Core Network Engineer

FIRSTLIGHT • Brunswick, ME

3d • $105,000 - $120,000 • Onsite

About The Position

We are seeking a highly skilled Network Engineer to join our Core Network Engineering team. This is a senior-level, hands-on engineering position responsible for designing, deploying, scaling, and supporting FirstLight's carrier-class backbone network. The ideal candidate will have strong experience with optical transport, DWDM, SONET, Carrier Ethernet, and IP/MPLS networking technologies and will lead network projects from concept through deployment and operational turnover.

Position Summary

The Core Network Engineer is responsible for the deployment, capacity expansion, security, troubleshooting, and operational support of FirstLight's production backbone network. This role combines network engineering, project leadership, capacity planning, and Tier 3 escalation support. The successful candidate will lead network deployments from initial design through implementation, migration, testing, and operational acceptance. They will work closely with Operations, Service Delivery, Construction, Outside Plant, and vendor teams to ensure successful execution of network projects while maintaining the reliability and scalability of FirstLight's backbone infrastructure. This position plays a critical role in the ongoing evolution of the network, including supporting growth initiatives involving the latest transport technologies.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Engineering, Computer Science, Telecommunications, or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of experience in service provider, telecommunications, carrier, or large-scale network engineering.
• Strong experience designing, deploying, and troubleshooting: DWDM Transport Networks, Optical Transmission Systems, SONET Infrastructure, Carrier Ethernet Networks, IP/MPLS Networks
• Experience leading network deployment, migration, and infrastructure expansion projects.
• Strong troubleshooting skills across Layer 1, Layer 2, and Layer 3 technologies.
• Experience working in multi-vendor carrier network environments.
• Ability to develop implementation plans, migration procedures, testing methodologies, and operational documentation.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Must be a team player.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with carrier-grade platforms such as: Ciena, Cisco, Juniper, Nokia, Adva
• Experience supporting large-scale optical and packet backbone networks.
• Experience with coherent optical technologies and modern transport architectures.
• Industry certifications such as: CCNP / CCIE, JNCIP / JNCIE, MEF Certifications, CISSP
• Experience supporting networks utilizing 100G, 400G, and 800G+ transport technologies.
• Familiarity with DDoS mitigation, network automation, and security compliance frameworks

Responsibilities

• Lead network deployments from planning and design through implementation, testing, migration, and operational handoff.
• Develop engineering designs, implementation plans, migration procedures, test plans, and rollback strategies.
• Own network expansion, augmentation, and modernization projects from start to finish.
• Ensure deployed solutions meet operational, scalability, resiliency, and performance requirements.
• Coordinate with internal teams and external vendors to ensure successful project execution.
• Design, deploy, and troubleshoot carrier-class optical transport networks.
• Engineer and scale DWDM infrastructure supporting backbone growth and service expansion.
• Engineer, design, and implement upgrades to the IP Core backbone.
• Plan and implement capacity upgrades supporting flex-grid transport technologies.
• Support optical path engineering, wavelength provisioning, network resilience, and transport optimization.
• Design, deploy, and troubleshoot large-scale Carrier Ethernet backbone networks.
• Maintain expert-level knowledge of Layer 2 transport technologies and Ethernet service architecture.
• Support Ethernet transport technologies
• Develop and maintain engineering standards and best practices.
• Design, deploy, and support carrier-grade IP/MPLS backbone infrastructure.
• Maintain strong expertise in MPLS and IP networking Protocols
• Support backbone routing, network resiliency, and service provider interconnection initiatives.
• Deploy, administer, and optimize Fortinet FortiGate and Cisco Firepower security solutions.
• Configure and maintain firewall policies, IPS/IDS, VPNs, NAT, application controls, and threat prevention services.
• Perform network security assessments, vulnerability remediation, and security hardening initiatives.
• Lead capacity planning initiatives across optical, transport, and routing platforms.
• Analyze utilization trends and forecast network growth requirements.
• Develop solutions for increasing network scale, performance, and resiliency.
• Support long-term technology roadmaps and network evolution strategies.
• Evaluate new technologies, hardware platforms, and software solutions.
• Serve as a Tier 3 escalation resource for complex network issues and outages.
• Lead troubleshooting efforts across optical, DWDM, SONET, Ethernet, MPLS, and IP routing environments.
• Conduct root cause analysis and develop corrective actions for major network events.
• Work directly with vendors to resolve complex hardware, software, and interoperability issues.
• Mentor and support Operations and Engineering teams on network technologies and best practices.

Benefits

• Participation in a rotating on-call schedule is required.
• Must be available to support emergency outage restoration activities and critical network events outside normal business hours.
• Participation in scheduled maintenance windows and after-hours implementation activities is expected.
• Occasional travel may be required to support network deployments, central office builds, vendor engagements, and infrastructure projects.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment supporting a 24x7 carrier network.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior