Senior Database Administrator
Job description
About the role
The role ensures Oracle-to-PostgreSQL migrations ship reliably by owning production judgment where automation cannot act. You safeguard application and database modernization outcomes during live cutover and stabilization.
Every role in this field shares a few habits: clear communication, structured thinking, and steady follow through. Teams hold regular meetings, review progress, and adjust plans. Success usually depends on how well you work with others, not just how hard you try. Successful professionals in any field share a few habits: they take notes, keep commitments, and communicate in writing. Teams value people who make their work easy to review and build on.
Key facts
What you'll do
Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL cluster design is shaped by migration requirements and cutover commitments.
Database Migration Service replication performance is monitored to keep go-live latency within acceptable bounds.
Autovacuum behavior is tuned so that PostgreSQL workload performance remains consistent after migration.
Privilege mappings are validated through testing to confirm that access controls function as intended.
Incident ownership is accepted for production issues at 2 a.m. so that business impact is contained quickly.
Production judgment is applied on architecture and cutover when agent-based automation reaches its limits.
Replication lag is diagnosed and resolved to protect user-facing application behavior.
Post-cutover workload misbehavior is investigated to restore expected performance and stability.
Incidents that escalate past L2 are resolved and their root causes are explained to stakeholders.
The Application & Database Modernization pillar supports migration outcomes that move legacy systems to production services.
Requirements
Experience with Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL and related AWS database services is required.
Hands-on Oracle-to-PostgreSQL migration experience is required to understand conversion and synchronization risks.
Fluency in performance tuning for PostgreSQL and DMS replication is required to address go-live risks.
Ability to own incidents at 2 a.m. and serve as L3 escalation on production systems is required.
Practical notes
Typical interview steps
Hiring processes usually combine a screening conversation with one or more interview rounds. Candidates can expect questions about their experience, a scenario or case, and a chance to ask their own questions. Preparation and specific examples from past work carry the most weight. Whatever the role, preparation is visible. Reviewing the company's product, the job description, and your own past work before the conversation is the strongest step.
Good to know
Database administration in cloud environments centers on automation, performance tuning, and clear ownership when issues escalate.
Platforms such as Amazon Aurora and tools like Database Migration Service change how teams manage risk during migration.
Role-specific judgment matters where automated validation and agent workflows cannot cover business and technical uncertainty.
Questions to ask
Worth asking in any interview: how the team measures success, who the role works with daily, what the onboarding looks like, and what the company is trying to achieve this year. Asking what past hires did well is a strong final question. Keep the list short and pick the questions that matter most to you.
Career growth
Careers in this field grow through a mix of experience, responsibility, and demonstrated results. Early years build skills; later years build ownership. Many professionals switch focus areas or companies to keep growing. Growth in any career comes from scope, results, and reputation. Take on work that is slightly uncomfortable, and make sure others can see the outcomes.
About the company
Mactores is the agent-native AWS modernization firm. We ship AWS modernization to production in weeks, data platforms migrated, legacy applications and databases refactored, AI agents running against real data, for mid-market and lower-enterprise companies in financial services, healthcare and life sciences, internet and software, manufacturing, and TMEGS.