Senior Network Development Engineer

Simplesense; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 155,000 - 195,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Medical insurance

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

401k matching

Job summary

Simplesense in Denver, CO is hiring a Senior Network Development Engineer to design and implement software-driven network automation for our hybrid-cloud platform. You will build reusable tooling, automate provisioning and validation across customer environments, and mentor teammates to sustain mission-ready connectivity for critical infrastructure.

The role emphasizes zero-trust security, DevSecOps, and collaboration with Connectivity and Engineering teams; local onsite as needed with quarterly

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience building infrastructure, automation, or platform engineering in complex environments.
• Strong experience developing automation and tooling for infrastructure or network systems using Git workflows, configuration data, scripting, CI/CD, testing, and code reviews.
• Strong Linux expertise: configuration, package management, debugging, scripting.
• Solid networking knowledge: VPNs, firewalls, encryption, secure connectivity patterns.
• Willingness to travel quarterly for Program Management Reviews and team collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and implementation of reusable automation, tooling, and configuration-driven workflows for Connectivity infrastructure lifecycle.
• Develop and maintain automation for Linux-based systems and network appliances, including secure config generation and updates.
• Translate onboarding and maintenance needs into scalable workflows for provisioning, secure channel establishment, and validation.
• Build automation patterns aligned with zero-trust principles and access controls.
• Create design docs, implementation guidance, and handoff materials; enforce coding standards.
• Provide code and design reviews; mentor junior and mid-level engineers.
• Collaborate with Connectivity and Engineering teams to scale network provisioning and sustainment.

Skills

Network automation

Linux

Networking

Technical leadership

Travel

Git & CI/CD

Tools

Ansible

Cisco DevNet

Open-source routing tools

Job description

Simplesense builds, deploys, and sustains the Installation Resilience Platform that enables mission operators to rapidly adapt and respond. The Platform protects critical infrastructure from cyber attack while unlocking previously siloed information to monitor, diagnose, and improve response times to incidents. Our adversaries rapidly adopt the latest technology: we help defense users respond in kind.

Simplesense is a non-traditional defense contractor and prime on the Air Force’s Installation Resilience Operations Command and Control (IROC) program, which is now expanding to five additional Air Force, Space Force, and Army installations from the one prototype installation, Tyndall Air Force Base.

Our team combines over 100 years of direct mission experience solving hard problems with 50 years technical expertise deploying DevSecOps, cybersecurity, and cloud infrastructure, giving us a deep appreciation for our customers’ mission and end users’ priorities. We build for scale, architecting and prioritizing technical work for long term sustainability.

Senior Network Development Engineer

Location: We prioritize candidates who reside in Denver, CO (hybrid as needed) but we are open to exceptional remote talent.

Department: Engineering

About Simplesense

Simplesense keeps military installations mission-ready. The infrastructure their operations depend on — power, water, fuel, facilities, security, and communications — runs continuously, often under strain. When it fails without warning, mission readiness is at risk, and the people who run these installations need to see what’s happening in time to act. That’s the foundation of Continuous Mission Assurance.

We securely integrate Operational Technology and Control Systems (OT/CS) from the building edge to the cloud, applying Zero Trust principles to protect critical infrastructure from cyber and physical threats. By unlocking previously siloed data, we put timely awareness in front of the decision-makers who need it. As prime on the Air Force’s Installation Resilience Operations Command and Control (IROC) program, we hold a continuous Authority to Operate (ATO) and have proven the capability at scale at Tyndall Air Force Base. That work is now expanding across the Air Force, Space Force, and Army.

Our team pairs over a century of boots‑on‑the‑ground mission experience with deep technical expertise across DevSecOps, cybersecurity, and cloud infrastructure. We engineer resilient infrastructure — the software, integration, and operational backbone behind it — for the operators who depend on it in the field. Persistent resilience, built for the mission.

About the Role

As our Senior Network Development Engineer, you will play a critical role in securely and efficiently onboarding customer facilities into our hybrid‑cloud platform services. You will design and implement software‑driven network automation, reusable tooling, and configuration‑driven workflows that make Connectivity infrastructure repeatable, secure, and scalable. You will partner closely with the Connectivity and broader engineering teams to automate how network infrastructure is provisioned, configured, validated, updated, and sustained across customer environments to ensure our platform remains mission ready.

Work Model: We prioritize candidates who reside in the Denver, CO area, (hybrid as needed) but we are open to exceptional remote talent.

• Locals: Onsite as needed for collaborative workspace time.
• Remote: Quarterly travel to hub locations for team syncs and alignment.

Our Performance Culture

We measure performance across two key dimensions: How you perform your role (Our Core Values) and What your role entails (Your Execution).

How You’ll Work — Our Core Values

At Simplesense, we value high‑trust autonomy. We look for builders who can comfortably navigate ambiguity and are deeply driven by our shared national security mission.

