Network Systems Engineer - Secret Cleared

Zachary Piper Solutions; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 104,000 - 127,000; Full time

Job summary

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Network Systems Engineer to join a Federal Program located in Pearl Harbor, HI. The engineer will support an extensive enterprise network, handling LAN/WAN/WLAN, security, and Tier III support in a large-scale DoD-like environment.

Responsibilities include configuring and troubleshooting network devices, coordinating with vendors, and ensuring compliance with STIGs. DoD program experience and CCNP/CCIE-level knowledge are highly valued.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree with DoD-level program experience.
• Active Secret clearance and IAT Level III certification required.
• Extensive hands-on with routing, switching, SD-WAN, VPNs, multicast.
• Experience in large DoD-like environments with 16,000+ devices.

Responsibilities

• Lead troubleshooting and root-cause analysis for complex network issues.
• Configure and maintain switches, routers, firewalls, APs, sensors.
• Provide Tier III engineering support and SME guidance.
• Develop change management tickets and EIPs for deployments.

Skills

LAN/WAN/WLAN

Network boundary engineering

Routing & switching

Network security

Tier III troubleshooting

SD-WAN

MPLS

OSPF/BGP/EIGRP

JIRA

Ansible

Python

Education

Bachelor's degree with 8–12 years of relevant professional experience

Master's degree with 6–10 years of relevant professional experience

Active Secret Security Clearance

DoD 8570.01 IAT Level III certification

Cisco CCNA/CCNP/CCIE or equivalent

Tools

Arista

JIRA

Python

Ansible

Job description

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Network Systems Engineer to join a Federal Program located in Pearl Harbor, HI. The Network Systems Engineer will support a large-scale, geographically dispersed enterprise network environment. The ideal candidate will bring strong expertise across LAN/WAN/WLAN, network boundary engineering, routing, switching, network security, and Tier III troubleshooting.

Responsibilities of the Network Systems Engineer:

• Lead efforts to identify, troubleshoot, analyze, and resolve complex network issues in a dynamic enterprise environment.
• Configure, maintain, and troubleshoot network infrastructure, including switches, routers, VLANs, wireless access points (APs), firewalls, and network sensors.
• Provide engineering expertise and operational support for one of the world's largest intranet environments.
• Serve as a Tier III escalation resource for complex incidents, including coordinating with vendors as necessary for incident resolution.
• Serve as an SME and technical backstop for troubleshooting efforts involving multiple network disciplines and teams of CCNP/CCIE-level engineers.
• Troubleshoot technologies and protocols including routing, switching, SD-WAN, WLAN, MPLS, VPNs, OSPF, BGP, EIGRP, switching protocols, and multicast.
• Develop and maintain Engineering Implementation Plans (EIPs) supporting network changes and deployments.
• Create and manage change management tickets for deployments, maintenance activities, upgrades, and other network changes.
• Conduct Root Cause Analysis (RCA) in support of problem management activities and recurring incident resolution.
• Participate in engineering, architecture, and project meetings to design and develop future enterprise network solutions.
• Track engineering and operational work within an Agile/SAFe framework using JIRA.
• Participate in Daily Stand-Ups (DSUs), retrospectives, Program Increment (PI) activities, and other Agile ceremonies.
• Configuration Management Responsibilities
• Configuration Baseline Management
• Maintain version-controlled configuration baselines for network infrastructure devices, including routers, switches, firewalls, and sensors.
• Ensure configuration changes are properly documented, peer-reviewed, approved, and backed up to a centralized repository.
• Maintain change-tracking and rollback capabilities to support operational resilience and configuration recovery.
• Ensure network configurations remain compliant with applicable DISA Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs) and organizational cybersecurity policies.
• Lab Testing & Pre-Production Validation
• Conduct pre-production validation testing for firmware upgrades, configuration changes, and security patches before deployment to production networks.

Qualifications of the Network Systems Engineer:

• Bachelor's degree with 8–12 years of relevant professional experience; or
• Master's degree with 6–10 years of relevant professional experience.
• Active Secret Security Clearance
• DoD 8570.01 IAT Level III certification, such as CASP+, CISSP, CCNP Security, or another qualifying certification.
• A recognized network vendor certification, such as Cisco CCNA, CCNP, or CCIE.
• Subject Matter Expertise in BAN/LAN/WAN/WLAN and Network Boundary engineering.
• Extensive experience performing highly technical network maintenance, configuration, troubleshooting, and engineering activities.
• Experience providing Tier III escalation support in large-scale enterprise environments.
• Experience supporting networks of comparable scale to 16,000+ devices across 450+ geographically dispersed locations.
• Demonstrated ability to serve as an SME and escalation backstop for troubleshooting across multiple network disciplines.
• Extensive hands-on troubleshooting experience with routing, switching, SD-WAN, WLAN, MPLS, VPNs, OSPF, BGP, EIGRP, switching protocols, and multicast.
• Experience with SAFe Agile methodologies and JIRA.Willingness and ability to participate in an on-call rotation.
• Previous experience supporting Department of Defense (DoD) programs and environments.
• Experience with network automation and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) technologies and practices.
• Hands-on experience with automation technologies such as Ansible and Python.
• Experience with Arista networking technologies.
• Advanced Cisco networking certifications, including CCNP or CCIE, are highly desirable.

Compensation for the Network Systems Engineer:

• Salary Range: $115,000+ *flexible based on experience*
• Comprehensive Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, PTO, and Sick Leave as required by law
• Flexible working schedule
• Unlimited opportunities for growth

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