Data Center Network Engineer

Job Description

A Data Center Network Engineer is an experienced networking professional who leads network product selection for Ford's Enterprise Data Center environment, requirements evaluation and network design, lab testing and certification for hardware and software (OS), first‑time implementation process development, standards documentation, tools evaluation, and escalation‑level troubleshooting support.

• Consult with Hosting/Storage customers to understand their Enterprise Data Center network connectivity requirements and recommend network designs/solutions.
• Create network design and process documentation in various formats (Visio drawings, spreadsheets).
• Evaluate, compare, and recommend network product offerings and create a Bill of Materials (BOM).
• Provide technical analysis/support for competitive evaluation (RFQ) of supplier products/offerings.
• Document and update network standards for Enterprise Data Center Networks (DCLAN).
• Provide technical consulting/support to Planners for Network Refresh projects (Cisco L2/L3 and ACI switches).
• Monitor software updates/bugs/security patches (Cisco NXOS, ACI, NCS, etc.) and implement approved code updates.
• Manage lab network infrastructure—setup, teardown, configuration, and support network connectivity requests from other lab users.
• Perform lab testing & certification of DCLAN network products, designs, hardware, software code updates, refresh processes, etc., and create associated runbooks for planners and operations.
• Provide technical guidance, mentoring, and training to network planners.
• Provide day‑2 support for new deployments and incident escalation support (as required).
• Evaluate and enable network monitoring tools/features and match them to requirements for proactive/reactive monitoring, alerting, and enhanced troubleshooting capabilities.
• Design, configure, and maintain Network Time Protocol (NTP) systems.
• Design, configure, and maintain terminal server devices.
• Design, configure, and maintain Cisco NCS DWDM optical transport systems (e.g., NCS 2000/4000 series).
• Develop and document procedures for Cisco NCS DWDM optical network maintenance and repair.
• Perform testing and validation of Cisco NCS DWDM optical technologies in a dedicated lab environment.
• Support GRC (security) controls review process for DCLAN‑owned records.

• In‑depth knowledge and significant experience with Cisco NXOS, ACI, and Fabric (Leaf‑Spine) topologies.
• In‑depth knowledge and significant experience with L2/L3 switch technologies.
• In‑depth knowledge and significant experience with Ethernet switching (1G, 10G, 25G, 40G, 100G, 400G).
• Knowledge and experience with basic networking and IP protocols including LACP (VPC, MLAG).
• Proven troubleshooting and root‑cause analysis skills for network switching/routing and optical issues.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office, Visio, Excel, and SharePoint.
• Strong project‑management, organizational, interpersonal, and communication (written and oral) skills.
• Ability to work onsite as needed in a lab environment in Dearborn, Michigan for lab setup, support, and testing activities.

• Experience supporting networks inside an Enterprise Data Center environment.
• Experience with hardware and code certification in a lab environment.
• Experience with analysis of bugs and security vulnerabilities.
• Experience with Cisco Nexus Dashboard product (or equivalent network monitoring tools).
• Experience with network Dev Ops, scripting, and coding.
• Knowledge of routing protocols (e.g., OSPF, BGP, static, ISIS).
• Knowledge of basic network security controls (e.g., firewalls, ACLs, contracts).
• Knowledge of DNS and load‑balancing technologies.
• Knowledge of virtual hosting solutions (e.g., Open Shift Virtualization, VMWare).
• Knowledge of server, storage, and mainframe technologies.
• Knowledge of structured cabling best practices.
• Experience working closely with network suppliers such as Cisco, Arista, Juniper for product evaluations.
• Strong process mindset—ability to follow and create effective and sustainable processes.
• Experience performing network upgrades, expansions, and hardware refresh.
• Experience supporting hardware/software…