System Engineer – Splunk and Linux Operations | ThoughtLabs Belgium | Brussels

Position Summary:

ThoughtLabs Belgium is actively seeking an experienced, high-caliber, and technical System Engineer specializing in Splunk and Linux operations with 4+ years of professional IT operations experience and 2+ years of production Splunk administration to join our European framework project team on a full-time permanent remote basis in Brussels (Schaarbeek), Belgium. In this critical infrastructure operations and log analytics role, you will be responsible for managing containerized, virtualized, and physical Linux environments, administering enterprise Splunk production clusters, and driving robust CI/CD deployment pipelines. You will leverage your deep specialist expertise in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), Ansible automation, Git workflows, and container orchestration (Podman/OCI) to deliver uncompromised system reliability, high observability, and operational excellence. This opportunity offers competitive compensation, executive technical visibility, and exceptional career growth prospects within a premier global IT staffing and European framework consulting enterprise.

Detailed Job Description:

As a System Engineer specializing in Splunk and Linux Operations supporting ThoughtLabs Belgium for European Institution projects in Brussels (Schaarbeek), you will take full operational, tactical, and technical ownership of enterprise Linux administration, Splunk cluster management, configuration automation, and deployment pipeline optimization across mission-critical systems. Your day-to-day responsibilities include designing, deploying, hardening, and maintaining enterprise Linux operating systems across containerized, virtualized, and physical infrastructures, administering production Splunk environments, indexers, search heads, and forwarders to ensure uncompromised log observability and threat detection, authoring robust automation playbooks utilizing Ansible, managing source code version control through Git workflows, and orchestrating automated CI/CD deployment pipelines, utilizing containerization technologies including Podman and OCI containers for scalable workload deployment, collaborating closely with cross-functional European institution stakeholders, development squads, and security teams, preparing comprehensive technical documentation of system configurations, operational runbooks, and incident response procedures, and managing application requirements by sending your updated CV via direct email to Anna Topno at topno.anna@thoughtlabs.be. You will utilize your proactive troubleshooting and analytical problem-solving skills to resolve complex infrastructure and log processing anomalies under strict service level agreements. Furthermore, you will manage application requirements ensuring strict compliance with EU citizenship eligibility and mandatory fluency in Dutch or French alongside English.

Key Responsibilities:

• Administer, configure, harden, and maintain enterprise Linux operating systems across physical, virtualized, and containerized architectures.
• Manage production Splunk administration, indexer clusters, data ingestion pipelines, and search optimization.
• Author, test, and maintain robust infrastructure automation playbooks utilizing Ansible.
• Manage source code version control workflows via Git and orchestrate automated CI/CD deployment pipelines.
• Build, deploy, and manage containerized workloads utilizing Podman and Open Container Initiative (OCI) standards.
• Monitor system performance, investigate infrastructure anomalies, and execute proactive system maintenance.
• Collaborate seamlessly with cross-functional European institution project teams, developers, and security squads.
• Maintain accurate, comprehensive technical documentation of system topologies, deployment scripts, and runbooks.

Required Qualifications & Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Systems Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 4+ years of progressive professional experience in enterprise Linux IT operations (containerized, virtualized, and physical).
• Minimum of 2+ years of hands-on professional experience in production-grade Splunk administration and monitoring.
• Strong, demonstrable hands-on professional expertise in Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), Ansible configuration management, and Git workflows.
• Comprehensive working knowledge and practical proficiency in CI/CD pipeline automation and containerization technologies (Podman/OCI).
• Deep practical experience in system troubleshooting, log analysis, performance tuning, and security hardening.
• Exceptional analytical, troubleshooting, debugging, and problem-solving capabilities under high-pressure conditions.
• Mandatory EU citizenship eligibility and fluent professional proficiency in Dutch or French, alo