SQL Server DBA / Azure SQL Specialist - Dubai

Job Summary Seeking experienced SQL Server professionals (2-12 years) with strong expertise in on-prem SQL Server and Azure SQL for design, administration, performance, HA/DR, migration, and optimization of mission-critical databases. Key Responsibilities

Install, configure, upgrade, patch, and maintain SQL Server 2016-2022 instances. Design and implement high availability/disaster recovery: Always On Availability Groups, Failover Cluster Instances, Log Shipping, Database Mirroring, and Azure Site Recovery. Perform advanced performance tuning: query optimization, indexing strategies, statistics, execution plans, DMVs, Extended Events, and Query Store. Manage database backups, restores, point-in-time recovery, and automated backup strategies. Monitor and troubleshoot database performance using SQL Server Profiler, Performance Monitor, Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, and Dynamic Management Views. Implement security: Transparent Data Encryption, Always Encrypted, Row-Level Security, auditing, Azure AD authentication, and RBAC. Provision, scale, and manage Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, Elastic Pools, Hyperscale, and Azure SQL Edge. Execute seamless database migrations to Azure using Database Migration Assistant (DMA), Azure Database Migration Service (DMS), and Azure Data Factory. Set up geo-replication, active geo-replication, failover groups, and private endpoints in Azure. Automate routine tasks with T-SQL, PowerShell, Azure Automation Runbooks, ARM/Bicep templates, and Azure DevOps pipelines. Collaborate with development teams on database design, schema changes, ETL/ELT processes, and application performance. Ensure compliance with data governance, GDPR, PCI-DSS, and regulatory audit requirements. Handle capacity planning, partitioning, compression, and indexing for large-scale databases (TB+). Resolve complex production incidents with root-cause analysis and post-mortem reports. Support 24×7 on-call rotation for critical production environments.

Requirements

2-12 years of hands-on experience in SQL Server administration and Azure SQL. Excellent expertise in T-SQL development, stored procedures, functions, triggers, and complex query writing. Strong knowledge of Azure platform (Optional): Resource Groups, Virtual Networks, Key Vault, Private Link, Azure AD, and monitoring tools. Proven experience in database migration, replication, and cloud cost optimization. Ability to work independently and in team environments.

Preferred

Azure certifications: DP-300, AZ-305, AZ-104. Experience with SSIS, SSRS, SSAS, Power BI, or Azure Synapse. Knowledge of Linux-based SQL Server and containerized deployments (Docker/Kubernetes). Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field.