Director, Network and Data Center Services

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Yale ITS is seeking a senior technical leader to lead Network Engineering, Network Operations, and Data Center Services—responsible for the design, reliability, and evolution of Yale’s campus-wide communication and hosting infrastructure.

This role combines engineering authority, operational accountability, and transformation leadership, with responsibility for:

• A software-defined campus network
• A mandate to improve network operations through automation, observability, and discipline
• Two capacity‑constrained, at‑risk on‑prem data centers, a nearby co-lo and a cloud interconnection co-lo

This leader will drive end‑to‑end ownership of core network infrastructure, ensuring Yale’s network and data center platforms are resilient, scalable, and operationally excellent.

• Manage the architecture, engineering, and lifecycle management of Yale’s software-defined campus network
• Define standards for: performance, resiliency, segmentation, and security
• Drive modernization toward automated, code-defined network operations and integrated observability and telemetry

• Own 24x7 network operations, including availability, performance, and incident response
• Lead transformation of network operations tooling transitioning from Logic Monitor / Cisco-native tools → next-gen platforms (e.g., Datadog)
• Establish disciplined operational practices around monitoring, alerting, escalation, and incident management
• Improve key metrics and publish live network data for ITS leadership: MTTR, uptime, latency, incident recurrence

• Own the end-to-end roadmap for Yale’s data centers, addressing:
  Capacity constraints;
  Operational risk;
  Lack of appropriate resiliency and DR capability
• Define and execute a multi-year strategy across:
  On-prem, colo, and cloud integration;
  Improved resiliency;
  Scalable capacity to support research and enterprise growth

• Embed resiliency by design across network and data center services by eliminating single points of failure and ensure network failover and recovery capabilities are validated
• Drive alignment with Disaster Recovery (RTO/RPO) targets

Champion automation across infrastructure operations:
Network automation;
Data center workflows;
Configuration and lifecycle management

• Build a unified observability model across networks, data centers, and facilities/campus operations
• Ensure monitoring tools provide end to end network visibility with actionable alerts integrated with incident management

• Lead and develop network engineering, operations, and data center teams while building a culture of ownership and accountability, engineering rigor, and an automation-first mindset
• Improve team capabilities in software-defined networking, automation and observability, and modern operations practices

• Work closely with core infrastructure engineering, Tech Ops, and Information security
• Navigate a federated organization, influencing without direct authority
• Align network and data center strategy with broader IT Stability initiatives, faculty and research needs.

• Proven leadership of large scale network and infrastructure environments (campus or enterprise, with hybrid cloud environments)
• Deep technical expertise in:
  Enterprise networking (LAN/WAN, SDN, campus networks, large Cisco implementation);
  Data center infrastructure (power, cooling, compute integration);
  Observability and monitoring platforms
• Experience leading 24x7 network operations environments and major transformation initiatives (tooling, architecture, operating model)
• Strong understanding of resiliency engineering, DR design and ITSM…