Your role
We are looking for an experienced Team Leader and Data Centre Network Expert (A3) to lead the Networks team at ECMWF. This role combines deep technical expertise with leadership responsibilities. Due to the nature of the ECMWF mission and the need to adhere to very strict time schedules, the network performance and availability in LAN and WAN are of paramount importance. The successful candidate will guide and organize the team towards meeting the requirements, assuring the correct design, implementation, and operation of a highly reliable high-performance, secure, and scalable network infrastructure. The ideal candidate will be a hands-on leader who can enable, support and empower the team, drive innovation, and ensure operational excellence across our Data Centre and our three office locations, in a hybrid working environment.
Your responsibilities
Lead and mentor a team of network engineers, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.Oversee the design, deployment and operation of robust data centre network solutions, ensuring high availability and performance.Manage network capacity planning, performance tuning, and lifecycle management.Define and enforce network standards, policies, and best practices across data centre and office environments.Interact with vendors to enhance network capabilities and resilience.Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align network implementation with ECMWFโs objectives.Lead incident response and root cause analysis for critical network issues.Coordinate and participate in, the 24/7 remote on-call support rota.Plan and oversee evaluation of emerging technologies, protocols and applications, driving innovation in implementation and support strategic planning.Provide regular reporting on network health, project progress, and team performance to senior leadership.About the Networks Team
The Networks team is part of the Core Infrastructure Section, alongside the Storage and Servers team, the Information Security team and the Data Centre Engineering team. It is currently composed of a team leader/leading engineer, one network architect and four network engineers, and is responsible for all aspects of networking for ECWMF: from designing, procuring, deploying and day-to-day management of the networks and their associated operational services, as well as, in collaboration with the Information Security team, the design and operation of the network security infrastructures.
The team is responsible for the networks at the data centre, as described in www.ecmwf.int/en/computing/our-facilities and located in Bologna, IT, for the offices networks in Bologna, IT, at the headquarters in Reading, UK, and in Bonn, DE, as well as the WAN connectivity at these sites.
ECMWFโs network environment includes cutting-edge technologies and products from well-known vendors, with data centre networks based on the latest 100+ Gbps technology. The LAN and WAN systems use MP-BGP, VXLAN/EVPN, and Multicast in production.
For additional details, see www.ecmwf.int/en/computing/our-facilities/networks.
About ECMWF
The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is a world leader in Numerical Weather Predictions providing high-quality data for weather forecasts and environmental monitoring. As an intergovernmental organisation we collaborate internationally to serve our members and the wider community with global weather predictions, data and training activities that are critical to contribute to safe and thriving societies.
The success of our activities depends on the funding and partnerships of our 35 Member and Co-operating States who provide the support and direction of our work. Our talented staff together with the international scientific community, and our powerful supercomputing capabilities, are the core of a 24/7 research and operational centre with a focus on medium and long-range predictions. We also hold one of the largest meteorological data archives in the world.
Our mission: Deliver global numerical weather predictions focusing on the medium-range and monitoring of the Earth system to and with our Member States
Our vision: World-leading monitoring and predictions of the Earth System enabled by cutting-edge physical, computational and data science, resulting from a close collaboration between ECMWF and the members of the European Meteorological Infrastructure, will contribute to a safe and thriving society
In addition, ECMWF has established a strong partnership with the European Union and has been entrusted with the implementation and operation of the Destination Earth initiative and the Climate Change and Atmosphere Monitoring Services of the Copernicus Programme, as well as being a contributor to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. Other areas of work include High Performance Computing and the development of digital tools that enable ECMWF to extend provision of data and products covering weather, climate, air quality, fire and flood prediction and monitoring.
ECMWF is a multi-site organisation, with its headquarters in Reading, UK, a data centre in Bologna, Italy, and a large presence in Bonn, Germany as a central location for our EU-related activities. ECMWF is internationally recognised as the voice of expertise in numerical weather predictions for forecasts and climate science.
www.ecmwf.int
About Copernicus www.copernicus.eu
About Destination Earth www.destine.ecmwf.int
What we're looking for
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with a proactive and constructive approachAbility to use professional concepts and organisation objectives to resolve complex issues in creative and effective waysStrong sense of ownership and accountability for network performance and reliability, ability to efficiently manage network change and capacity planningHighly organised with the capacity to manage a wide range of tasks and meet tight deadlinesFlexibility in handling the diverse requirements of the role, with the ability to adapt to changing priorities in a mission critical environmentExcellent interpersonal and communication skillsTeam work and growth mindsetEducation
The candidate should have a university degree, preferably in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related technical or scientific discipline, or demonstrated equivalent industry experience.Experience
Considerable experience/proven track record working in large scale data center networking: designing complex network solutions, overseeing their implementation and producing relevant documentation; configuring network hardware including switches, routers and firewalls.Experience in network support and troubleshooting in operational environment.2+ years in a leadership or technical lead roleProven experience with enterprise-grade networking hardware (Cisco, Juniper, Arista, etc.)Industry certifications such as CCIE, JNCIE, or equivalent would be a strong advantageWorking experience in an international environment with multi-site network topology would be an advantage.Knowledge and skills
Expert-level knowledge of network protocols and standards (BGP, OSPF,VXLAN, EVPN, DNS, DHCP, etc.)Deep understanding and practical experience with Linux TCP stack and tuningPractical background in network automation (e.g. Python, Ansible, Terraform)Solid understanding of network security principles and practicesDemonstrated knowledge of modern observability, monitoring and telemetry approaches and solutionsWe encourage you to apply even if you donโt feel you meet precisely all these criteria.
Candidates must be able to work effectively in English . A good knowledge of one of the Centreโs other working languages (French or German) or Italian is an advantage.
Other information
Grade remuneration The successful candidate will be recruited according to the scales of the Co-ordinated Organisations. ECMWF also offers a generous benefits package, as defined in the ECMWF Staff Regulations. Full details of salary scales and allowances available on the ECMWF website at www.ecmwf.int/en/about/jobs.
Starting date: As soon as possible
Location: Bologna, Italy (Candidates are expected to relocate to the duty station)
As a multi-site organisation, ECMWF has adopted a hybrid working model that allows flexibility to staff to mix office working and teleworking. We allow for remote work 10 days/month away from the office, including up to 80 days/year away from the duty station country (within the area of our member states and co-operating states).
Successful applicants and members of their family forming part of their households will be exempt from immigration restrictions.
Interviews will take place via videoconference (MS Team). If you require any special accommodations in order to participate fully in our recruitment process, please contact us via email: jobs@ecmwf.int
Who can apply
Applicants are invited to complete the online application form by clicking on the apply button below.
At ECMWF, we consider an inclusive environment as key for our success. We are dedicated to ensuring a workplace that embraces diversity and provides equal opportunities for all, without distinction as to race, gender, age, marital status, social status, disability, sexual orientation, religion, personality, ethnicity and culture. We value the benefits derived from a diverse workforce and are committed to having staff that reflect the diversity of the countries that are part of our community, in an environment that nurtures equality and inclusion.
Applications are invited from nationals from ECMWF Member States and Cooperating States, listed below:
ECMWF Member and Co-operating States are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Hungary, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Morocco, the Netherlands, Norway, North Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
In these exceptional times, we also welcome applications from Ukrainian nationals for this vacancy.
Applications from nationals from other countries may be considered in exceptional cases.