Junior IT Engineer

Do Apply if you:

1. In your free time you build your technical skills via personal projects
2. Are very passionate about technology, security, and/or power generation
3. Get excited getting to learn and not discouraged by your ignorance
4. Able to work effectively with only the end goal provided
5. Comfortable saying when something is unrealistic or a problem immediately
6. Able to start work prior to Jan 31^st, 2026
7. Can work on-site 5-7 days a week in Hawthorne, CA
8. Comfortable with frequent travel to our reactor site in Orangeville, UT 
   (Guaranteed travel in February 2026)

DON’T Apply if you:

1. Require a standard Monday to Friday 9-5 working day
2. Are unwilling to be working weekends and nights
3. Are not authorized to work in the United States (we do not sponsor)
4. Are not eligible to access controlled technical information under applicable U.S. export control regulations (e.g., DOE 10 CFR Part 810); eligibility will be verified.

About the role

You’ll be a new member of a small, but growing, high-impact IT team here at Valar Atomics. This will be a fully on-site role and will require occasional travel as needed. The job splits between (1) day-to-day corporate IT support and (2) working on IT/OT at our test reactor site. You’ll own well-scoped projects end-to-end, partner closely with our MSP, keep our users productive, and our infrastructure tight / well documented.

This is a junior role and has tasks appropriate to that but in a very rapidly growing startup company growth opportunities are very likely if you can show your ability to fulfill requirements and deliver effective solutions efficiently. 

What you’ll do 

• Handle Tier 1/2 help desk intake/triage/resolve; escalate smartly to MSP and track SLAs. 
• Documentation and SOP creation, this will be a critical part of the role: formalizing, improving, and documenting existing process 
• Assist with server rack buildouts: power budgeting, labeling, cabling standards, and clean documentation (rack elevations, diagrams). 
• Support security systems (badging/access control, cameras, NVRs) with basic install/maintenance and vendor coordination. 
• Setup, management, and maintenance of Windows, MacOS, and Linux (Debain/Ubuntu) endpoints (servers and workstations) 
• Maintain O365/Microsoft 365 and Active Directory (users, groups, policy, device join, basic MDM). 
• Stage and configure network switches (VLANs, trunk/access ports, PoE), document port maps, and validate with basic packet capture. 
• Implement and manage firewalls (rules, NAT, VPN, segmentation; change control and logging). 

What you bring

• Hands-on experience with: 
  • Help Desk and user interaction (retail and corporate preferred) 
  • Windows, MacOS, and Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) 
  • Switch deployment/config 
  • Firewall config/management 
  • Rack/cabling + documentation 
  • Customer/user support (retail or corporate) 
  • Security systems (access control/cameras) 
  • O365 / AD administration 

• Strong troubleshooting: methodical, data-driven, and comfortable with deep diving into OS settings and network traffic analysis. 
• Ability to plan, communicate, prioritize, and deliver scoped projects. 
• Excellent written documentation skills including but not limited to: 
  • Standard operating procedures (SOP) 
  • Change requests and logging 
  • Visual diagrams (Cable maps / Network Topology) 

Who you are

• Passionate about technology/servers/networking/digital infrastructure.
• Constant learner, tell us about your homelab or side projects. 
• Self-starter who knows when to ask for help. 
• Level-headed, data-driven, solution-focused. 
• Have relevant work experience (certifications/college degrees are not a substitute) 
• Interest in nuclear power and the power grid is a big plus. 

Nice-to-haves

• Basic scripting (PowerShell/Python/Bash) for automation. 
• MDM/Endpoint: Intune and macOS management. 
• Monitoring/observability: Syslog, SNMP, NMS, SIEM, etc. 
• OT awareness: Purdue model/segmentation basics, PLCs, Rockwell Automation software stack, etc 
• Compliance/controls familiarity (asset inventories, least privilege, backups, change control). 

Working with us

• Small team, real ownership, direct impact on safety-critical operations. 
• Close collaboration with an experienced MSP; you’ll learn fast and ship real systems. 
• Catered lunches 
• Competitive pay