Associate Director of Network Engineering

Talent Groups; New Haven (CT); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Talent Groups is seeking an Associate Director of Network Engineering in Connecticut. This role leads a hands‑on engineering team responsible for designing, implementing, and supporting our enterprise network infrastructure across LAN/WAN, SD‑WAN, firewalls, VPNs, wireless, and UCaaS/CCaaS.

You will guide planning, configuration, troubleshooting, and optimization while driving security and reliability in a hybrid cloud environment.

Qualifications

• BS or BA in Computer Science, Information Systems or related field.
• 12+ years of hands-on network engineering experience.
• 3–5 years in a leadership or supervisory role.
• Deep expertise in routing, switching, firewalls, VPNs, and cloud networking.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage day-to-day operations of the network engineering team, providing technical guidance and mentoring.
• Design, configure, and maintain enterprise network infrastructure including LAN, WAN, SD-WAN, firewalls, VPNs, switches, wireless systems, and UCaaS/CCaaS systems.
• Serve as an escalation point for complex network issues, participating in troubleshooting and root cause analysis.
• Implement and maintain network monitoring and performance tuning tools to ensure high availability and reliability.
• Oversee network security in collaboration with the cybersecurity team, ensuring compliance with company policies and procedures.
• Manage lifecycle upgrades for switches, routers, firewalls, and other networking hardware.
• Participate in the architecture and implementation of hybrid cloud network environments (e.g., Azure, AWS, Google Cloud).
• Collaborate with application, server, and security teams to ensure seamless end-to-end infrastructure support.
• Develop and maintain documentation and network diagrams.
• Manage vendor relationships and coordinate support for hardware and software issues.
• Lead network-related projects including office expansions, data center migrations, and cloud integrations.

Skills

Enterprise Networking

Cisco/Fortinet/Aruba/Arista

BGP/Ospf

Firewall/VPN

Cloud Networking

Zero Trust Security

UCaaS/CCaaS

Leadership

Networking Automation

Education

BS/BA in Computer Science or related field

Tools

SolarWinds/LogicMonitor

Job description

Hybrid Details:

Onsite 1x every 2 weeks at a minimum and as needed

Job Description

• The Associate Director of Network Engineering is a hands-on technical leader responsible for overseeing the design, implementation, and support of the enterprise-wide network infrastructure.


• This individual will lead a team of network engineers while actively participating in the planning, configuration, troubleshooting, and optimization of network technologies.


• The role requires deep expertise in routing, switching, firewalls, VPNs, wireless, and cloud networking, as well as strong leadership and project management skills.

Core Responsibilities

• Lead and manage day-to-day operations of the network engineering team, providing technical guidance and mentoring


• Design, configure, and maintain enterprise network infrastructure including LAN, WAN, SD-WAN, firewalls, VPNs, switches, wireless systems, and UCaaS/CCaaS systems


• Serve as an escalation point for complex network issues, participating in troubleshooting and root cause analysis


• Implement and maintain network monitoring and performance tuning tools to ensure high availability and reliability


• Oversee network security in collaboration with the cybersecurity team, ensuring compliance with company policies and procedures


• Manage lifecycle upgrades for switches, routers, firewalls, and other networking hardware


• Participate in the architecture and implementation of hybrid cloud network environments (e.g., Azure, AWS, Google Coud)


• Collaborate with application, server, and security teams to ensure seamless end-to-end infrastructure support


• Develop and maintain documentation and network diagrams


• Manage vender relationships and coordinate support for hardware and software issues


• Lead network-related projects including office expansions, data center migrations, and cloud integrations

Skills Qualifications

• Strong working knowledge of enterprise networking technologies (Cisco, Fortinet, Aruba, Meraki, Arista, Azure Cloud Networking, etc.)


• Experience in routing and switching protocols (BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, QoS, VLANs, STP)


• Experience with firewalls, VPNs, and Zero trust security models


• Experience with Cloud Networking (Azure ExpressRoute, Azure Firewalls, VPN Gateways, Azure BGP, Virtual WAN HUB, VNET Subnetting, etc.)


• Experience with network automation, scripting, and monitoring tools (SolarWinds, Logic Monitor, etc.)


• Skilled at working within a team-oriented, collaborative environment


• Strong Analytical and problem-solving skills


• Experience with Cloud Based UCaaS/CCaaS Systems


• Education


• BS or BA in Computer Science, Information Systems or related field or equivalent combination of experience and training


• 12+ years of hands-on experience in network engineering, with at least 3 to 5 years in a leadership or supervisory role

Physical Demands

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position for a majority of the workday.


• Ability to travel as needed