Datacenter Technician

Pinnacle Group, Inc.; City of Albany (NY); On-site; USD 37,000 - 43,000; Full time

Job summary

Pinnacle Group, Inc. is seeking an experienced Data Center Smart Hands Technician for a fully onsite contract in Rensselaer, NY. The role runs 9/21/26–3/21/27 with potential extension and contract-to-hire conversion.

Typical hours are Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with occasional on-call every other week. The technician will support data center and infrastructure operations, handle cabling, server and network equipment, and work with remote engineering teams.

Qualifications

• 2–5 years of hands-on Smart Hands, data center, server-room, or infrastructure-support experience.
• Ability to work independently onsite with limited supervision.
• Willingness to participate in a biweekly on-call rotation.
• Strong documentation and attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Perform routine data center, server-room, IDF, and MDF walkthroughs and identify/report equipment, environmental, security, cabling, or facility concerns.
• Support scheduled site audits, inspections, inventory validations, and operational checks.
• Provide onsite Smart Hands support for servers, network devices, racks, cabinets, IDF/MDF closets, and related infrastructure.
• Install, remove, rack, stack, label, and organize servers, switches, network devices, and other IT infrastructure equipment.
• Replace approved field-replaceable hardware components, including power supplies, hard drives, memory, fans, cables, and similar components.
• Trace, install, replace, label, test, and organize copper and fiber cabling.
• Perform cable management and maintain clean and organized racks, cabinets, patch panels, IDF/MDF closets, and data center spaces.
• Verify equipment status, power, indicator lights, ports, physical connections, and cabling during troubleshooting activities.
• Perform requested reboots, power cycles, visual inspections, connectivity checks, and basic diagnostic activities under direction from remote engineering or support teams.
• Support network equipment installation and replacement activities, including switches, routers, access points, and related infrastructure.
• Assist with server and infrastructure installations, moves, additions, changes, and removals.
• Support equipment decommissioning, asset validation, packing, equipment staging, and approved disposition/disposal activities.
• Coordinate and support scheduled equipment disposal pickups when required.
• Support hard-drive replacement, removal, handling, validation, and vendor-related activities in accordance with established security procedures.
• Escort authorized vendors and third-party service providers while work is performed within secured data center or infrastructure areas.
• Maintain the physical organization of data center, IDF/MDF, rack, cabinet, and equipment areas, including cleanup and removal of retired or abandoned equipment/cabling when authorized.
• Maintain accurate documentation of equipment locations, asset changes, cabling changes, hardware replacements, inspections, and work performed.
• Update incidents, service requests, change records, inventory/asset records, and associated tickets as required.
• Follow established data center, security, safety, access-control, change-management, and documentation procedures.
• Communicate site conditions, work status, issues, and exceptions clearly to remote engineering teams and local stakeholders.
• Provide onsite support for infrastructure refreshes, deployments, lifecycle activities, and related projects as required.
• Participate in the rotating after-hours/on-call schedule approximately every other week.

Skills

Strong communication

Customer service

Independent onsite work

Education

High school diploma or GED

Associate degree in IT/CS (plus)

Tools

ServiceNow

Job description

This is a fully onsite contract scheduled for 9/21/26–3/21/27, with potential extension and contract-to-hire conversion. The schedule is Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with an on-call rotation approximately every other week. No travel or U.S. citizenship is required. The max pay rate is $31..29/hr w2 + benefits.

The technician will support data center, server-room, IDF, and MDF operations while partnering with remote network and infrastructure engineers. Responsibilities include:

• Racking, stacking, installing, removing, labeling, and organizing servers, switches, racks, and cabinets
• Installing, tracing, testing, and managing copper and fiber cabling
• Replacing drives, memory, power supplies, fans, and cables
• Performing walkthroughs, inventory checks, power cycles, connectivity checks, and basic diagnostics
• Supporting hardware refreshes, decommissioning, vendors, equipment staging, and asset records
• Updating incidents, service requests, change records, and documentation

Candidates should have 2–5 years of data center, Smart Hands, server-room, or infrastructure-support experience. Familiarity with Dell, HPE, Lenovo, Cisco, ServiceNow, or CompTIA certifications is helpful. The position requires independent onsite work and the ability to safely lift and handle equipment weighing 50–100 lbs.

Summary

The goal is to identify an experienced, hands-on Smart Hands resource who has worked within a data center/infrastructure environment and can independently execute assigned activities while partnering with and following direction from remote network, server, and infrastructure engineering teams.

