DWF/ WFH Eligible

GCI's Engineer III, Engineering & Architecture will work cross-functionally as required to develop, deploy, and maintain the products and services offered by the company. Interacts with internal groups and external customer to ensure our products and services are performing as designed. Work within capital and operations budgets to ensure projects remain on scope and within budget. Follows company policy and department guidelines to support and successfully complete development and lifecycle maintenance of network plans, policies, and procedures following engineering/architecture design principles.

Essential Duties:

Additional Job Requirements : At a senior engineer level, will be expected to perform highly complex and diverse design, plans, analysis, and implementation under deadlines and operating constraints. Receives clear direction on assignment objectives, complex features, and possible solutions; must be able to make independent decisions and provide technical direction and resolution. Supervisory assistance is provided on unusual problems. Will review and provide final engineering design specifications and service requirements. Ability to coordinate, direct, assists, provides technical direction, and mentor junior engineers and supporting technicians.

Essential Duties for this position :

Additional Duties:

• Works with engineering and network operations support teams to resolve any hardware/technical issues and implements changes.

• Works with customer care teams to monitor, identify, and resolve customer issues in a timely fashion.

• Works with cross functional teams to define project requirements and planning necessary to deliver quality products on time.

• Provides technical content used to create marketing/sales collateral.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities :

• High-level knowledge of engineering concepts, design principles, and math calculations.
• Demonstrated success in design, implementation, editing and support.
• Practical experience with configuration, routing, switches, within a Network Telecommunications environment.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to work independently and within a team environment, professionally and support junior engineers.
• Highly intuitive analytic, strategic, interpersonal critical/creativity thinking skills are necessary.
• Innovative and problem solver
• Excellent capability in using Microsoft Office tools; Excel, Word, Outlook, Visio, etc.
• Strong time management and ability to lean to manage complex projects on time and within budget.
• Self-directed and motivated, highly focused on the company and departmental goals.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Minimum of six years’ experience in the relevant filed.
• Experience within a telecommunication’s or like industry valued.
• High School diploma or equivalent required.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, or related field is required.
• Or in addition, a combination of relevant work and/or education/certifications sufficient to perform the duties of the job may substitute for the degree on a year for year basis.

Certifications: Industry specific certifications highly valued and contribute toward education.

Cisco: CCNA CCIE, MEF CECP, SCTE Dep, Certified SOA Architect, CITA, EACOE

Because GCI is a federal contractor subject to Executive Order 14042, GCI employees may be required in the future to be fully vaccinated* against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. If this occurs , GCI will consider requests for accommodation if an individual’s medical condition, disability, or sincerely held religious belief prohibits receipt of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Physical Requirements : Primarily sedentary office work. Physical effort should include the necessary dexterity to perform the tasks of the job. Clarity of vision to see near, mid-range, and color. Ability to lift and carry up to 25 lbs.

Working Conditions: Primarily an office environment. The position location may vary depending on need. Must be able to remain productive with interruptions, distractions, and noise. This position may require extended hours and/or weekend schedules and travel throughout the state.

The work area must be quiet and free of distractions. Lighting must be adequate and without glare. Distracting noises should be kept to a minimum. The employee’s desk must be adequate, designed to safely accommodate the equipment the employee must use, e.g., computer, printer, keyboard, monitor etc. The employee must have reliable connectivity to the internet to access GCI via VPN. Employee workstation must comply with GCI’s ergonomics standards.

The company and its subsidiaries operate in a 24/7 environment providing critical services to Alaskans and may need to respond to public health and safety matters or other business emergencies. Due to business needs employees may be contacted outside of the normal business hours to respond to the immediate emergency. You will be requested to provide an emergency after hours contact numbers.

Driving Requirements (if applicable) : Must possess and maintain a valid driver’s license, proof of insurance, and a satisfactory driving record

EEO: We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or another characteristic protected by law.

Disclaimer: The above information on this description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualification required of employees assigned to this job.

