Network Administrator I

Dairy Farmers of America•Olathe, KS

About The Position

The Network Administrator I performs network operations support and analysis to keep DFA’s plant, office, and data center networks available, performant, and secure across more than 200 sites. The role responds to monitoring alerts and user-reported issues across wired, wireless, WAN, voice, security, and plant-floor (OT) networks; troubleshoots routine problems; executes approved changes; coordinates field vendors; and escalates issues to senior administrators and Network Engineering with clear evidence. The position maintains accurate tickets, documentation, and asset records, works independently within established runbooks and change processes, and receives general guidance on new work. The role supports network monitoring and incident response, Cisco switching and wireless, SD-WAN, firewalls, network access control, DNS/DHCP/IPAM, telecom services, out-of-band access, and a range of plant and specialty endpoints. It also involves documenting OT network infrastructure on plant floors, supporting network expansions and segmentation, coordinating site work and vendors, and staging equipment for deployment. The administrator contributes to process, alerting, automation, and documentation improvements while following change controls, safety requirements, and established policies.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree in computer science, information technology, or a related curriculum, or an equivalent combination of experience and education.
1 to 3 years of experience in IT roles in a campus or enterprise environment, such as service desk, desktop support, systems, NOC, or network support.
Exposure to networking fundamentals, including TCP/IP, subnetting, VLANs, switching and routing basics, Wi-Fi, DNS, and DHCP.
Experience working in a ticketing system; ServiceNow is preferred.
Proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and Visio.
Ability to work individually with limited supervision and follow documented runbooks and change processes.
Ability to prioritize a high-volume queue and distinguish real outages from alert noise.
Ability to troubleshoot methodically through research, data interpretation, and analysis of logs and metrics.
Ability to use AI-assisted tools responsibly, verify their output against live systems, and review changes or ticket updates before application.
Understanding of change discipline, including the requirement for an approved change record before production changes unless a documented standing exception applies.
Understanding of IT/OT network separation and the reasons plant-floor systems are protected.
Ability to maintain accurate records, including site and location codes, device status, and ticket categorization.
Ability to write clear, professional ticket notes and updates for technical and non-technical audiences.
Effective verbal and written communication with plant staff, vendors, and IT peers.
Professionalism, integrity, and ethics, and ability to maintain confidentiality.
Ability to work safely in plant and industrial environments while following site safety, PPE, and food-safety (GMP) rules.
Ability to participate in an on-call rotation and travel to DFA sites.
Ability to read, write, and speak English.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on configuration and troubleshooting of Cisco Layer 2 and Layer 3 equipment, wireless LAN controllers, and access points.
Experience in an on-call or alert-driven operations environment using monitoring, logging, and network diagnostic tools.
Experience installing and testing network software and firmware, including upgrades, fixes, and patches.
Exposure to SD-WAN, firewalls, cloud web security (Zscaler), or network access control (Cisco ISE).
Exposure to Cisco voice systems, including CUCM, Unity Connection, and Webex Calling.
Exposure to DNS, DHCP, and IPAM (Infoblox).
Experience supporting manufacturing, plant-floor, or industrial (OT) networks.
Interest in scripting or automation, such as Python or REST APIs.
Familiarity with code editors and AI-assisted development tools, such as VS Code, Cursor, and Claude Cowork.
CCNA or equivalent Cisco certification.

Responsibilities

Monitor network devices, interfaces, and services through a custom monitoring platform integrated with PagerDuty and ServiceNow.
Triage automated alerts, distinguish outages from alert noise, and correlate related alerts and user reports into incidents.
Create, prioritize, track, and escalate incident tickets according to impact, urgency, and process.
Participate in the on-call rotation, issue outage notifications, join or initiate major-incident bridges, and participate in post-incident reviews.
Take scheduled turns on proactive asset monitoring, review wireless controller join status, follow the access point offline playbook, and record decisions in the team log.
Troubleshoot and support Cisco Catalyst access switching and Cisco Catalyst 9800 wireless controllers and access points.
Support Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN sites and coordinate with carriers and ISPs on circuit outages and turn-ups, including satellite and cellular backup.
Execute approved configuration changes and software upgrades under change management, and remediate configuration compliance drift to the gold standard.
Provide Level 1 troubleshooting support for Cisco FMC/FTD firewalls, Zscaler ZIA and ZPA, and Cisco ISE network access control.
Complete service requests for IP assignments, DHCP reservations, DNS records, and network registrations using Infoblox and Active Directory DNS.
Use Opengear Lighthouse out-of-band console servers to reach and recover isolated devices.
Support telecom requests and incidents, including desk phone provisioning and changes, voicemail, and Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Unity Connection, and Webex Calling.
Connect and troubleshoot plant and specialty endpoints, including printers, cameras, badge readers, digital signage, scales, lab devices, and handhelds.
Walk plant floors with OT and controls staff to locate and document OT network cabinets and hubs, industrial switches, daisy chains and device-level rings, connected PLCs, HMIs and drives, and paths back to the IT network.
Photograph, label, and record OT findings for network refresh and expansion planning, and confirm device IPs and ports on site.
Support OT network expansions, industrial switch replacements, and IT/OT firewall segmentation between plant-floor and corporate networks.
Help plant and visiting staff access OT systems through approved remote access paths such as Zscaler ZPA rather than direct corporate connections.
Dispatch and coordinate field vendors for smart-hands, access point, switch, and cabling work at remote sites.
Support site builds, network refreshes, relocations, and closures by completing assigned project tasks, including cabling installations, changes, and removals.
Stage, test, and configure network equipment in the Lenexa warehouse before deployment, and support RMA and inventory requests.
Maintain accurate ticket notes, site documentation, runbooks, and network diagrams in ServiceNow and Confluence.
Close tickets with complete resolution notes, correct category and subcategory, and an assigned owner.
Keep network asset and CMDB records, including device status, location, and IP, aligned with installed hardware.
Review and approve knowledge articles as a subject matter expert.
Identify recurring issues and propose alert tuning, process, and automation improvements, including AI-assisted tooling.
Educate end users on technology, keep current on industry trends, and follow established policies, processes, and procedures.
Perform other duties as assigned.