Storage Migration Subject Matter Expert (SME)

Job Title: Storage Migration Subject Matter Expert (SME) - Pure Storage

Job Type: Contract

Day Rate: £550-600 per day (inside IR35)
Duration: 6 months + Possible extension

Work Location: London, United Kingdom [twice a week at the client's office]

Role Overview

The Storage Migration SME will lead and deliver complex enterprise data migration initiatives from Legacy storage platforms to Pure Storage solutions. This role requires deep technical expertise across SAN, NAS, and object storage, alongside proven experience executing large-scale migrations with minimal downtime, zero data loss, and assured operational stability.

Acting as a trusted technical authority, the SME will define migration strategy, oversee execution, and provide assurance to stakeholders throughout the migration life cycle.

Key Responsibilities

Migration Strategy & Planning

• Define and lead end-to-end migration strategies for:
• Block (SAN)
• File (NAS)
• Object storage
• Develop comprehensive migration runbooks, schedules, and cutover plans
• Identify risks, dependencies, and mitigation strategies
• Align migration approach with business, operational, and service objectives
• Support decision-making on tooling, sequencing, and migration patterns

Technical Execution

• Execute migrations using Pure Storage-approved tools, including:
• Cirrus Data Solutions appliances
• VPLEX (where applicable)
• VMware Storage vMotion for virtualised environments
• Manage NAS namespace consistency and ownership during migrations
• Execute and validate backup migrations using Commvault or similar platforms
• Ensure:
• Data integrity
• Performance validation
• Post-migration stability and optimisation

Governance & Documentation

• Maintain detailed technical documentation, including:
• Architecture and data flow diagrams
• Migration runbooks
• Operational and support procedures
• Ensure audit-ready and repeatable migration processes
• Provide structured knowledge transfer and operational handover to internal teams

Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the Pure Storage migration SME, providing expert advice and best practice
• Engage effectively with:
• Infrastructure, platform, and application teams
• Service management and operations
• Non-technical and senior stakeholders
• Communicate migration progress, risks, and outcomes clearly and confidently

Required Skills & Experience

Technical Expertise

• Proven hands-on experience with:
• Pure Storage FlashArray and Evergreen solutions
• Enterprise SAN and NAS migrations
• VMware virtualised environments
• Storage replication and migration technologies
• Strong understanding of:
• NFS, SMB/CIFS protocols
• File permissions and access control
• Authentication and identity mechanisms in enterprise environments

Certifications & Frameworks

• Pure Certified Migration Specialist or equivalent (highly desirable)
• Working knowledge of ITIL and/or COBIT

Professional Skills

• Excellent analytical and troubleshooting capabilities
• Strong documentation and technical writing skills
• Confident communicator with strong stakeholder management ability
• Ability to operate under pressure and deliver to tight timelines

Experience

• 8+ years experience in:
• Storage architecture
• Data migration
• Enterprise infrastructure consulting
• Demonstrated success delivering large-scale, business-critical migration programmes

Desirable Experience

• Experience with Cirrus Data Solutions or similar specialised migration tools
• Exposure to cloud and hybrid storage architectures
• Experience operating in large enterprise or regulated environments