Network Security Engineer

NMC2; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A technology firm in California is seeking a Senior Network Security Engineer to oversee complex security architecture and mentor junior engineers. This role requires extensive experience in network engineering and security technologies, with a strong emphasis on automation. Candidates should possess leadership skills and a solid understanding of Zero Trust principles. This position offers the opportunity to work with advanced security solutions, enhancing the cloud infrastructure.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in network engineering and security engineering.
• Proven leadership experience in a senior or lead engineering role.
• Strong understanding of network protocols and hands-on experience with TCP/UDP.

Responsibilities

• Mentor junior engineers and provide guidance.
• Implement and manage advanced security solutions.
• Act as lead for critical security incidents.

Skills

Network engineering and security

Leadership

Network protocols and OSI model

Network security technologies

Zero Trust principles

Scripting and automation

Education

Certifications such as CISSP, CCIE Security

Tools

Python

Terraform

Jenkins

Job description

NorthMark Compute & Cloud (NMC²)is backed by dedicated leadership and investment, with a clear mission as it operates at the bleeding edge of technology. Its goal is to scale and enhance the high-performance computing (HPC) and cloud infrastructure that supports its clients' research, production, and delivery, enabling breakthroughs that shape the industries of tomorrow. Its engineers build critical infrastructure to eliminate friction in scientific research, simulations, analysis, and decision‑making, accelerating discovery and driving faster innovation.

The Position

As a Senior Network Security Engineer, you will play a critical role in managing, implementing and optimising a hyperscale network security infrastructure.
As a technical leader, you will oversee complex security architecture initiatives, mentor peer engineers, handle escalated incident response efforts and ensure compliance with the latest security standards. Our company roadmap is centred on automation, therefore a background in automation and interest in leveraging automation is key to this role.

Responsibilities:

• Mentoring junior and mid-level engineers, overseeing team activities and providing guidance in complex troubleshooting and architecture decisions
• Implementing and managing advanced security solutions using firewalls, proxy, system hardening, treat profile and segmentation strategies to secure the intellectual data
• Acting as a lead escalation for critical security incidents
• Developing automation playbooks, network security policies framework and consolidation, treat model and drive root cause analysis with corrective actions
• Overseeing network vulnerability assessments, penetration testing coordination and remediation planning
• Championing the integration of automated tools for infrastructure build, day two support and lifecycle management of all security infrastructure using platforms like Python, Terraform, and vendor APIs, leveraging tools such as Algosec, Tufin, Jenkins and Git
• Working closely with infrastructure, DevOps and application teams to embed security best practices throughout the technology stack

Requirements:

• Extensive experience in network engineering and security engineering, along with proven architectural experience in trusted, untrusted and DMZ environments
• Proven leadership experience in a senior or lead engineering role, with the ability to drive the team and work individually
• Strong understanding of network protocols and the OSI model, with hands‑on experience in TCP/UDP‑based applications, routing, switching and load balancing
• Extensive knowledge of network security technologies, including firewalls, VPNs, proxies, MACsec, IPsec, HTTPS, certificate chains, DNS, NTP, AAA, and domain‑based authentication and authorisation
• Expertise with multiple security vendors, such as, Palo Alto, Fortinet, Check Point and F5
• Strong understanding of Zero Trust principles, segmentation, and secure cloud networking in AWS or Azure
• Familiarity with scripting and automation using Python, Ansible, or Terraform for example
• Certifications such as CISSP, CCIE Security, GIAC (GSEC/GCIH/GXPN), Palo Alto, Fortinet or equivalent highly preferred

The following skills and experience would be beneficial:

• Core network with VxLAN EVPN DC architecture experience
• Experience with hybrid or multi‑cloud environments
• Prior involvement in M&A technical integrations
• Background in building SOC capabilities or working with MSSPs
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Firewall automation experience is beneficial