Principal Network Engineer

Florida Blue; United States; On-site; USD 154,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision insurance

Retirement plan with employer match

Paid time off and holidays

Well-being programs

Job summary

Florida Blue is seeking a Principal Network Engineer to own a multi-cloud network architecture across AWS and Azure, delivering consistent policy enforcement and centralized observability. You will design hybrid connectivity, lead SD-WAN initiatives, and collaborate with security to implement zero-trust controls.

The role requires strong routing, switching, and security expertise, along with programming in Python and IaC tooling to automate configurations and provide scalable, reliable network

Qualifications

• 6+ years of progressive Enterprise Network Engineering experience.
• Bachelor's degree in IT-related field or equivalent professional experience.

Responsibilities

• Design and operate hybrid network connectivity bridging on-premises infrastructure with AWS and Azure, including policy enforcement and failover validation.
• Lead network architecture initiatives including refresh projects, segmentation strategies, SD-WAN deployments, and cloud connectivity.
• Operate and optimize routing, switching, and security platforms; implement and tune firewall, VPN, and zero-trust controls.
• Develop automation and Infrastructure-as-Code to streamline configuration management, compliance, and change deployment.
• Build and maintain network observability with tools like Datadog and ThousandEyes, plus documentation.

Skills

Enterprise network engineering

Cloud architecture

Hybrid connectivity

BGP/OSPF

DNS & security controls

Terraform

Python

Ansible

Observability (Datadog/ Thousand Eyes)

Networking automation

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT-related field

Tools

Terraform

Ansible

Git

Job description

The Principal Network Engineer will own and evolve a multi-cloud network architecture with AWS (Transit Gateway, Direct Connect, AWS Network Firewall, VPC) and/or Azure (ExpressRoute, VNet peering, Azure Firewall), including consistent policy enforcement, hybrid connectivity, and centralized observability across both clouds. We value engineers who reason from first principles — understanding how routing, segmentation, DNS, and security controls behave differently across cloud providers — and can apply that knowledge to design consistent, scalable patterns regardless of underlying platform.

What makes this role unique

We value engineers who reason from first principles—understanding how routing, segmentation, DNS, and security controls behave differently across cloud providers—and can apply that knowledge to design consistent, scalable patterns regardless of underlying platform.

What You Will Be Doing

Cloud Architecture & Hybrid Connectivity

• Design and operate hybrid network connectivity bridging on-premises infrastructure with AWS and Azure, including BGP route policy management, split-horizon DNS, consistent firewall policy enforcement, and failover validation across Direct Connect and ExpressRoute circuits
• Lead network architecture initiatives including refresh projects, segmentation strategies, SD-WAN deployments, and cloud connectivity (AWS, Azure, and/or GCP)
• Gather and analyze business requirements to design technology solutions that meet evolving business needs, including modifying existing systems or evaluating vendor solutions

Network Operations & Security

• Operate and optimize Cisco (or equivalent) routing, switching, and wireless platforms, including campus core/distribution/access layers and wireless controllers
• Implement and tune network security controls in partnership with the Security team—firewalls, VPN (remote access and site-to-site), NAC, and zero-trust network access
• Troubleshoot complex, multi-domain network issues spanning routing, switching, wireless, DNS, firewalls, and cloud; drive root-cause analysis to permanent resolution

Observability, Automation & Infrastructure-as-Code

• Build and maintain network observability using tools such as Datadog, Thousand Eyes, SolarWinds, or equivalent—including dashboards, alerting, and capacity planning
• Develop automation and Infrastructure-as-Code (Python, Ansible, Terraform) to streamline configuration management, compliance, and change deployment
• Author and maintain high-quality network documentation including diagrams, runbooks, standards, and as-built records

Team & Operational Excellence

• Participate in an on-call rotation and lead major incident response when network issues impact the business
• Prepare documentation for audits and participate in monthly releases and disaster recovery exercises
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to the technical growth of the team

What We Require

• 6+ years of progressive Enterprise Network Engineering experience
• Bachelor's degree in IT-related field or equivalent professional experience

Hands-On Cloud Expertise (AWS & Axure)

• Demonstrated practical experience with AWS Transit Gateway, Direct Connect, VPC, Network Firewall, Route 53, ALB/NLB, PrivateLink
• Proven ability to design and deploy Terraform-managed Infrastructure-as-Code in AWS environments
• Demonstrated practical experience with Azure ExpressRoute, VNet peering, Azure Firewall
• Ability to architect and implement hybrid connectivity solutions in Azure

Network Fundamentals & Troubleshooting

• Expert-level knowledge of routing and switching protocols (BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, MPLS, VXLAN/EVPN, spanning tree, QoS)
• Deep hands-on experience with Cisco ACI/IOS/IOS-XE/NX-OS and/or comparable platforms (Arista, Juniper, Palo Alto, Fortinet)
• Proven ability to troubleshoot and resolve complex network issues using tools such as TCPDUMP, FW Monitor, Packet Capture, or Wireshark

Enterprise Wireless & Security

• Strong experience with enterprise wireless (Cisco 9800 WLC, Meraki, Aruba, or equivalent), including RF design and troubleshooting
• Working knowledge of next-generation firewalls and remote-access VPN technologies (Cisco ASA/Firepower, Palo Alto, Fortinet, AnyConnect, etc.)
• Strong understanding of network security principles, segmentation, and zero-trust concepts

Automation & Infrastructure

• Hands-on experience with network automation tools and scripting (Python, Ansible, Terraform, Git)
• Demonstrated proficiency implementing observability tools (Datadog, ThousandEyes, or equivalent)

Communication & Availability

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to explain complex networking concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• Participation in on-call rotation encompassing evenings and weekends (approximately every 6 weeks, scheduled in advance)

General Physical Demands

• Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally to move objects.
• Jobs are sedentary if traversing activities are required only occasionally.
• May require occasional travel to support business operations, including in office meetings, collaboration, events, and other work related activities

What We Offer

As a Florida Blue employee, you will be at the heart of GuideWell’s vision – to lead the nation in transforming health through compassionate, connected, and technology-enabled care that delivers personalized value and empowered living.

To support your wellbeing, comprehensive benefits are offered. As an employee, you will have access to:

• Medical, dental, vision, life and global travel health insurance
• Income protection benefits: life insurance, short- and long-term disability programs
• Leave programs to support personal circumstances
• Retirement Savings Plan including employer match
• Paid time off, volunteer time off, 10 holidays and 2 well-being days
• Additional voluntary benefits available; and a comprehensive wellness program

Employee benefits are designed to align with federal and state employment laws. Benefits may vary based on the state in which work is performed. Benefits for intern, part-time and seasonal employees may differ.

To support your financial wellbeing, we offer competitive pay as well as opportunities for incentive or commission compensation. We also conduct regular annual reviews with pay for performance considerations for base pay increases.

Typical Annualized Offer/Hiring Range: $153,800 - $192,200

Annualized Salary Range: $153,800 - $249,900

Final pay will be determined with consideration of market competitiveness, internal equity, and the job-related knowledge, skills, training, and experience you bring.

We are an Equal Employment Opportunity employer committed to cultivating a work experience where everyone feels like they belong and can perform at their best in pursuit of our mission. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment.