Network Site Reliability Engineer (w/ active Secret)

Critical Solutions•Norfolk, VA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Critical Solutions is seeking a Network Site Reliability Engineer to support a federal customer. The role supports the reliability and operational integrity of complex enterprise network environments by developing accurate, implementation-ready network configuration deliverables for WAN and BAN solutions. The engineer applies established engineering solutions, technical standards, and configuration baselines to customer- and site-specific requirements while accounting for existing network environments and mission needs. The environment is heavily focused on Cisco Layer 2 and Layer 3 networking. The role requires strong networking fundamentals and the ability to interpret and correlate existing and proposed network information to produce technically accurate configurations for target environments. Engineers are expected to understand the technical function and network impact of configuration commands, rather than relying solely on template substitution, and to apply that knowledge across varying network requirements and environments. The position is 100% onsite. The listed work location is Norfolk, Virginia; other acceptable locations are Bremerton, Washington; Jacksonville, Florida; Honolulu, Hawaii; San Diego, California; or Washington, DC. Candidates must be U.S. citizens and hold an active DoD Secret clearance or higher. Selected candidates must undergo a federal agency background investigation and fingerprinting and successfully pass them. The position requires active IAT Level II and CCNA certifications, which must be maintained.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. citizen.
Must possess an active DoD Secret Security Clearance or higher.
Must hold and maintain an active DoD 8570 IAT Level II certification.
Must hold and maintain an active CCNA certification.
A bachelor’s degree and master’s degree with relevant experience in data engineering, computer science, information systems, software engineering, mathematics, or a related technical discipline, with at least four years of relevant experience; additional directly related experience may be considered in place of a degree.
Strong working knowledge of Cisco enterprise networking concepts and technologies, including Cisco IOS/IOS-XE configuration.
Knowledge of Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching, VLAN configuration and assignment, 802.1Q trunking and native VLAN concepts, VTP, STP/RSTP/MST, EtherChannel including LACP and PAgP, and access and trunk port configuration.
Knowledge of inter-VLAN routing, IPv4 addressing and subnetting, static and dynamic routing, OSPF, EIGRP, BGP, route advertisement and selection, ACLs, first-hop redundancy concepts, network interface and port-channel configuration, and TCP/IP networking concepts.
Must successfully pass the federal agency background investigation and fingerprinting process.

Nice To Haves

Experience configuring or supporting Cisco Catalyst switches and Cisco routers.
Experience working in a large, complex enterprise network environment.
Experience with standardized or template-based network configuration development.
Experience with network configuration validation, technical or peer review, and change management processes.
Experience with network automation, automated script development, or scripting languages such as Python, Bash, or PowerShell.
Experience with CI/CD tools and practices, including Jenkins, GitLab, or similar technologies.
Experience with automation, configuration management, or Infrastructure as Code technologies such as Ansible, Terraform, CloudFormation, Chef, or Puppet.
Familiarity with containerization and orchestration technologies such as Docker, Kubernetes, or Red Hat OpenShift.
Experience with Linux/Unix environments and command-line tools.
Experience with commercial cloud environments such as AWS or Azure.
Experience with application administration, configuration, or integration.
Experience with Atlassian and/or Azure DevOps products and associated workflows.

Responsibilities

Develop accurate, implementation-ready network configurations for complex enterprise WAN and BAN environments.
Apply established engineering solutions, technical standards, and configuration baselines to site-specific network requirements.
Review and correlate existing and proposed network information to determine appropriate configuration requirements.
Develop and modify configurations across Cisco Layer 2 and Layer 3 network environments.
Understand configuration commands’ technical functions, dependencies, and network impacts rather than relying solely on template substitution.
Interpret and apply network addressing, routing, switching, interface, security, and redundancy requirements.
Create and maintain network configuration documentation that reflects existing and proposed network environments.
Ensure configuration deliverables are technically accurate, complete, consistent, and appropriate for the target environment.
Participate in technical and peer reviews to validate configuration accuracy and technical viability before implementation.
Apply established standards, technical knowledge, best practices, and lessons learned across varying network requirements.
Adapt to evolving network standards, engineering solutions, configuration templates, platforms, and customer requirements.
Collaborate with SRE, network engineering, development, and other technical teams supporting enterprise network services.
Contribute network engineering expertise to broader SRE initiatives involving standardization, optimization, reliability, and automation.
Support the evolution of automated network capabilities and processes in collaboration with automation and development teams.