IT Network Engineer

HEARTLAND FARMS INC•Hancock, WI

7d•$85,000 - $100,000•Onsite

About The Position

The IT Network Engineer designs, builds, secures, and maintains the network infrastructure that connects Heartland Farms' offices, potato storage and processing facilities, equipment yards, and field operations. Farm networks differ from typical corporate IT: sites are geographically distributed and often rural, connectivity depends on a mix of fiber, fixed wireless, cellular, and satellite links, and the network increasingly carries not just business traffic but precision-agriculture data, GPS-guided equipment, yield and soil sensors, potato storage monitoring, drone telemetry, and irrigation controls. This role keeps that infrastructure reliable, secure, and ready to support both the business office and the field, especially during time-critical planting and harvest windows.

Requirements

Hands-on experience with enterprise networking platforms (e.g., Sonicwall, Cisco, Ubiquiti, Meraki, Fortinet, or similar) is required.
Solid understanding of TCP/IP, VLANs, VPNs, DNS/DHCP, and wireless networking standards.
Ability to travel between farm sites and facilities, including some driving in rural/field conditions; valid driver's license required.
Strong troubleshooting skills and ability to work
Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent hands-on experience.
3+ years of experience in network administration or engineering, including routing, switching, and firewall management.

Nice To Haves

Industry certification such as CCNA, CCNP, Network+, or Security+.
Experience with rural or remote connectivity solutions (fixed wireless, satellite, cellular failover).
Familiarity with precision agriculture technology, IoT devices, or operational technology (OT) / SCADA-style networks.
Experience supporting hybrid cloud environments (e.g., Microsoft Azure, AWS).
Prior experience in agriculture, food production, or another geographically distributed industry.

Responsibilities

Network Infrastructure Design, deploy, and maintain LAN/WAN infrastructure connecting the corporate office, satellite locations, and farm sites.
Configure and manage routers, switches, firewalls, and wireless access points across all company locations.
Assist with configuration and troubleshoot networking of printing and scanning systems as needed.
Evaluate and manage connectivity options for rural and remote sites, including fiber, fixed wireless, cellular failover, and satellite, for balancing cost, reliability, and bandwidth.
Maintain site-to-site VPNs and secure remote access for staff and field personnel.
Support hybrid cloud connectivity, including site-to-cloud links for business applications and data backup.
Precision Agriculture & Field Technology Support networking for connected farm equipment and precision-ag systems, possibly including GPS guidance, yield monitors, and telemetry from tractors, combines, and sprayers as needed.
Maintain connectivity for IoT sensors in field areas, potato storages, processing facilities, and irrigation systems.
Coordinate with agronomy and operations staff to plan network coverage for new equipment, sensors, or field technology rollouts.
Coordinate with shipping department to plan, develop, install and maintain shipping data and SCADA networks as needed.
Segment operational technology (OT) traffic from business IT systems to limit risk from field devices.
Security & Compliance Implement and maintain firewall rules, network segmentation, and access controls to protect business systems and farm operations data.
Monitor for network intrusions, unusual traffic, and vulnerabilities; respond to and document security incidents.
Assist in the creation and regular updates of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
Maintain network documentation, disaster recovery procedures, and business continuity plans for connectivity outages.
Support compliance requirements tied to financial systems, crop insurance data, and vendor/partner data-sharing agreements.
Operations & Support Monitor network performance and availability; troubleshoot outages and degraded connectivity, with priority response during planting and harvest seasons.
Manage relationships with ISPs, telecom carriers, and network equipment vendors, as needed.
Take part in contract and SLA review.
Plan and execute network upgrades and expansions to support new sites, buildings, or acquisitions.
Provide on-call support as scheduled and during critical seasonal windows and escalated outages.
Maintain accurate network documentation, diagrams, IP addressing schemes, and asset inventories.
Support user activity and troubleshoot with other IT team members to provide the best possible user experience.