Senior Network & Systems Engineer

Utilidata • Ann Arbor, MI

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

Utilidata is a fast-growing NVIDIA-backed edge AI company enabling greater visibility and control of power utilization in energy-intensive infrastructure, like the electric grid and data centers. Karman, the company’s distributed AI platform powered by a custom NVIDIA module, is transforming the way utility companies operate the grid edge and will enable data centers to unlock more compute for the same provisioned power.

The Senior Network & Systems Engineer is responsible for owning Tier 3 IT support, network infrastructure, and systems administration across Utilidata’s Ann Arbor headquarters and remote environments. This is a hands-on senior individual contributor role—not an architecture position—focused on resolving complex technical issues, maintaining reliable network and systems infrastructure, and supporting the security posture of the organization. This role enables the Director of IT & Security Operations to focus on strategic planning, policy implementation, and security governance, and ensures that R&D engineers can dedicate their time fully to product development. This position is based onsite at our company headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with flexibility for occasional remote work. Candidates will be expected to collaborate cross-functionally with remote teams based across the country.

Requirements

• 5+ years of hands-on experience in network engineering, IT infrastructure, or systems administration in production environments
• Deep networking expertise, including routing, switching, firewalls, VLANs, and network security
• Proven ability to resolve Tier 3 issues independently across network, server, and endpoint environments
• Experience supporting physical data center or lab environments, including low-level hardware support
• Solid understanding of system monitoring, log management, and troubleshooting methodologies
• Experience with identity and access management platforms (JumpCloud preferred)
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, small-team environment where scope evolves and self-direction is expected

Nice To Haves

• Security background or SOC familiarity; relevant certifications such as CCNA, CompTIA Security+, or CISSP are a plus
• Familiarity with security frameworks such as NIST, CIS benchmarks, or SOC 2 controls
• Experience with SIEM platforms (Splunk, Sentinel, or similar)
• Exposure to high-performance computing, AI infrastructure, or GPU-based systems
• Experience with configuration management or automation tools (Ansible, Puppet, Chef, or similar)
• Experience administering developer and infrastructure platforms such as GitHub, Tailscale, or NetBox

Responsibilities

• Serve as the Tier 3 escalation point for complex IT issues across networking, servers, endpoints, and identity systems
• Design, implement, and maintain LAN/WAN, wireless, firewall, and VPN infrastructure
• Manage network segmentation, VLAN configuration, routing protocols, and SD-WAN solutions
• Monitor network performance and system availability; proactively identify and resolve issues before they cause impact
• Troubleshoot and resolve advanced operating system, application, and infrastructure incidents
• Manage and maintain on-premises and cloud infrastructure, including servers, switches, and access control systems
• Provide on-site support for the Ann Arbor Innovation Lab, including rack-and-stack, cabling, and low-level hardware configuration
• Support data center operations including server provisioning, storage, and compute resource management relevant to Karman platform deployments
• Support security monitoring, incident detection, and alert triage in coordination with the Director of IT & Security Operations
• Assist with endpoint detection, log review, and vulnerability management within established security tooling
• Contribute to the development and enforcement of IT security policies and access control standards
• Support SOC coordination on security incident triage and response as needed
• Manage user onboarding and offboarding workflows including identity provisioning, access management, and device setup
• Absorb IT and administrative tasks currently managed by R&D engineers
• Support procurement, hardware asset lifecycle management, and inventory tracking
• Contribute to documentation of operational runbooks, network diagrams, troubleshooting guides, and system procedures
• Support change management processes, coordinating on network, firewall, and access control changes

Benefits

• health, dental, vision, and employer-match 401k
• flexible paid time off
• stock options

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 1-10 employees