Lead Network Engineer

RWE; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 127,000 - 171,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k) match

Education assistance

Paid time off

Job summary

RWE Americas, LLC seeks a Lead Network Engineer to provide advanced technical leadership for OT network infrastructure, spanning multiple sites. You will drive design, implementation, operation, and security, collaborating with SCADA, field operations, infrastructure, and OT Cybersecurity to deliver secure, scalable, and highly available solutions.

The role offers technical direction, mentoring, and project leadership without formal people-management responsibilities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, or a related discipline; or an equivalent combination of education, technical training, industry certifications, and relevant professional experience
• Advanced hands‑on experience or formal training; certifications preferred but not required
• Minimum 5 years of experience in network engineering, network security, infrastructure, or related technologies
• Experience designing and supporting complex, distributed network environments
• Experience mentoring or providing technical direction to engineers and technicians

Responsibilities

• Design and implement scalable, secure, and resilient OT network infrastructure across multiple sites and geographies
• Lead complex troubleshooting and high-severity incident resolution using advanced analysis and cross-functional coordination
• Develop and maintain network architecture standards, configuration baselines, and security requirements
• Lead network performance tuning, capacity planning, traffic optimization, and proactive upgrades
• Design and validate segmentation, firewall, access-control, secure remote-access, and intrusion-detection solutions with OT Cybersecurity
• Develop high-availability, redundancy, and disaster-recovery solutions for critical OT and SCADA systems
• Lead greenfield deployments, site retrofits, technology refreshes, and modernization initiatives
• Act as the technical escalation point for complex network, firewall, VPN, SCADA connectivity, and security incidents
• Lead root-cause analysis sessions and develop corrective actions
• Create, review, and maintain SOPs, engineering standards, and change-control procedures
• Provide technical guidance and peer review to engineers and technicians
• Review designs for compliance with architecture, security, and operational standards
• Support hardware and software lifecycle planning, procurement, and technology selection
• Conduct technical reviews of configurations and security controls to support NERC CIP and other requirements
• Identify opportunities to improve automation, monitoring, reliability, and efficiency
• Coordinate with vendors on complex technical issues and solution design

Skills

Network engineering

Security engineering

Incident resolution

Mentoring

Project leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/IT/Cybersecurity

Tools

Cisco routing

Cisco switching

Wireless networking

Palo Alto

Fortinet firewall

VPN

Job description

Select how often (in days) to receive an alert: Create Alert

Chicago, IL, US, 60654 White Plains, NY, US, NY 10606 Austin, TX, US, 78701

RWE Americas, LLC

To start as soon as possible, full time, permanent

Functional area: IT / Digital

Remuneration: Exempt

The Lead Network Engineer provides advanced technical leadership for the design, implementation, operation, and security of OT network infrastructure across multiple sites and geographies.

The role serves as a senior technical escalation point and leads complex network and security initiatives, including architecture, troubleshooting, modernization, resiliency, and standards development. The engineer works closely with Network Engineering, SCADA, field operations, infrastructure, vendors, and OT Cybersecurity to deliver secure, scalable, and highly available solutions.

The position provides technical direction, mentoring, and project leadership to engineers and technicians but does not require formal people-management responsibility.

Role Responsibilities

• Design and implement scalable, secure, and resilient OT network infrastructure across multiple sites and geographies
• Lead complex troubleshooting and high-severity incident resolution using advanced analysis, diagnostic tools, and cross-functional coordination
• Develop and maintain network architecture standards, configuration baselines, and security requirements to improve consistency and reduce operational risk
• Lead network performance tuning, capacity planning, traffic optimization, and proactive upgrades to improve availability and performance
• Design and validate segmentation, firewall, access-control, secure remote-access, and intrusion-detection solutions in partnership with OT Cybersecurity
• Develop high-availability, redundancy, and disaster-recovery solutions for critical OT and SCADA systems
• Lead greenfield deployments, site retrofits, technology refreshes, and modernization initiatives from design through implementation and validation
• Act as the technical escalation point for complex network, firewall, VPN, SCADA connectivity, and security-related incidents
• Lead root-cause analysis sessions and develop corrective actions to prevent recurring incidents
• Create, review, and maintain SOPs, engineering standards, work instructions, and change-control procedures
• Provide technical guidance, mentoring, and peer review to engineers and technicians
• Review technical designs and implementation plans for compliance with architecture, security, and operational standards
• Support hardware and software lifecycle planning, procurement, and technology selection
• Conduct technical reviews of network configurations and security controls to support NERC CIP and other applicable requirements
• Identify opportunities to improve automation, monitoring, reliability, standardization, and operational efficiency
• Coordinate with vendors and technology partners on complex technical issues, escalations, and solution design

