Data Center Controls Network Engineer

About the Role

The Data Center Controls Network Engineer role is critical to the success of Openai's AI data centers, which require resilient, secure, and scalable OT network architectures to support the compute, power, cooling, and operational requirements of the facilities. As a mid to senior OT Network Engineer, you will lead the design and operation of these OT network architectures, translating requirements into practical designs, evaluating vendor solutions, and driving technical decisions across controls infrastructure, telemetry, commissioning, and operations.

The ideal candidate for this role has strong hands-on experience in mission-critical OT environments, including industrial networking, virtualized infrastructure, and OT network operations. You should be an expert in routing, switching, segmentation, firewall policy, time synchronization, monitoring, and network lifecycle support, with the ability to navigate the complexities of industrial networking and virtualized infrastructure.

What You Will Do

• Define controls, automation, and OT network requirements for AI data center campuses
• Develop reference architectures, engineering standards, and reusable design templates
• Review and develop basis-of-design and functional design documents, including OT network diagrams, IP/VLAN schemes, telemetry architectures, data flow diagrams, and commissioning requirements
• Design OT and infrastructure network architectures, including physical topology, logical topology, IP addressing, subnetting, VLANs, routing, switching, redundancy, segmentation, firewall policy coordination, out-of-band management, monitoring, and remote access patterns
• Develop day-two network operations requirements, including change management, configuration backups, golden configurations, monitoring thresholds, firmware lifecycle, rollback plans, and post-change validation
• Partner with electrical, mechanical, IT/networking, security, and operations teams to ensure OT network systems align with GPU deployments, campus-wide telemetry, and failure-domain isolation requirements
• Define integration patterns and protocol requirements across BACnet/IP, BACnet MSTP, Modbus TCP/RTU, OPC UA, IEC-61850 MMS/GOOSE, MQTT, SNMP, syslog, NTP/PTP, IRIG-B, and vendor-specific interfaces
• Lead technical evaluation of controls integrators, network equipment suppliers, design consultants, contractors, and commissioning agents
• Review network equipment submittals, configurations, firmware assumptions, certifications, test reports, and quality documentation
• Support factory witnessed testing (FWT), site acceptance testing, network readiness checks, failover testing, and integrated systems testing
• Troubleshoot complex controls network issues including packet loss, latency, duplicate IPs, routing errors, firewall drops, protocol incompatibilities, time synchronization drift, and intermittent device communication failures

What We Are Looking For

• 8+ years of relevant experience in controls engineering, industrial automation, OT networking, mission-critical facilities, or similar critical infrastructure environments
• Strong expertise in resilient OT network architecture, implementation, troubleshooting, and lifecycle support
• Experience with OT/IT boundary design, secure enterprise integration, firewall policy design, redundant topologies, out-of-band management, and monitoring
• Hands-on experience with Layer 3 OT network design, including IP addressing, subnetting, routing, VRFs, ACLs, inter-VLAN routing
• Familiarity with industrial networking protocols such as BACnet, Modbus, and OPC UA
• Experience with network equipment from major manufacturers such as Cisco, Juniper, and HP
• Strong understanding of network security principles and practices, including firewall configuration and intrusion detection
• Excellent problem-solving skills, with the ability to troubleshoot complex network issues
• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams

Nice to Have

• Experience with virtualized infrastructure and software-defined networking
• Familiarity with cloud-based network management platforms and tools
• Experience with automated testing and deployment tools such as Ansible or Jenkins
• Knowledge of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning
• Experience with agile development methodologies and version control systems such as Git

Benefits and Perks

• Competitive salary and benefits package
• Opportunity to work with a leading AI company and contribute to the development of cutting-edge technology
• Collaborative and dynamic work environment with a team of experienced professionals
• Flexible working hours and remote work options
• Professional development opportunities, including training and education programs
• Access to the latest tools and technologies, including network equipment and software
• Recognition and reward programs for outstanding performance and contributions
• Comprehensive health and wellness programs, including medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Generous paid time off and holiday schedule

• Be prepared to discuss your experience with OT network architecture and design, as well as your knowledge of industrial networking protocols and devices.
• Highlight your problem-solving skills and ability to troubleshoot complex network issues.
• Show examples of your work, such as network diagrams or design documents, to demonstrate your skills and experience.
• Research the company and the role, and be prepared to ask informed questions during the interview process.
• Consider earning certifications such as CCNA or CCNP to demonstrate your expertise and commitment to the field.
• Be prepared to discuss your experience with virtualized infrastructure and software-defined networking, as well as your knowledge of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning.