Infrastructure and Architecture - Network Engineer

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Under the direction of the Director of Information Technology. The primary function of the Network Engineer is to develop and maintain the City of Abilene’s network and infrastructure environment to include operation and maintenance of hardware, software, telecom, and computing infrastructure.

SUPERVISION EXERCISED

This position exercises supervision over lower-level staff.

IMPORTANT AND ESSENTIAL DUTIES

Responsible for advisories, assessing what actions may need to be taken and writing up recommendations for approval.

Responsible for monitoring and responding to alerts from the server infrastructure while maintaining expected performance and troubleshooting issues. Elevate response exceptions for approval.

Identifies performance bottlenecks and areas for improvement and implementing solutions to optimize system performance.

Ensures the system’s architecture complies with the industry standards, regulations, and best practices.

Responsible for developing and maintaining department specific system documentation, including architecture diagrams, data flow diagrams, and technical specifications

Designs the overall structure and architecture of a system, which includes decisions about hardware, software, networking, and other technologies required.

Develops, maintains, and implements the integration of security measures into the system architecture, including data encryption, access control, and threat mitigation.

Ensures all components of a system work seamlessly together, which may involve integrating existing systems or components with new ones.

Evaluates and selects appropriate technologies, tools, and platforms for the system, considering factors such as scalability, security, and cost.

Implement backup and recovery strategies to ensure data and systems availability in the event of failures or disasters.

Creates prototypes or proof-of-concept models to test and validate design concepts before full-scale development.

Provides input to the City Information Technology Master Plan and the Financial Technology Fund Plan.

Assist other technical services staff and departmental staff.

Operate a City vehicle, as needed, to travel to various City and/or County locations.

OTHER JOB-RELATED DUTIES

Perform other job-related duties and responsibilities as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

Knowledge of:

Telecommunications systems including analog and VoIP.

Cloud platforms such as Azure or Google Cloud.

Networking technologies and methods including addressing, switching, routing and firewalls, and their uses.

Integration of security measures and compliance requirements into the architecture.

City funding and acquisition methods, including contracting for professional services.

Licensing models and methods for related products and services.

Skill to:

Gather and analyze system requirements, ensuring alignment with business goals and objectives.

Design system architectures, making decisions about technology selection, component integration, and high-level system structure.

Understand security principles, including authentication, authorization, and data encryption.

Develop and collaborate on documentation, policies, procedures, and plans in alignment with industry and local government standards.

Administer and maintain cybersecurity related software and systems.

Solicit, administer, and monitor contracts.

Assist in budgeting, expense management, and financial planning regarding systems and cybersecurity software, services, and systems.

Ability to:

Monitors the performance and availability of servers and network devices.

Develop and align the system architecture with the organization’s long-term strategic goals and technology roadmap.

Work closely with stakeholders to define, prioritize, and manage system requirements.

Lead enterprise-level architecture initiatives, aligning technology solutions with long-term business strategies.

Acquire and use new information, methods, and technologies related to the systems architecture.

Apply new methods and technologies to address the needs of the City.

Work with the Information Technology Department, City departments and external entities to create and maintain incident plans.

Develop expertise in the administration and maintenance of related software and systems.

Take responsibility for the creation, implementation, and maintenance of strategic, financial, and incident plans.

Establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with those contacted in the course of work, both internally and externally.

Follow and embrace the Ci