubleshoot issues, implement best practices, and collaborate with development and operations teams to support business-critical applications.

What you'll work on:

• Database Management
• Install, configure, and maintain Apache Cassandra clusters.
• Monitor database performance, troubleshoot issues, and optimize queries for efficiency.
• Perform regular backups, recovery, and disaster recovery planning.
• Manage database security, including access control, encryption, and auditing.
• Performance Tuning
• Optimize Cassandra configurations for high availability and scalability.
• Monitor and tune database performance, including read/write operations, compaction, and garbage collection.
• Identify and resolve bottlenecks in the database environment.
• Cluster Maintenance
• Plan and execute Cassandra cluster upgrades and patches.
• Manage node additions, removals, and replacements in the cluster.
• Ensure data replication and consistency across nodes.
• Monitoring and Alerting
• Implement and maintain monitoring tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, Datadog) to track database health and performance.
• Set up alerts for critical issues such as node failures, disk space, and latency spikes.
• Collaboration and Support
• Work closely with development teams to design and implement efficient database schemas and queries.
• Provide 24/7 support for production databases and resolve issues promptly.
• Collaborate with DevOps and infrastructure teams to ensure seamless integration of Cassandra with other systems.
• Documentation and Best Practices
• Document database configurations, processes, and procedures.
• Establish and enforce best practices for database administration and usage.
• Train and mentor junior team members on Cassandra administration.
• Capacity Planning
• Analyze database growth trends and plan for capacity scaling.
• Recommend hardware and infrastructure improvements to support database needs.

• Education:
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• Experience
• 10+ years of experience as a Database Administrator
• At least 5 years of experience with a focus on Apache Cassandra
• Hands-on experience with Cassandra cluster management, performance tuning, and troubleshooting.
• Familiarity with distributed database systems and NoSQL concepts.
• Proficiency in Cassandra Query Language (CQL).
• Experience with Linux/Unix environments and shell scripting.
• Knowledge of monitoring tools like Prometheus, Grafana, or Kibana.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP) and containerization (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes).
• Understanding of networking, storage, and security concepts.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.

• Certification in Apache Cassandra or related technologies.
• Experience with other NoSQL databases (e.g., MongoDB, DynamoDB).
• Knowledge of DevOps practices and tools (e.g., Terraform).
• Experience with data modeling and schema design for Cassandra.
• Experience with Druid and spark
• Experience with MySQL database.

• Participants who complete a short wellness assessment qualify for FREE coverage in our HIP PPO medical plan. Free coverage applies in the next calendar year.

Learn more about our health and wellness benefits, which provide the security to help you and your family live full lives: www.abbottbenefits.com

Follow your career aspirations to Abbott for diverse opportunities with a company that can help you build your future and live your best life. Abbott is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to employee diversity.

Connect with us at www.abbott.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and on Twitter @AbbottNews

The base pay for this position is $146,700.00 – $293,300.00. In specific locations, the pay range may vary from the range posted.