• People Always – Win as One Team: We foster a culture of psychological safety and mutual support. We operate as an integrated team where we assume noble intent as our default setting, ensuring that even the toughest feedback is rooted in trust. We trade our silos for a shared mission because collective impact always outweighs individual achievement.
• Empathize – Obsess Over the Customer: We don’t just solve technical problems; we empathize and advocate for the operators using our products. We look beyond the surface to build what our customers—both internal and external—actually need to succeed, not just what they asked for.
• Focus – Ruthlessly Prioritize with Urgency: We focus on the highest‑impact work and ruthlessly say no to distractions. We build resilient systems so that our solutions can repeat and scale under pressure.
• Let’s Go – Catalyze the Change You Seek: We don’t wait for the industry to change; we drive it. We seek to understand why things are the way they are, but we never use “the way it’s always been” as an excuse. We aren’t afraid to change course when the data or our mission demands it.

What You’ll Do

• Network Automation & Infrastructure-as-Code: Lead the design and implementation of reusable automation, tooling, and configuration‑driven workflows that manage the lifecycle of Connectivity infrastructure and reduce manual network operations.
• Linux & Network Systems: Develop and maintain automation for Linux‑based systems and network appliances, including secure configuration generation, system bootstrapping, software updates, network configuration, and automated validation routines.
• Network Provisioning & Validation: Translate network onboarding and maintenance needs into scalable technical workflows for provisioning, secure channel establishment, configuration deployment, connectivity testing, monitoring, and sustainment across customer environments.
• Security by Design: Build automation and infrastructure patterns that align with zero‑trust principles, network segmentation requirements, access controls, and critical infrastructure security expectations.
• Technical Design & Problem Solving: Break down ambiguous infrastructure and workflow problems into clear technical designs, implementation plans, and well‑scoped engineering tasks.
• Engineering Standards: Produce clear design documentation, implementation guidance, and operational handoff materials. Help reinforce strong standards for code quality, testing, and maintainability within the team’s Connectivity engineering work.
• Elevate the Team: Provide thoughtful code and design reviews, mentor junior and mid‑level engineers, and help grow the team’s software‑driven and network‑as‑code approach to Connectivity engineering.

What You Bring

Required Qualifications:

• Experience: 5+ years of experience building infrastructure, automation, or platform engineering solutions in complex environments.
• Network Automation Development: Strong experience developing automation and tooling for infrastructure or network systems using disciplined engineering practices such as Git workflows, structured configuration data, scripting or programming, CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and code reviews.
• Linux Expertise: Strong hands‑on experience with Linux operating systems, system configuration, package and service management, debugging, and scripting.
• Networking Knowledge: Solid understanding of network design, segmentation, VPNs, firewalls, encryption, and secure connectivity patterns.
• Technical Leadership: Proven ability to independently solve ambiguous technical problems within a complex platform or infrastructure domain, drive solution design through implementation, communicate tradeoffs clearly, and support the growth of less experienced engineers.
• Travel: Ability to travel quarterly for Program Management Reviews and team collaboration.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Strongly prefer candidates residing in the Denver metro area.
• Prior experience working within DoD, Air Force, or Federal contractor environments.
• Relevant technical certifications such as CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Security+, CCNA, CCNP, CCIE, AWS Advanced Networking, etc.
• Experience with OT/ICS, critical infrastructure, industrial networks, facility‑edge environments, and network automation tools (e.g., Ansible, Cisco DevNet, open‑source routing tools).

What Success Looks Like (First 90 Days)

• 30 Days: Ramp up on existing network architectures, automation tooling, configuration patterns, lab environments, and onboarding workflows, and build relationships across Connectivity Operations, Platform, and adjacent engineering teams.
• 60 Days: Contribute production‑quality automation and design improvements to active Connectivity workflows, identify opportunities to standardize network provisioning, configuration, and validation, and begin shaping an implementation plan for a complex automation or tooling area.
• 90 Days: Independently own a network automation or tooling area within Connectivity, deliver production‑ready improvements that increase repeatability and reduce manual operational effort, and mentor teammates through code reviews, design reviews, and implementation guidance.

Compensation and Benefits

Pay Range: $155k-$195k per year. Compensation is determined based on experience, skill level, and location. We review ranges regularly to ensure market competitiveness.

Competitive Benefits

• Equity
• Medical, Life, Short‑Term Disability, and AD&D insurance
• Medical travel coverage
• Dental coverage
• Vision coverage
• 401k matching

Simplesense is an equal opportunity employer committed to a policy of merit‑based employment. All employment decisions—including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, benefits, training, and termination—are made based on individual qualifications, performance, and business needs. We strictly prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind on the basis of protected characteristics as recognized by federal, state, or local law. As a U.S. government contractor, Simplesense complies with all applicable equal employment opportunity laws, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA). If you need a reasonable accommodation to complete the application or take part in the interview process, please contact People Operations at [e-mail].