Network Architect

Jcd Staffing; United States; On-site; USD 165,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Jcd Staffing is seeking an experienced Network Architect with over 5 years of expertise in designing network infrastructures for complex environments. The ideal candidate will possess deep knowledge of network technologies such as ACI, SDN, and SDWAN, along with strong skills in automation tools like Terraform and Python. This hybrid role requires on-site presence at least 3 days a week, offering a competitive salary range of $165,000 to $170,000 annually. U.S. Citizenship and Public Trust Clearance are mandatory.

Qualifications

• Expert understanding of network technologies like ACI, SDN, SDWAN.
• 5+ years in designing complex network infrastructure.
• Experience with infrastructure automation and coding.

Responsibilities

• Architect and create roadmaps for Infrastructure technology.
• Participate in evaluations of new technology.
• Ensure scalable core technologies and document standards.

Skills

Network technologies (ACI, SDN, SDWAN, etc.)

Network practices and protocols (MPLS/SR, IPv4, etc.)

Network infrastructure design (5+ years)

High availability infrastructure design (5+ years)

Network operations and support

Infrastructure and network automation (Postman, Terraform, etc.)

Cloud networking design

General architecture methodologies

Effective communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering or IT

8+ years IT experience

Tools

Postman

Terraform

Ansible

Python

Job description

Responsibilities

• Architect and create roadmaps for all Infrastructure related technology; participate in conversations with vendors and internal business customers on long-term business goals and objectives; support fiscally reasonable designs and architecture; manage Life Cycle Management (LCM) for Infrastructure technologies; participate in project management efforts including Intake, Preliminary Design, Gather Requirements, architecture review boards and project oversight.
• Participate in evaluations of technology and sourcing with leadership; assess emerging technologies; provide key input on technology investments regarding price vs. performance vs. capabilities.
• Participate in the design and documentation of target architecture; evaluate and project capacity growth; ensure scalable and flexible core technologies; stay abreast of industry trends; use KPI's and effective metrics to improve key processes; bridge knowledge with peers across typically separate areas of the infrastructure landscape; build understanding of business drivers and stakeholder requirements; integrate core capabilities with new technology to allow successful implementation of solutions, projects and standards definitions.
• Support and participate in architectural reviews and/or audits; define and maintain documentation of network and technology standards, process, and policies related to core infrastructure areas; develop and review solutions to ensure network systems and associated processes align with IT strategies and roadmaps.
• Participate in the review and recommendation of infrastructure technologies to meet business needs and priorities as aligned with enterprise strategies; design the technical network infrastructure for the enterprise; effectively integrate solutions into the existing network; document current state network architecture; consult on key projects; help deploy solutions that meet the business's needs and meet technical requirements.
• Provide technical and process expertise to support operations engineers; involve in major incidents/outages; help resolve implementation issues, communicate system requirements and resolve system integration issues; hands‑on experience with specific technologies relevant to the enterprise's needs, including varied systems software and multiple hardware platforms; deliver innovative approach to problem solving.
• Conceptualize business needs and solutions at a high level, then develop technical requirements and recommend solutions; understand existing operational environment and drive improvement to existing design and solutions.

Qualifications / Skills

• Demonstrated expert level understanding of network technologies (ACI, SDN, SDWAN, routing, switching, firewalls, wireless, application load balancing, network visibility).
• Demonstrated expert level understanding of network practices and protocols (MPLS/SR, optical networking, LISP, VXLAN, IPv4, IPv6, 802.1X, segmentation, QoS, IPAM).
• 5+ years of experience designing network infrastructure for a large/complex network.
• 5+ years of experience designing highly available infrastructure and services for a 24x7 environment.
• Demonstrated understanding of network operations and support methodologies and processes.
• Experience with infrastructure and network automation platforms and coding (Postman, Terraform, Ansible, Python, etc.).
• Experience with Internet policy and design (ARIN, IRR, IXPs, BGP policy design, RPKI, DDoS mitigation).
• Demonstrated understanding and experience in cloud networking design for both hybrid and cloud native deployments.
• Skills in general architecture, operations, or deployment methodologies and techniques.
• Effective communication skills to interact with all levels of technology and business partners.
• Experience delivering concurrent, large information management projects at all phases—from project definition through design and delivery.
• Solid understanding and applied expertise in solutions architecture designs and concepts (SDLC process, security, high availability, recovery, performance, monitoring and operations design).
• Experience working with vague requirements and/or within organizations that are non-structured.

Education / Experience

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, Information Technology field or equivalent combination of education/experience.
• 8+ years IT experience in roles of increasing technical responsibility.

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Public Trust Clearance required.
• This position is a hybrid (on-site/remote) position; candidate must work on-site a minimum of 3 days a week.
• Flexible work-from-home options available.
• Compensation: $165,000.00 - $170,000.00 per year.