The Opportunity - Studio Systems Engineer

At ICHI, our creative output relies on a seamless, highly functional technical infrastructure. We are looking for a forward-thinking Studio Systems Engineer to provide strategic oversight for ICHI’s business technology and  IT needs, with a laser focus on project delivery and our creative production pipeline.

Working from either our London or Brighton offices, this isn’t just a standard tech support role, it is a specialist role. You will be the definitive bridge between our creative ambitions and our technical capabilities. You will be responsible for representing UK technical needs on a global scale, designing the infrastructure in alignment with global guidelines and collaboration with the central infra team to support our teams, and anticipating production bottlenecks before they happen. You will blend deep technical intuition with operational rigour to ensure our internal staff and external freelancers have the perfect foundation to do their best work.

You will have significant reach across the agency, shaping how we work from a technological standpoint. At ICHI, we value those who take ownership of the technical pipeline, bridging the gap between high-level IT strategy and on-the-ground creative production to build a best-in-class technical environment.

At ICHI (part of Keywords Studios), we know a diverse workforce only elevates the great work we do. As such, we are an equal opportunities employer and we take diversity and inclusion seriously.

Studio Systems Engineer - The Impact You’ll Make

• Strategic Infrastructure & Pipeline Optimisation: Create and implement the technical infrastructure with guidance from our central infra team to support ICHI UK project delivery. You won't just maintain systems; you will proactively identify bottlenecks in the creative production pipeline (such as file rendering, collaborative proofing, and asset management) and develop solutions to streamline workflows from brief to delivery.
• Global Alignment & Transformation: Work with Operations leadership to act as the voice for the UK team's specialist  technical needs, from a tooling and equipment level, at a global alignment level. You will help to coordinate seamlessly with North American operations teams to align global technical needs, ensuring NA creatives can easily access UK systems and projects.
• IT Collaboration & Strategy: Collaborate with the wider global IT team to manifest long-term infrastructure strategies, including server archival and remote-work hardware standards. You will assess creative needs and translate them into actionable IT requirements, like faster server connections or efficient permission alterations.
• Security & Asset Management: Help develop a multi-tiered approach to infosec compliance. You will ensure strict compliance with project requirements.  You will also hold strategic oversight and auditing responsibilities for production kits across our Brighton and Holborn sites.

By providing your information in this application, you understand that we will collect and process your information in accordance with our Applicant Privacy Notice. For more information, please see our Applicant Privacy Notice at https://www.keywordsstudios.com/en/applicant-privacy-notice.

Requirements

What You Bring to ICHI

• Technical Foresight: You are focused on technical future planning to actively support and evolve production workflows.
• Production Experience: Several years of experience in game development or digital agencies, with a proven track record of supporting complex production pipelines across gameplay capture, CG, and video editing workflows.. 
• Deep Tool Knowledge: You possess a strong understanding of production tools such as Parsec, Perforce, Unreal Engine, Maya, Blender, Davinci, Frame.IO, Adobe suite, and you know how to implement them into larger production systems.
• Engine & Code Familiarity: You have extensive experience working with proprietary engines like Snowdrop, and a basic understanding of coding to troubleshoot Visual Studio issues.
• You are comfortable installing and trouble shooting complex game engine builds, and creating supporting 
• The "Proactive" Mindset: You anticipate project needs, building/auditing kit and manage VLAN setups before they become blockers.

Technical & Professional Requirements

• Proven experience in complex project setups, including the physical preparation of machines, identifying required kit specs, and the installation of capture/cine builds and specific project software.
• Confidence in collaborating on comprehensive IT support with our central IT team, including submitting, triaging, and escalating IT tickets for the team.
• Experience efficiently onboarding and offboarding freelancers, managing user access/permissions in alignment with central IT, setting up test/dev kits, and handling server file storage.
• Ability to execute complex build appraisals, provide ongoing in-engine technical support, and liaise directly with client or developer tech teams.
• Demonstrated experience in leveraging AI and machine learning to build automations that measurably improve production pipeline efficiencies, specifically around creative workflows such as file rendering, collaborative proofing, and asset management would be a bonus.
• You are a confident communicator and a natural conduit between departments, comfortable dealing with internal teams needs on a day to day basis. 
• Ability to distill complex infrastructure requirements into clear, actionable insights, ensuring key stakeholders and decision-makers are empowered to make informed decisions. 

Benefits

• Flexible Working - hybrid home and office working, Working Abroad Policy and Summer Hours.
• Company Pension Scheme
• BUPA Private Healthcare
• Income Protection Cover
• Life Assurance
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Team Social Events
• Employee Schemes - Tech Scheme, Electric Car Scheme, Cycle Scheme
• Training

Role Information: EN

Studio: ICHI

Location: Europe, United Kingdom, London

Area of Work: Marketing

Service: Engage

Employment Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full Time, Hybrid