Principal Network Engineer

Global Enterprise Services•Fort Meade, MD

About The Position

GES is seeking a Principal Network Engineer – Wireless to lead engineering, deployment, and modernization of a large-scale, geographically distributed enterprise wireless network supporting a Department of Defense environment. The role provides technical leadership for Aruba wireless architecture, RF performance, secure network access, integration, troubleshooting, and transition to operations. The environment includes Aruba AOS 10, Aruba Central On-Premises, distributed Aruba ClearPass, Cisco ISE coexistence, certificate-based 802.1X authentication, Comply-to-Connect enforcement, wireless intrusion detection and prevention, and enterprise monitoring. The engineer collaborates with network, identity, cybersecurity, and operations teams to deliver secure, reliable wireless services at scale. The role requires an active DoD Secret clearance, U.S. citizenship, and the ability to obtain additional access if required by the assigned environment. The successful engineer combines hands-on Aruba and RF expertise with the ability to lead complex deployments, troubleshoot across wireless, wired, and identity layers, and deliver a service that operations teams can sustain.

Requirements

Active DoD Secret clearance; ability to obtain additional access if required by the assigned environment.
U.S. citizenship.
Must meet applicable DoD cybersecurity workforce qualification requirements for the assigned position.
Bachelor’s degree with 12+ years of relevant experience, or Master’s degree with 10+ years; additional relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
IAT Level II certification.
Significant hands-on experience designing, deploying, and troubleshooting enterprise wireless networks across multiple sites.
Strong experience with Aruba wireless platforms and management, including access points, gateways/controllers, and Aruba Central or comparable enterprise management tools.
Strong knowledge of 802.11 and RF engineering, including coverage, interference, capacity, roaming, and wireless performance troubleshooting.
Experience with enterprise wireless authentication and access control, including 802.1X, RADIUS, certificates, and Aruba ClearPass or comparable NAC platforms.
Working knowledge of wired network dependencies, including TCP/IP, VLANs, routing, switching, firewalls, and network segmentation.
Experience leading technical implementation activities, troubleshooting complex issues, and producing engineering and operational documentation.
Strong written and verbal communication skills and ability to coordinate across technical teams and customer stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Aruba professional or expert certifications; relevant Cisco or security certifications.
Experience with AOS 10 and clustered Aruba Central On-Premises deployments at large enterprise scale.
Experience with distributed ClearPass clusters, FIPS configurations, Cisco ISE coexistence, and phased Comply-to-Connect rollout.
Experience with Wi-Fi 6/6E/7, high-density RF surveys, voice roaming optimization, and tools such as Ekahau or AirMagnet.
Experience with WIDS/WIPS, guest wireless separation, WPA3, and DoD STIG/RMF processes.
Experience with REST APIs, SNMPv3, enterprise monitoring, Python/Ansible automation, or wireless telemetry integration.
Experience supporting large-scale DoD or classified network environments.

Responsibilities

Design, deploy, configure, and optimize enterprise Aruba wireless infrastructure, including access points, gateways, management platforms, redundancy, and lifecycle upgrades.
Engineer and sustain Aruba Central On-Premises and AOS 10 configurations, provisioning workflows, high availability, and enterprise configuration standards.
Lead RF design, site surveys, channel and power planning, capacity analysis, roaming optimization, and wireless QoS for voice and mission-critical applications.
Integrate Aruba ClearPass and Cisco ISE with 802.1X/EAP-TLS, RADIUS, certificate-based authentication, endpoint profiling, and Comply-to-Connect policies.
Engineer wireless security controls, including network segmentation, WPA3, WIDS/WIPS, secure guest access, and approved cryptographic configurations.
Coordinate with cybersecurity teams on applicable DoD security controls, STIGs, vulnerability remediation, testing, and accreditation evidence.
Integrate wireless services with wired switching, VLANs, routing, DNS/DHCP, firewalls, identity systems, and enterprise monitoring platforms.
Lead complex troubleshooting and root cause analysis involving RF, client connectivity, roaming, authentication, certificates, and network performance.
Provide technical direction and mentoring to engineering teams; review designs and implementation plans; communicate technical risks and recommendations to program and government stakeholders.
Plan and execute engineering changes, upgrades, testing, deployment waves, and operational handoffs with validation and rollback procedures.
Develop and maintain wireless architecture and RF designs, configuration baselines, access-control and security designs, implementation and test plans, site-survey results, troubleshooting guides, standard operating procedures, and as-built/transition documentation.