Senior Principal Network Engineer - 175370

ZP Group; Newington (VA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO

Paid Holidays

Medical

Dental

Vision

401K

Tuition Reimbursement

Sick Leave

Job summary

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Senior Principal Network Engineer to lead the design, implementation, and optimization of complex government networks in Newington, VA, supporting national security and critical infrastructure.

The role is on-site, requires 8+ years in network engineering and Cisco technologies, experience with BGP/OSPF/EIGRP, TS/SCI with SAP eligibility, and the ability to translate mission requirements into scalable architectures.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in network engineering or architecture.
• Expertise in BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, MPLS, VXLAN, EVPN.
• Hands-on Cisco Nexus/Catalyst/ACI and NGFW experience.
• Experience with SolarWinds, Wireshark, NetFlow.
• Strong communication, presentation, troubleshooting, and analytical skills.
• Bachelor's degree in CS/IT/Engineering or related field.
• Active TS/SCI clearance with SAP eligibility.

Responsibilities

• Design and architect scalable voice, video, wireless, and data networks.
• Develop high-level and low-level network designs and support deployment.
• Troubleshoot complex network issues and improve performance and security.
• Act as a trusted technical advisor translating mission requirements into scalable architectures.
• Utilize advanced routing, switching, security, and automation to optimize infrastructure.

Skills

Leadership in network design

Routing & switching

Cisco technologies

Network monitoring tools

Communication & analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/IT/Engineering

Tools

SolarWinds

Wireshark

NetFlow

Job description

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Senior Principal Network Engineer to support a federal defense program focused on national security, mission-critical communications, and critical infrastructure protection. This position is on-site in Newington, VA. The Senior Principal Network Engineer will lead the design, implementation, and optimization of complex network environments supporting high-priority government operations.

Responsibilities for the Senior Principal Network Engineer include:

• Design and architect scalable, secure voice, video, wireless, and data communication networks in collaboration with engineering, security, cloud, and operations teams.
• Develop high-level and low-level network designs (HLDs/LLDs) and support the deployment and integration of enterprise and data center networking solutions.
• Troubleshoot complex network issues, conduct root cause analysis, and implement performance, reliability, and security improvements.
• Act as a trusted technical advisor by translating mission requirements into scalable network architectures and strategic solutions.
• Utilize advanced routing, switching, security, and automation technologies to optimize and modernize network infrastructure.

Required Qualifications for the Senior Principal Network Engineer include:

• 8+ years of experience in network engineering, network architecture, or complex enterprise networking environments.
• Strong expertise with routing and switching technologies including BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, MPLS, VXLAN, and EVPN.
• Hands-on experience with Cisco technologies including Catalyst, Nexus, ACI, Next-Generation Firewalls, and enterprise LAN/WAN environments.
• Experience with network monitoring and troubleshooting tools such as SolarWinds, Wireshark, and NetFlow.
• Strong communication, presentation, troubleshooting, and analytical skills.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• Active TS/SCI clearance required with eligibility for Special Access Program (SAP) approval.

Compensation for the Senior Principal Network Engineer include:

Salary Range: $160,000 - $180,000 depending on experience

Full Benefits Package: PTO, Paid Holidays, Medical, Dental, Vision, 401K, Tuition Reimbursement, Sick Leave as required by law.