AHEAD builds platforms for digital business. By combining advances in cloud infrastructure, automation, analytics, and software delivery, we help enterprises realize the promise of digital transformation.

At AHEAD, we foster a culture of belonging where all perspectives and voices are represented, valued, respected, and heard. We create opportunities for everyone to speak up, drive change, and strengthen our culture.

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on an individual’s race, national origin, color, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, marital status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law, whether actual or perceived.

We welcome all candidates who will contribute to the diversity and enrichment of ideas and perspectives at AHEAD.

The NetApp Intelligent Support SME is responsible for providing delivery and vendor-alternative support across NetApp storage platforms (AFF, FAS, E-Series, All SAN Array, ONTAP/ONTAP Select, StorageGRID). The role includes deep troubleshooting expertise, proactive risk management using tools such as Active IQ, and end-to-end coordination of hardware RMAs to maintain high availability and performance in customer environments.

Key Responsibilities:
– Incident & Problem Management:
– Provide expert-level support for NetApp storage environments, including performance, capacity, data protection, and interoperability issues.
– Own NetApp incidents end-to-end, from triage through resolution, including clear customer communication.
– Serve as the escalation point for Sev 1/2 storage incidents to quickly restore service and protect critical business workloads.
– Perform root cause analysis for major storage incidents and implement corrective and preventive actions.

– Hardware & RMA Coordination:
– Lead and coordinate hardware replacement activities (RMAs, drive replacements, controllers, shelves) with NetApp and logistics partners.
– Manage the full RMA lifecycle, including identification, RMA creation, shipment tracking, onsite installation coordination, and post-replacement validation.
– Ensure accurate documentation of RMA activities, asset updates, and configuration changes in both customer and internal systems.

– Proactive Health, Capacity & Best Practice Reviews:
– Use NetApp tools (e.g., Active IQ) to identify risks, configuration deviations, and performance/capacity issues.
– Conduct periodic environment health and best-practice reviews and present findings and remediation plans to customers.
– Recommend and support configuration improvements, firmware/ONTAP upgrades, and data layout enhancements.

– Change & Upgrade Support:
– Plan and support NetApp-related change windows (e.g., ONTAP upgrades, shelf additions, hardware refreshes).
– Create and review change plans, rollback procedures, and validation checklists for storage updates.
– Ensure changes are implemented safely and documented thoroughly.

– Customer & Cross-Vendor Collaboration:
– Act as a trusted technical advisor to customers on NetApp and storage architecture decisions.
– Collaborate with networking, virtualization, and backup teams to resolve issues spanning multiple domains (e.g., VMware + NetApp, SAN fabrics, backup tools).
– Coordinate with NetApp support as needed while remaining AHEAD’s “single point of contact” for the customer.

– Documentation & Continuous Improvement:
– Develop and maintain runbooks, troubleshooting guides, and knowledge base articles for NetApp technologies.
– Identify opportunities to automate health checks, reporting, and common remediation tasks.
– Mentor and cross-train other engineers on NetApp storage technologies and best practices.

Required Skills & Experience:
– Technical Expertise (hands-on experience with):
– NetApp AFF and FAS platforms
– ONTAP/ONTAP Select (clustered architecture, SnapMirror/SnapVault, etc.)
– E-Series and/or All SAN Arrays (as applicable)
– Storage networking concepts (Fibre Channel, iSCSI, NFS, SMB)
– Performance tuning and capacity planning for storage environments
– Familiarity with Active IQ or similar analytics tools for storage health and risk analysis

– Experience:
– 8+ years in storage engineering/administration/support, ideally with a strong NetApp focus.
– Experience supporting mission-critical, 24×7 enterprise environments.
– Background in incident, problem, and change management (ITIL is desirable).

– Soft Skills:
– Clear, concise communication with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
– Ability to manage multiple incidents and projects at the same time.
– Strong sense of ownership and accountability for customer outcomes.

– Education & Certifications (Preferred):
– Relevant NetApp certifications, such as:
– NetApp Certified Data Administrator (NCDA)
– NetApp Certified Implementation Engineer (NCIE)
– Other storage/virtualization certifications (e.g., VMware, Cisco) are a plus.

Success Measures (Role-Level KPIs):
– Reduce the Sev 1 incident rate per NetApp array or environment.
– Meet or exceed target RMA cycle times (from initiation to fully validated replacement).
– Improve Active IQ risk remediation rates and reduce critical/high-risk findings over time.
– Improve storage environment health scores (capacity, performance, and configuration compliance).
– Maintain strong customer satisfaction (CSAT) for NetApp-related incidents and reviews.

Why AHEAD:
Through our daily work and internal groups such as Moving Women AHEAD and RISE AHEAD, we value and benefit from diversity in people, ideas, experience, and everything in between.

We drive growth by equipping our offices with top-tier technologies in a multi-million-dollar lab, encouraging cross-department training and development, and sponsoring certifications to support continuous learning.

India Employment Benefits include:
– Comprehensive health insurance coverage for employees, with options to extend coverage to dependents
– Paid time off and company holidays, plus additional leave benefits as per policy
– Flexible work arrangements to support work-life balance
– Learning and development opportunities for continuous growth and upskilling
– Employee wellness initiatives focused on physical and mental well-being
– Retirement and statutory benefits in line with India regulations
– An inclusive, people-first culture with strong emphasis on collaboration and ownership