Focus Areas for:

Engineer, Engineering & Architecture

Planning & Design: Access Fiber and Copper:

• Experience in roles of increasing responsibility in engineering/scientific areas related to optical communications, fiber-optic telecom, copper and fiber network standards and specifications, FTTP/FTTN, DSL, PON architecture, metro fiber deployment, fiber optic network infrastructure engineering design, and outside plant
• Working knowledge of pole line aerial, direct buried, underground, and building applications of copper and fiber OSP facilities
• Direct experience with outside plant fiber and copper plant construction techniques
• High proficiency in telecom technologies including FTTx, DSL, and HFC ISP and OSP design, standards, and specifications
• Fiber network route design including ring, path diverse routing, point to point, point to multipoint, FTTx networks, etc.
• In-depth understanding of PON architectures, design, and technologies to include centralized and distributed split, greenfield MDU/SFU, and inside wiring solutions
• Experience with multi-vendor network equipment to architect complex DWDM systems
• Broad network understanding in Access networks, FTTP/FTTx, ethernet services, feeder and distribution facilities, CPE, and MDU/SFU solutions
• Utilize knowledge of fiber cable sizing, cable counts, cable record management, fiber characteristics, transmission protocols, route diversity, route protection plus front-haul and back-haul concepts
• Proficiency in fiber and copper network design, planning, and GIS mapping software tools such as Auto Cad, ESRI ArcGIS, Lode Data, and OSP Insight
• Experience with GIS maps, utility infrastructure, admin boundaries, HHP, network components, and other similar facilities
• Sound understanding of fiber inventory and assignments for various services
• Experience with system performance metrics performance evaluation (Signal-to-Noise Ratio, BER, Q-factor)
• Responsibilities include development of specifications for new systems
• High level proficiency in reading and understanding technical documentation with the ability to update and maintain accurate documentation across company platforms such as Confluence

Additional Duties:

• Works with engineering and network operations support teams to resolve any hardware/technical issues and implements changes.

• Works with customer care teams to monitor, identify, and resolve customer issues in a timely fashion.

• Works with cross functional teams to define project requirements and planning necessary to deliver quality products on time.

• Provides technical content used to create marketing/sales collateral.

Planning & Design: Long-Haul Fiber:

• Experience in roles of increasing responsibility in engineering/scientific areas related to optical communications, fiber-optic telecom, terrestrial and subsea long-haul fiber optic network infrastructure engineering design, outside plant, fiber optics and optical transport equipment
• Subject Matter Expert in optical network theory, metro, terrestrial and subsea long-haul optical networking fundamentals and industry evolution, including optical propagation, amplifiers and network elements, operational & resiliency aspects
• General knowledge of terrestrial land construction permitting and erosion control as how it effects OSP activities, Oceanography and Maritime industries to understand the impacts to submarine cable design
• Familiarity with all types of outside plant construction methods and best practices
• Hands-on experience deploying & testing fiber-optic telecom network-elements & systems
• Knowledge of 100G coherent technology to build long-haul networks
• Familiar with coherent optical communication technology, digital signal processing, and high-speed optical signal generation and detection
• Familiar with standard industry design validation process and product life cycle
• Familiar with optical communication systems, linear and nonlinear impairments and tradeoff, such as crosstalk, OSNR, chromatic dispersion, PMD, SPM, XPM, FWM, etc.
• Experience with the use of fiber network design, planning and mapping software tools such as AutoCAD, ESRI ArcGIS and OSP Insight
• An understanding of outside plant construction requirements with fiber experience
• Responsibilities include development of specifications for new systems
• High level proficiency in reading and understanding technical documentation with the ability to update and maintain accurate documentation across company platforms such as Confluence

Additional Duties:

• Works with engineering and network operations support teams to resolve any hardware/technical issues and implements changes.

• Works with customer care teams to monitor, identify, and resolve customer issues in a timely fashion.

• Works with cross functional teams to define project requirements and planning necessary to deliver quality products on time.

• Provides technical content used to create marketing/sales collateral.

