Senior Network Architect Manager

Baker McKenzie; Belfast; Hybrid; GBP 125,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global law firm in Belfast seeks a Senior Network Architect Manager to lead architecture, engineering, and operational support of their network infrastructure. The role requires strong experience in network management and security within a mid-to-large enterprise. Responsibilities include directing teams, overseeing operations, and implementing technical projects. The position offers a hybrid working model and competitive benefits.

Benefits

Comprehensive private health cover

Income protection

Life assurance

Employee assistance plan

Qualifications

• Strong experience managing network infrastructure in a mid-to-large enterprise.
• Experience supervising network architecture and operations teams.
• Strong understanding of network architecture concepts and operating principles.

Responsibilities

• Direct and manage the daily activities of the Network Architecture and Operations Teams.
• Design, plan, and implement network installation projects.
• Oversee day-to-day operation and maintenance of the organization's WAN and LAN infrastructure.

Skills

Network infrastructure management

Leadership and team management

Network security

WAN/LAN technologies

Cloud networking technologies

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools

Vendor management

Education

Cisco CCNP/CCIE and/or Cisco CCDP preferred

Tools

Terraform

Ansible

CloudFormation

Job description

Location

Location: Belfast

Workplace

Workplace: Hybrid

The opportunity

The opportunity: The Senior Network Architect Manager will lead the architecture, engineering, and operational support of the organization's global network infrastructure, ensuring stability, performance, and scalability. This role combines advanced design, planning, implementation, and troubleshooting of network systems with leadership responsibilities. The role aligns technical capabilities with business goals, facilitating cross-functional collaboration and ensuring compliance with security and performance standards.

Working at Baker McKenzie

Working at Baker McKenzie: Baker McKenzie is the world's leading law firm with offices all over the world. Our Belfast Centre is home to over 400 colleagues in both legal and professional services.

We offer one of the best workplace benefits packages in the business with comprehensive private health cover, income protection, life assurance and a full employee assistance plan. These and a host of other benefits make us one of the most desirable companies to work for in Belfast.

We are committed to promoting inclusion, diversity, and equity for all and are confident we can provide a career as individual and as exceptional as you.

Responsibilities

• Leadership & Team Management: Direct and manage the daily activities of the Network Architecture and Operations Teams
• Leadership & Team Management: Supervise and mentor network engineers and operations associates, assigning duties, preparing performance reviews, and fostering professional development
• Leadership & Team Management: Act as a primary escalation point for technical and operational issues
• Network Design & Engineering: Design, plan, and implement network installation projects, ensuring adherence to technical and operational requirements
• Network Design & Engineering: Develop and enforce network architecture, standards, and policies for LAN, WAN, and telecommunications technologies
• Network Design & Engineering: Conduct capacity planning and network analysis to ensure the scalability and reliability of infrastructure
• Network Design & Engineering: Provide advanced network simulation and analysis in support of application and business requirements
• Network Design & Engineering: Design, implement, and maintain cloud networking technologies, including virtual machines, containers, storage, networking, and databases
• Network Design & Engineering: Utilize infrastructure as code (IaC) tools like Terraform for provisioning and managing cloud resources
• Operations & Compliance: Oversee day-to-day operation and maintenance of the organization's WAN and LAN infrastructure, ensuring compliance with service-level agreements (SLAs)
• Operations & Compliance: Monitor network performance, perform periodic assessments, and implement enhancements to meet or exceed operational targets
• Operations & Compliance: Collaborate with internal stakeholders to enforce information security policies and remediate non-compliance
• Operations & Compliance: Define and participate in disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity planning (BCP) practices
• Operations & Compliance: Monitor internal and external compliance with the Firm's information security policies and procedures. Identify non-compliant practices and assist with remediation
• Vendor & Project Management: Establish and maintain relationships with network-related vendors, ensuring timely support and cost-effective solutions
• Vendor & Project Management: Manage network-related projects, including planning, implementation, and documentation
• Vendor & Project Management: Provide status updates and detailed reports to the IT leadership
• Documentation & Training: Maintain and enhance the Firm's network information repositories (web, database, SharePoint)
• Documentation & Training: Develop and deliver training, internal consultation, and documentation services to applicable teams

Essential Criteria

Essential Criteria: To be successful in this role you will need:

Skills and Experience

• Strong experience managing network infrastructure in a mid-to-large enterprise
• Experience supervising network architecture and operations teams; Strong leadership and team-building capabilities
• Strong experience with network security, including experience with security frameworks and compliance standards (e.g., ISO 27001, NIST)

Certifications

• Cisco CCNP/CCIE and/or Cisco CCDP preferred; Equivalent experience considered

Technical Skills

• Expertise in WAN/LAN technologies, VoIP, firewalls, and network monitoring systems
• Strong understanding of network architecture concepts and operating principles
• Proficient in data communications, hardware/software integration, and troubleshooting complex network issues
• Familiar with industry-standard network policies and compliance requirements
• Proficient in using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation for provisioning and managing network resources
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Proven ability to gather and analyze information, conclude, and propose solutions

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