Specialist System Design

At CN, we work together to move our company-and North America-forward. Be part of our Information & Technology (I&T) team, a critical piece of the engine that keeps us in motion. From enterprise architecture to operational technology, our teams use the agile methodology to automate and digitize our railroad ensuring our operations run optimally and safely and our employees can focus on value-added tasks. You will be able to develop your skills and career in our close-knit, safety-focused culture working together as ONE TEAM. The careers we offer are meaningful because the work we do matters. Join us!

Job Summary

The role of Specialist System Design  is to take ownership of the detailed functional design and production of subsystem components, whether based on a packaged solution or on custom development.

 This requires working with product management, architecture, internal business clients, operations officers, and end users to understand the End-to-End architecture, requirements, expected use-cases and interfaces of the subsystem components.

 This role also implies working with other System Designers in the team to ensure consistent application of the process and best practices expected all members. System Designers are also involved in the development, testing, integration, delivery, and support phases of the project.

Main Responsibilities

Works with managers, product management, architecture, and other members of system design team to drive best practices during the delivery of a system and to support the initial support phases.

System Design

·       Analyze sub-system component issues and/or business requirements to design effective, high-availability, business-critical solutions.

·       Understand the proposed high-level architecture and transpose it into subsystem component functional and non-functional requirements.

·       Produce all associated design documentation expected within a rigorous System Engineer process.

·       Follow standards and best practices to ensure the system design is maintainable and sustainable for the complete subsystem component lifecycle.

·       Follow standards and best practices to ensure reliability, safety, and cybersecurity standards are imbedded in the design of the subsystem.

·       Work with other System Designers to adopt, improve, and enforce best practices.

·       Understand rail subsystem architectures to develop specifications on technical design aspects (hardware, software, and Cloud integration)

·       Design and propose enhancements and modifications to the subsystem architecture.

·       Work with CN personnel in the various business units (Regulatory, Network Operations, Mechanical, I&T Operations, etc) to ensure all requirements are properly designed.

·       Engage external suppliers and work with internal business clients, supply management, and regulatory teams for the delivery, support, and improvement of new and existing services.

Delivery & Quality

·       Work with Project Managers to identify design, build, lab testing, and field testing deliverables with associated estimates, including technical risks

·       Work with the development team to ensure system design is fully understood and developed with high quality.

·       Define the deployment plan of the software and/or the hardware with internal business clients and support validation and verification activities performed by field personnel.

·       Ensure compliance to technical specifications by overseeing subsystem development, test strategy definition, test procedure creation and execution.

·       Work with quality leads, management, and QA to constantly monitor quality KPI’s and implement design improvements.

·       Apply and ensure compliance with all appropriate CN I&T standards (Security, Architecture, Project Delivery Methodology, SOX, Telecom, Software Engineering)

·       Manage supplier roadmaps (hardware & software) based on CN strategy and needs.

·       Define, implement, and maintain software and software configuration of CN components.

·       Management, configuration, debugging and delivery of Linux based embedded systems and components:

o   Linux command line (preferably RedHat Enterprise Linux)

o   Bash scripting language

o   Network interface configuration

o   Traffic flow control mechanisms

o   iptables and nftables

o   DNS, SNMP, SSH, SSL

o   System services monitoring and control

o   Deployment tools (rpm, yum, etc)

·       Understanding of Software Development concepts and tools

o   Repository management tools (i.e. GIT, SVN)

o   CI/CD & Pipeline solutions (Azure DevOps, Jenkins)

·       Understanding cloud-based infrastructure (Google, Azure, AWS) solutions

o   Cloud orchestration

o   Cloud data integration

o   Hybrid Integration

o   Integration Platform as a Service

·       Support segment testing of system software and configuration.

·       Define, execute, and report pilot testing of new solutions.

·       Follow Change and Release Management processes by initiating Change Controls requests and executing cut-over plans.

·       Investigate production, deployment, and migration issues in the lab environment to determine appropriate corrective actions, impact analysis, and root causes.

·       Operationalization of new solutions via documentation, training, and demos.

Requirements

Education/Certification/Designation

·       Bachelor’s degree in computer engineering, software engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, or equivalent degree and experience

Skills/Knowledge

·       Excellent oral, written and presentation skills.

·       Expertise in the redaction, review, and validation of compliance of system requirements.

·       Ability to analyze, design and document detailed designs.

·       Proficient in documentation of model, performance, capacity planning, and strategic technical decision

Experience

·       Minimum 7 years overall work experience

·       Minimum 7 years in system or software engineering and design

·       Minimum 2 years in Cloud integration

·       Minimum 2 years in a leadership role of leading developers

Assets

·       Experience in working with Agile and DevOps development organizations.

·       Managing lifecycle of delivery of complex software solution.

·       Experience with executive presentations.

·       Experience as a Linux System Administrator

Working Conditions

In office presence required 3 days a week.

About CN

CN is a world-class transportation leader and trade-enabler. Essential to the economy, to the customers, and to the communities it serves, CN safely transports more than 300 million tons of natural resources, manufactured products, and finished goods throughout North America every year. As the only railroad connecting Canada’s Eastern and Western coasts with the Southern tip of the U.S. through a 19,500 mile rail network, CN and its affiliates have been contributing to community prosperity and sustainable trade since 1919. CN is committed to programs supporting social responsibility and environmental stewardship. At CN, we work as ONE TEAM, focused on safety, sustainability and our customers, providing operational and supply chain excellence to deliver results.