Job Requirements and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, or a related discipline; or an equivalent combination of education, technical training, industry certifications, and relevant professional experience
• Candidates should demonstrate advanced hands‑on experience, formal training, or relevant industry certification. Certifications are preferred but may be substituted with equivalent technical knowledge and demonstrated practical experience
• Minimum 5years of experience in network engineering, network security, infrastructure, telecommunications, or related technologies
• Demonstrated experience designing and supporting complex, distributed network environments
• Experience leading technical projects, major implementations, or complex incident resolution
• Experience mentoring or providing technical direction to engineers and technicians
• OT, SCADA, ISA/IEC 62443, renewable energy, manufacturing, or industrial experience preferred
• Strong enterprise networking or security experience with demonstrated ability to work within operational environments will be considered
• Experience with Cisco routing, switching, wireless, and network services; CCNP or equivalent experience preferred
• Experience with Palo Alto Networks or Fortinet firewalls, including policy, VPN, threat prevention, segmentation, and secure connectivity
• Experience designing high‑availability and redundant network architectures
• Familiarity with network monitoring, performance management, and automation platforms
• Working knowledge of cybersecurity frameworks and standards such as NIST, ISA/IEC 62443, NERC CIP, or ISO 27001
• Equivalent experience with comparable enterprise networking and security technologies will be considered
• Functions independently with minimal oversight
• Leads large technical projects, site‑wide deployments, and multi‑site initiatives
• Provides day‑to‑day technical direction and mentoring to engineers and technicians
• Reviews technical work and provides guidance on design, implementation, and troubleshooting
• Serves as a technical team lead but does not have formal personnel-management responsibility
• Owns assigned technical activities from planning through implementation, validation, and documentation
• Lead individual technical workstreams or site activities
• Mentor junior staff but does not have formal personnel-management responsibility
• Strategic thinker with strong operational execution skills
• Demonstrated desire to learn about the Company and the renewables space Sets enterprise‑wide OT standards, governance, and best practices
• Commitment to safety, resilience, and regulatory readiness

This position is an office‑based role with some travel and visits to other RWECE office and field locations. The employee must be able to sit, walk, or stand for long durations of time and lift 25 lbs

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States. RWE Americas is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas at this time.

Pay range

The annual base salary range for this position in Illinois or New York is $127,000 - $171,000. The listed salary range represents our good faith estimate for this position and represents the range for new hire salaries across all U.S locations. Please note that the salary information is a general guideline only. RWE considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s education & work experience, training & certifications, and key skills as well as market and business considerations at the time of the offer.

Benefits offered

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, Long‑Term Disability, 401(k) match, Flexible Spending Accounts, EAP, Education Assistance, Parental Leave, Paid time off, and Holidays. Eligible employees also participate in short‑term incentives, in addition to salary.

We look forward to meeting you. Of course, you can find us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Xing, too.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, or other legally protected status.

RWE Americas, a subsidiary of RWE, is a US‑based energy company that is helping to meet the growing demand for energy across the United States. Backed by RWE’s 125‑year global legacy of managing diverse power assets, RWE Americas operates approximately 13 GW of power projects across 27 states.With a talented workforce of 2,000 employees, RWE Americas develops, constructs and operateswind, solar and battery storage projects that safely deliver affordable, reliable electricity to our customers. Committed to responsible development, RWE Americas invests in local and rural communities, creating jobs and partnering with stakeholders to support and strengthen the places where we live and work. Learn more about how RWE Americas is generating impact at americas.rwe.com.

At RWE Americas, we foster a culture defined by our Essential Behaviors – Have Courage, Create Impact and Actively Collaborate. We encourage bold thinking and continuous learning, and we value ownership, resilience and inclusion in everything we do. When you join us, you become part of a team that supports your development, respects your contributions and celebrated shared success. This is a place where you can grow your career and make a meaningful difference.