Planning & Design: Buildings and Towers:

• Telecommunications industry experience with Critical Infrastructure (CI) facilities, shelters, buildings, towers, etc. preferably in arctic environments
• Building/Shelter design/specification based on industry standards, construction plan oversight and guidance, expansion of all new and existing critical infrastructure systems at central offices, wireless shelters/platforms, mini-hubs, and long-haul/subsea CLS equipment shelters.
• Experience in structural evaluations related to towers and structures
• Familiarity with ANSI/TIA 222-F/G and FAA-70/7460 specifications
• Responsibilities include development of specifications for new systems/solutions, project engineering support of design, technical review, risk assessments, etc.
• Plan, design and oversee the reconfiguration, maintenance, and alteration of telecommunication buildings, structures, and other facilities in support of fiber transport, microwave, satellite, wireless, voice, LAN/WAN, switch, and customer premise equipment
• Responsibility includes gathering, reviewing, and finalizing requirements data regarding facility specifications, construction feasibility, long-term plan strategy, and creation of specifications and standards
• Ensuring compliance with applicable industry codes and regulations; specification of company standards and policies
• Coordinates with architecture/engineering firms in developing design criteria and preparing layout and detail drawings
• High level proficiency in reading and understanding technical documentation with the ability to update and maintain accurate documentation across company platforms including Confluence
• Experience with arctic engineering and construction techniques a plus
• A strong technical competence regarding facility reliability, structural, failure modes analysis and maintenance best practices
• Working knowledge of different engineering disciplines and application to facility maintenance and reliability

Additional Duties:

• Works with engineering and network operations support teams to resolve any hardware/technical issues and implements changes.

• Works with customer care teams to monitor, identify, and resolve customer issues in a timely fashion.

• Works with cross functional teams to define project requirements and planning necessary to deliver quality products on time.

• Provides technical content used to create marketing/sales collateral

Planning & Design: Microwave RF:

• Knowledge of linear and non-linear circuits such as power amplifiers, low noise amplifiers, mixers, filters and PLLs
• Strong knowledge of fundamental microwave engineering terms and concepts (dB, dBm, power gain, S-parameters, path loss, Fresnel clearance, insertion loss, reflection loss, noise floor, p1dB, PAE, oIP3, etc.)
• Experience with high-data-rate long-haul PtP microwave systems/technology, hardware, specification, installation, configuration, usage
• Thorough understanding of RF passive components (waveguide, RF filters, RF circulators, combiners, waveguide switches, etc.)
• Familiar with radio related test equipment such as spectrum analyzers, vector signal analyzers, vector signal generator, network analyzers
• Experience characterizing radio performance at microwave frequencies
• Knowledge of digital communication systems, spread spectrum, single and multi-carrier techniques and modulation types such as QPSK, APSK and QAM
• Understanding of electromagnetic propagation and antenna systems
• Experience in Pathloss or other industry standard microwave link design tools
• Understanding of packet tagging and prioritization methods for quality of service (802.1p COS, DSCP, FIFO, CBWFQ, WRED, etc.)
• Familiarity with Ericsson microwave product line a plus
• Adequate understanding of FAA, FCC, and environmental considerations regarding both new sites and upgrades to existing antenna structures. Including:
  • FAA notice criteria requirements when building or modifying antenna structures
  • FAA lighting requirements for antenna structures.
  • FCC structure registration requirements.
  • FCC Microwave license application requirements
  • Frequency coordination & planning
  • CFR Title 47 Part 15 & Part 101
  • CFR Title 14 Part 77

Additional Duties:

• Works with engineering and network operations support teams to resolve any hardware/technical issues and implements changes.

• Works with customer care teams to monitor, identify, and resolve customer issues in a timely fashion.

• Works with cross functional teams to define project requirements and planning necessary to deliver quality products on time.

• Provides technical content used to create marketing/sales collateral.

Planning & Design: Access

• Experience with ONT and OLT PON platforms such as Calix, Nokia, Vecima, etc.
• Experience with access technologies such as G-PON, XGS-PON, and E-PON supporting FTTx
• Experience in all aspects of passive optical fiber technologies, transport, splitting & distribution, installation, and specifications
• Experience with QoS over DOCSIS and DPoEv2 (Service flows, UGS, etc.)
• Experience with DOCSIS 3.0 and 3.1 networks
• Experience with network design, network architecture, protocols, and network topologies
• Familiarity with CMTS platforms such as Arris/CommScope
• Knowledge of CCAP and DAA technologies (Remote PHY, Remote MAC/PHY)
• Knowledge of DOCSIS provisioning systems, standards, and specifications
• Knowledge of related industry specifications and standards bodies (IEEE, ANSI, SCTE, Cable Labs, etc.)
• Knowledge of HFC architecture including RF performance, maintenance, and troubleshooting
• Knowledge of DOCSIS network security practices such as BPI+
• Knowledge of VoIP protocols such as NCS and SIP