While we do need someone with relevant experience who can operate independently onsite, this is not intended to be a formal team-lead, supervisory, people-management, or infrastructure-engineering/design position.

The Data Center Smart Hands Technician provides onsite hands-on support for data center and infrastructure operations. The position performs routine physical and technical support activities involving servers, network equipment, racks, IDF/MDF closets, cabling, equipment installations and removals, hardware replacements, vendor activities, site inspections, equipment lifecycle activities, and related data center operational tasks.

The ideal candidate will have previous Smart Hands, data center, server-room, or infrastructure-support experience and will be comfortable completing assigned work independently while following documented procedures and technical direction from remote engineering and infrastructure teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Perform routine data center, server-room, IDF, and MDF walkthroughs and identify/report equipment, environmental, security, cabling, or facility concerns.
• Support scheduled site audits, inspections, inventory validations, and operational checks.
• Provide onsite Smart Hands support for servers, network devices, racks, cabinets, IDF/MDF closets, and related infrastructure.
• Install, remove, rack, stack, label, and organize servers, switches, network devices, and other IT infrastructure equipment.
• Replace approved field-replaceable hardware components, including power supplies, hard drives, memory, fans, cables, and similar components.
• Trace, install, replace, label, test, and organize copper and fiber cabling.
• Perform cable management and maintain clean and organized racks, cabinets, patch panels, IDF/MDF closets, and data center spaces.
• Verify equipment status, power, indicator lights, ports, physical connections, and cabling during troubleshooting activities.
• Perform requested reboots, power cycles, visual inspections, connectivity checks, and basic diagnostic activities under direction from remote engineering or support teams.
• Support network equipment installation and replacement activities, including switches, routers, access points, and related infrastructure.
• Assist with server and infrastructure installations, moves, additions, changes, and removals.
• Support equipment decommissioning, asset validation, packing, equipment staging, and approved disposition/disposal activities.
• Coordinate and support scheduled equipment disposal pickups when required.
• Support hard-drive replacement, removal, handling, validation, and vendor-related activities in accordance with established security procedures.
• Escort authorized vendors and third-party service providers while work is performed within secured data center or infrastructure areas.
• Maintain the physical organization of data center, IDF/MDF, rack, cabinet, and equipment areas, including cleanup and removal of retired or abandoned equipment/cabling when authorized.
• Maintain accurate documentation of equipment locations, asset changes, cabling changes, hardware replacements, inspections, and work performed.
• Update incidents, service requests, change records, inventory/asset records, and associated tickets as required.
• Follow established data center, security, safety, access-control, change-management, and documentation procedures.
• Communicate site conditions, work status, issues, and exceptions clearly to remote engineering teams and local stakeholders.
• Provide onsite support for infrastructure refreshes, deployments, lifecycle activities, and related projects as required.
• Participate in the rotating after-hours/on-call schedule approximately every other week.

Required Qualifications

• Approximately 2–5 years of hands-on Smart Hands, data center, server-room, infrastructure, network-support, or similar technical experience.
• Previous experience working within a data center, server room, IDF/MDF, colocation, or enterprise infrastructure environment.
• Experience installing, removing, organizing, or supporting servers, network equipment, racks, cabinets, and cabling.
• Working knowledge of copper and fiber cabling, patch panels, network ports, labeling, and basic cable troubleshooting.
• Experience replacing basic hardware components such as power supplies, drives, memory, fans, and cables.
• Familiarity with basic server, networking, rack, power, and cabling components.
• Ability to follow documented procedures and technical instructions from remote engineering, networking, and infrastructure teams.
• Ability to perform routine walkthroughs, equipment checks, inventory validations, and site inspections.
• Strong attention to detail and accurate documentation practices.
• Ability to work independently on assigned activities with limited onsite supervision.
• Strong communication and customer-service skills.
• Ability to safely lift, move, rack, and handle IT equipment in accordance with applicable safety guidelines.
• High school diploma or GED required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting Dell, HPE, Lenovo, Cisco, or similar enterprise infrastructure hardware.
• Familiarity with ServiceNow or another IT service-management/ticketing platform.
• Familiarity with incident, request, change, asset, inventory, and equipment-lifecycle processes.
• CompTIA A+, Network+, or similar technical certification is a plus, but not required.
• Associate degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field is a plus, but not required.

Additional Requirements / Clarifications

• This is a fully onsite position in Rensselaer, NY.
• Remote and hybrid work are not available for this role.
• The resource must be able to participate in an approximately biweekly on-call rotation.
• Occasional after-hours or weekend support may be required based on operational needs.