System Administrator / Network Engineer - $70,000-$100,000/DOE - Missoula, Montana

ELM Utility Services; Missoula (MT); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Dental benefits

Vision benefits

Life insurance

Disability insurance

401(k)

PTO and holidays

Job summary

ELM Utility Services is seeking a System Administrator / Network Engineer in the Missoula area. The role focuses on reliability, security, and network design in a hybrid environment spanning two locations and Azure.

Expect hands-on work including segmentation, inter-site connectivity, and secure patterns for workloads. You will manage VMware ESXi/vSphere, Nimble storage, Windows Server AD infrastructure, and Azure networking, while enforcing least privilege and robust incident response.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in systems administration and/or network engineering in a Windows/VMware environment.
• Proven experience designing and implementing network segmentation in a business environment.
• Experience operating security controls in a compliance-driven organization (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, etc.).
• Azure networking experience (VNets, NSGs, UDRs, VPN gateways, private endpoints).
• SonicWall administration (policies, NAT, VPNs, security services).
• VMware ESXi/vSphere administration.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement network segmentation (VLANs, subnetting, L3 boundaries, ACLs, firewall rules).
• Build/maintain secure inter-site connectivity (site-to-site VPN, routing, failover).
• Configure and manage SonicWall appliances (policies, NAT, VPNs, content filtering).
• Improve access controls (least privilege, service-to-service rules).
• Maintain network documentation (diagrams, IP plans, change logs).
• Administer VMware ESXi/vSphere cluster operations (capacity, patching, HA/DR).
• Manage Nimble storage (performance monitoring, snapshots, replication).
• Operate Azure networking (VNets, subnets, NSGs, route tables).
• Support Windows Server services in a domain environment (AD DS, DNS, DHCP).
• Own backup and recovery practices (restore testing, DR planning).
• Support identity integrations (Entra ID/Azure AD, MFA).

Skills

Network segmentation

Azure networking

VMware ESXi/vSphere

SonicWall

Backup & recovery

AD DS / DNS / DHCP

PowerShell / Python

Identity & access (Entra ID)

Education

None

Tools

VMware ESXi/vSphere

SonicWall

Azure networking

Datadog

Splunk

Sentinel

Intune

Job description

ELM Utility Services, with a team of over 1300 employees nationwide, is offering a great opportunity for a System Administrator / Network Engineer in the Missoula, Montana area. This position can be offered as a remote position to the right candidate pending interview. In this role your job will be to help operate and secure our hybrid environment across two physical locations and Azure. This is a hands-on role focused on reliability, security, and network design - especially network segmentation and control implementation aligned with SOC 2 Type II expectations.

Our Total Rewards Package Includes:

• Optional benefits like Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Disability, FSA, H.S.A., and Teledoc.
• Company Paid Life Insurance
• Paid-Time Off (PTO) for vacation and sick time
• 6 Paid Holidays
• 401(k) plan
• Bonuses for milestone anniversaries
• Competitive pay based on experience
• Long history of stable employment and promoting from within
• Opportunity to lead and modernize production systems with meaningful operational impact

Roles & Responsibilities:

• Network Engineering & Segmentation (core)
• Design and implement network segmentation (VLANs, subnetting, L3 boundaries, ACLs, firewall rules) to isolate critical systems and reduce blast radius
• Build/maintain secure inter-site connectivity (site-to-site VPN, routing, failover) between the two physical locations
• Configure and manage SonicWall appliances (policies, NAT, VPNs, content filtering/security services as applicable)
• Improve east-west and north-south controls: least privilege access, service-to-service rules, and documented network flows
• Maintain network documentation: diagrams, IP plans, rule rationale, and change records
• Infrastructure Operations (core)
• Administer VMware ESXi/vSphere cluster operations (capacity, patching, HA/DR, snapshots, lifecycle hygiene)
• Manage Nimble storage (performance monitoring, volumes, snapshots, replication as applicable)
• Support Windows Server services in a domain environment (AD DS, DNS, DHCP, Group Policy, certificates)
• Own backup and recovery practices (restore testing, retention, DR planning)
• Azure & Hybrid Services (core)
• Operate and secure Azure networking (VNets, subnets, NSGs, route tables, VPN/ExpressRoute if applicable, Private Endpoints)
• Support identity and access integrations (Entra ID/Azure AD, conditional access concepts, MFA enforcement, least privilege)
• Help standardize secure patterns for workloads in Azure (segmented network tiers, logging, key management)

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in systems administration and/or network engineering in a Windows/VMware environment
• Proven experience designing and implementing network segmentation in a business environment
• Experience operating security controls in a compliance-driven organization (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, etc. - SOC 2 a strong plus)
• Technical Skills (strongly preferred)
• Azure networking (VNets, NSGs, UDRs, VPN gateways, private endpoints)
• SonicWall administration (policies, NAT, VPNs, security services)
• Routing/switching fundamentals and VLAN/subnet design
• Network segmentation implementation (ACLs, firewall zoning, micro-segmentation concepts, tiered network models)
• VMware ESXi/vSphere administration
• Nimble storage (or comparable SAN/NAS experience)
• Windows Server and Active Directory (AD DS/DNS/DHCP/GPO)
• Centralized logging/monitoring tools (Datadog, Splunk, Sentinel, etc.)
• Endpoint/device management (Intune) and security tools (Defender, EDR)
• Scripting/automation (PowerShell, Python) for operational tasks
• Wireless infrastructure management and NAC concepts (802.1X, RADIUS, conditional access tied to device posture)

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