Lead IT Engineer

• Candidates must be open to work within USA time zones EST/EDT and PST/PDT hours.

Key Responsibilities

• Own day-to-day IT infrastructure for the Panchkula (and Pune, remotely) offices: end-user devices, local network (LAN/Wi-Fi, routers, switches, firewalls, VPN), printers/peripherals, and IT asset inventory.
• Monitor network and endpoint health; troubleshoot connectivity, hardware, and access issues; respond to and resolve incidents in a timely manner.
• Manage physical access and office security systems — biometric/access control, CCTV — in coordination with facilities/admin.
• Maintain local backup processes for on-premise systems and devices (note: Amazon AWS backup and disaster recovery is owned by Engineering and out of scope for this role).
• Own onboarding/offboarding IT logistics for new hires (device provisioning, account setup, access grants) — increasingly important given planned headcount growth.
• Manage relationships with local IT vendors (ISP, hardware suppliers, security systems, AMC providers) — negotiate, procure, and hold vendors accountable to SLAs.
• Maintain documentation for network architecture, configurations, and IT procedures.

• Provision and maintain high-performance workstations for the in-house creative/animation team (GPU-capable machines suited to 2D/3D creative software), in addition to standard office devices.
• Manage local shared storage (e.g., NAS) for creative project files and assets, including capacity planning as creative output and headcount grow.
• Coordinate with the creative team on hardware/storage needs specific to their workflow; own the infrastructure and procurement side, not the creative pipeline itself.

• Lead technical planning for the new office IT infrastructure from the ground up: network design, structured cabling requirements, ISP/carrier selection and lead-time coordination, Wi-Fi coverage, access control and CCTV installation.
• Build and own a move plan/timeline in coordination with facilities and leadership: vendor scheduling, data/asset relocation, and a lightweight continuity plan to minimize downtime during the transition.
• Right-size infrastructure decisions (network capacity, device stock, access points, creative storage) against BigHappy's expected headcount growth, not just current headcount — this is a build for the next 12–18 months, not just a like-for-like move.
• Coordinate with Engineering on any local network requirements relevant to their workflows (e.g., dev machine connectivity, VPN access needs) — without taking ownership of cloud/AWS infrastructure itself.

• Implement and maintain office-level security controls: firewall rules, access policies, endpoint security, Wi-Fi segmentation.
• Support any client/partner security questionnaires or audits relevant to the India office's physical/network environment, in partnership with other stakeholders

• Recommend and plan capacity upgrades (network, devices, office IT footprint, creative storage) proactively as India headcount increases.
• Build repeatable, documented processes now so IT support scales without becoming a bottleneck as the team grows — this person will be the sole IT contributor in India for the foreseeable future.

Skills, Knowledge & Expertise

• 7+ years in IT infrastructure/network administration/operations roles, with genuine hands-on ownership (not just ticket support).
• Strong working knowledge of routers, switches, firewalls, VPNs, LAN/Wi-Fi design and troubleshooting.
• Experience with endpoint management and productivity suites (Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, device/MDM tools).
• Direct experience setting up IT infrastructure for a new office/site, or leading an office relocation from an IT standpoint — this is a differentiator for this role, not a nice-to-have.
• Experience managing physical office security systems (CCTV, biometric/access control).
• Vendor management experience (ISPs, hardware, AMC/security vendors) — comfortable negotiating and holding vendors to timelines.
• Strong ownership mindset — comfortable being the sole IT person for the India offices without a team behind them.
• Comfortable provisioning and maintaining workstation-class hardware and local shared storage (NAS) for media/creative workloads, even without a design/animation background.

• Exposure to a scaling startup or a company that has grown headcount materially in a short window.
• Familiarity with adtech/martech or software company environments (understanding of creative and engineering team needs, even without owning cloud infra).
• Prior experience supporting a creative, media, or design team's hardware needs (GPU workstations, render/asset storage).
• Familiarity with structured incident/change management practices.
• Relevant certifications — helpful but not gating.

Benefits