Network Communications/Principal Network Communications

Northrop Grumman•Rolling Meadows, IL

1d•$79,600 - $148,300•Onsite

About The Position

Northrop Grumman’s CIDO Classified Solutions team is hiring a Network Communications professional to support information system lifecycle activities for classified government contracts. The role may be filled at Level 2 or Level 3, depending on qualifications, and is based full-time on-site at the company’s Rolling Meadows, Illinois campus. The work supports secure government missions and requires an active U.S. Government Secret clearance at minimum, which must be maintained as a condition of continued employment. The position maintains LAN, WAN, VPN, and encryption technologies; plans, designs, configures, and implements small- to medium-scale network solutions; and leads configuration, testing, and deployment of routing, switching, and security platforms. It also involves network design recommendations, capacity planning, performance forecasting, network standards and documentation, incident resolution, third-party maintenance coordination, and second-level technical support. The employee will lead customer engagements, define requirements and schedules, oversee delivery, and work independently while seeking senior guidance when needed. The role is on-site and does not offer virtual or telecommuting options because of the classified work. Travel is listed as 10% of the time. Work after hours and on weekends may be needed, and the employee must be able to lift and move equipment weighing up to 50 pounds. Relocation assistance may be available. Level 2 qualifications include a master’s degree with no relevant experience, bachelor’s degree with 2 years, associate’s degree with 4 years, or high school diploma/equivalent with 6 years in lieu of a completed degree. Level 3 qualifications include a master’s degree with 3 years, bachelor’s degree with 5 years, associate’s degree with 7 years, or high school diploma/equivalent with 9 years in lieu of a completed degree. Both levels require relevant network experience, an active Secret clearance meeting the stated investigation or Continuous Evaluation Program conditions, and the appropriate maintained certification: Security+ CE for Level 2 or CCNA for Level 3, or equivalent. Northrop Grumman describes flexible work arrangements, learning opportunities, exposure to varied projects and customers, a friendly team environment, exceptional benefits and healthcare, a 9/80 work schedule, and a 401(k) matching program. The listed primary-level salary range is $79,600–$119,400; the secondary-level range is $98,900–$148,300. Depending on the position, employees may also be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and discretionary bonuses.

Requirements

For Level 2: master’s degree with 0 years of relevant experience, bachelor’s degree with 2 years, associate’s degree with 4 years, or high school diploma/equivalent with 6 years of relevant experience in lieu of a completed degree.
For Level 3: master’s degree with 3 years of relevant experience, bachelor’s degree with 5 years, associate’s degree with 7 years, or high school diploma/equivalent with 9 years of relevant experience in lieu of a completed degree.
Active U.S. Government Secret clearance at minimum, with a closed investigation date completed within the last 6 years or enrollment in the U.S. Government Continuous Evaluation Program; the clearance must be maintained during employment.
Experience designing and maintaining LAN/WAN networks, managing routing protocols in large LAN environments, and working with routers, switches, and firewalls.
Experience configuring and managing Palo Alto firewalls and Panorama, including device groups, templates, and policies, according to established guidelines.
Experience with RADIUS and TACACS+ integrations on Cisco ISE.
Experience building and tuning SolarWinds Orion, Splunk, SNMP, NetFlow, and Syslog monitoring and alerting tools.
Experience applying DISA STIGs and leading patching efforts for network devices.
Current Security+ CE certification for Level 2 or CCNA certification for Level 3, or equivalent; the required certification must be maintained as a condition of continued employment.
Willingness to work full-time on-site at the Rolling Meadows, Illinois campus.
Ability to lift and move equipment up to 50 pounds.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Network Engineering.
Active Top Secret or SCI clearance, SAP/SAR access, or polygraph.
Knowledge of NISPOM Chapter 8, DCID 6/3-ICD 503, RMF, STIG, JAFAN, or JSIG information system environments.
Experience configuring, operating, and troubleshooting Cisco ISE policy, including 802.1x, MAB, posture, and profiling, across an enterprise.
Experience designing, implementing, and troubleshooting advanced WAN protocols (BGP, OSPF, MPLS) and complex telecommunications circuits.
Experience designing, building, and testing automation for configuration, compliance, and patching using Python, Ansible, or PowerShell.
Experience configuring TACLANEs.
Experience with Assessment & Authorization processes.

Responsibilities

Perform principal network communications activities in support of classified government contracts.
Maintain LAN, WAN, VPN, and encryption technology operations.
Plan, design, configure, and implement small- to medium-scale LAN/WAN solutions that meet mission requirements.
Lead configuration, testing, and rollout of routing and switching platforms and security appliances.
Contribute technical network design proposals to management.
Conduct capacity planning and performance forecasting, and present recommendations to program managers.
Develop and maintain enterprise-wide network standards, policies, and documentation to ensure security compliance.
Resolve incidents, including WAN failures and security events, within expected tolerances and coordinate with cross-functional teams as needed.
Coordinate third-party maintenance for network equipment.
Provide second-level support by resolving technical problems and answering internal customer queries about computer hardware, software, networking, and telecommunications systems.
Work independently and seek strategic guidance from senior staff when needed.
Lead customer engagements, define requirements, develop implementation schedules, and oversee delivery.
Implement and troubleshoot LAN/WAN technologies, including VLANs, trunking/port tagging, and spanning-tree protocols.
Support environments using ticketing systems such as ServiceNow and JIRA.
Raise issues requiring senior-level attention or involvement.
Work after hours and weekends as needed.
Lift and move equipment weighing up to 50 pounds.

Benefits

Relocation assistance may be available.
Flexible work arrangements are offered, though this position itself requires on-site work.
Learning opportunities and exposure to a wide variety of projects and customers.
Friendly team environment.
Healthcare and health insurance coverage.
9/80 work schedule.
401(k) matching program.
Life and disability insurance.
Company-paid holidays and paid time off for vacation and/or personal business.
Depending on the position, potential eligibility for overtime, shift differential, and discretionary bonuses.