Lead Network Engineer

About Us:

Fortitude, backed by DCG, is an institutional-scale, vertically integrated venture mining platform operating across the Proof-of-Work ecosystem and anchored in Zcash. The Company pairs self-mining operations with an owned data center footprint, a diversified power portfolio backed by competitive long-term contracts, and disciplined capital allocation to identify and scale high-conviction opportunities in emerging Proof-of-Work protocols, beginning with its leadership position in the Zcash network.

Fortitude is led by an experienced team of operators, capital markets professionals, and digital asset specialists with a track record of identifying and scaling high-conviction opportunities and building privacy-preserving digital asset infrastructure.

Description 

The Lead Network Engineer is a key member of the IT & Cybersecurity team, responsible for implementing, maintaining, and securing network infrastructure supporting mission-critical mining operations. Reporting to Director of Network Operations, this role leads network deployments based on approved architecture designs and project requirements, ensuring implementation quality, performance, reliability, and operational readiness. Responsibilities include maintaining network documentation, topology diagrams, technical procedures, disaster recovery playbooks, and security controls. The engineer supports mining operations, curtailment connectivity, OT network integrations, and cybersecurity initiatives while adhering to established security standards and change management processes. This role also provides technical guidance, post-deployment validation, incident response, day-to-day operational support, and on-call coverage to ensure the reliability and availability of mission-critical infrastructure supporting 24/7 mining operations.

Key Responsibilities 

• Lead the implementation, configuration, maintenance, and troubleshooting of Cisco, Fortinet, Juniper, and UniFi network infrastructure, including firewalls, switches, and wireless systems, based on approved architecture designs and project requirements. 
• Lead end-to-end network deployments, including implementation planning, configuration, testing, quality assurance, documentation, and production handoff, ensuring successful delivery and operational readiness. 

• Support network operations, troubleshooting, and performance optimization across switching, VLANs, Trunks, LAGs, TCP/IP, DNS, routing, NAT, WAN, SD-WAN connectivity, and firewalls. 

• Execute physical network buildouts, including rack assembly, structured cabling, wireless infrastructure, WAN fiber connectivity, Starlink systems, and security camera deployments. 

• Coordinate with vendors, contractors, and on-site personnel to execute network deployments, troubleshoot infrastructure issues, and ensure implementation quality. 

• Support network infrastructure for mining operations and curtailment systems, including the implementation and integration of operational technology (OT) networks, smart PDUs, Foreman, utility/RTAC connectivity, and related infrastructure. 

• Implement and maintain network monitoring integrations, including SNMP device onboarding into LibreNMS, alert configuration and validation, and troubleshooting. 

• Support network automation initiatives, configuration management, infrastructure integrations, and continuous operational improvements. 

• Maintain the Production Support Lab (PSL) to validate infrastructure changes, test configurations, develop disaster recovery playbooks, and conduct recovery exercises in accordance with change management procedures. 

• Support Security Operations (SecOps) by implementing, documenting, and validating network security controls and firewall policies, analyzing network traffic and threats using FortiAnalyzer, investigating suspicious activity and high-risk vulnerabilities, and supporting security audits through technical evidence collection. 

• Develop and maintain network topology diagrams, configuration baselines, SOPs, MOPs, and deployment standards to ensure consistency, security, and operational readiness across sites. 

• Follow established change management processes, security policies, and implementation standards, ensuring proper testing, approvals, documentation, and post-deployment validation. 

• Participate in 24/7 on-call support, providing technical escalation, incident response, and troubleshooting for critical network outages and service disruptions. 

• Travel approximately 30% based on business needs, network deployments, infrastructure projects, and site support requirements. Travel includes regional site visits in the Midwest and occasional air travel.  

 

 

ABOUT YOU:   

 

Minimum Qualifications; Knowledge, Skills and Abilities 

 

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Network Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent professional IT experience. 

• 5–10 years of experience in network engineering, network administration, infrastructure support, or a related technical role. 

• Active CCNA, CCNP, or Fortinet Certified Professional (FCP) in Secure Networking certification required. 

• Hands-on experience with enterprise switching, routing, firewalls, wireless networking, and WAN connectivity; experience with Cisco, Fortinet, Juniper, and/or UniFi technologies preferred.