Senior Network/Security Engineer

JOB TITLE: Senior Network/Security Engineer

REPORTS TO: Director, Network/Security Services

LOCATION: Remote

DATE: February 2024

For 40+ years, Meridian IT has been helping medium and enterprise businesses solve their complex technical IT problems. Through a unique strategic perspective, deep expertise, and a personalized proactive approach, Meridian IT is the top IT solutions provider in the industry.

Offering best-in-class cloud, hybrid, and on-premises data storage solutions, backup and recovery solutions, security solutions, hyperconverged infrastructure, contact center solutions, flexible pricing models and award-winning managed services, Meridian IT works with each client to create a customized plan to help solve their IT obstacles.

Meridian IT is part of Meridian Group International. Meridian Group International is a privately held organization headquartered in Deerfield, IL. Operating since 1979, Meridian Group International is a leading IT service provider and equipment leasing and finance company across 4 continents.

Position Summary

The Sr. Network Security Engineer is an experienced technical resource responsible for developing and implementing end-to-end solutions to complex business networking and communications problems for new and existing clients. This individual will work with the Project Management Office to staff project-based network implementation work, as well as respond to implementation requests, T&M or managed service work. The Sr. Network Security Engineer is responsible for the entire lifecycle of an engagement (planning to close) to which they have been assigned. This engineer will also work with the sales team in a pre-sales role to develop and position technology solutions. Presentations, face-to-face meeting and conference calls are a critical part of this position. The ability to properly and professionally manage customer expectations and to calmly handle stressful and complex troubleshooting scenarios are requirements of this position.

The Senior Network Engineer will also be responsible for mentoring and assiting peer Engineers with implementing solutions and problem solving for new and existing clients

Duties And Responsibilities

Post-Sales Implementation and Operational Work

• Provide assistance to team members with project execution;
• Provide assistance to managed service customers within the agreed upon SLAs in our managed service contracts;
• Assist with verifying received hardware inventory, performing initial equipment staging, assisting with physical deployment of switches, creating documentation during onboarding and maintaining it, performing software updates, scripted triaging of tickets;
• Assist with the management of monitoring solution used by Meridian;
• Remain up-to-date on the latest network technologies and trends, continuously improving your skills and knowledge;
• Lead and manage the design, implementation, and optimization of scalable enterprise-grade network solutions, including routing, switching, security, remote access, and automation, from plan to close;
• Provide expert efficient troubleshooting and problem-solving for network outages, performance issues, and security concerns;
• Collaborate with other engineers and teams to integrate network infrastructure with IT systems and applications;
• Develop and implement network automation solutions using scripting languages and APIs;
• Mentor and train junior engineers on network best practices and troubleshooting techniques;
• Develop and maintain comprehensive network documentation, including diagrams, configurations, and procedures;
• Participate in network project planning, budgeting, and execution;
• Install, configure, and troubleshoot network devices such as routers, switches, firewalls, and load balancers;
• Optimize network performance through bandwidth analysis, traffic shaping, and QoS techniques;
• Implement and maintain robust network security measures to protect against various threats.
• Design and implement complex, scalable and highly resilient LAN/WAN infrastructure solutions utilizing products from such manufacturers as Cisco, Palo Alto, Juniper, Aruba, F5, Riverbed, HP, etc.;
• Design and implement complex perimeter and data security solutions including firewalls, intrusion detection / prevention, VPN’s, remote access and monitoring tools and be well-versed around Cisco and/or Palo Alto’s security portfolio. Expertise around the specific product list is preferred: Cisco ASA, Cisco FirePower (SourceFire), Cisco ISE, Palo Alto
• Successfully manage the entire lifecycle of an implementation engagement from Plan to Close;
• Successfully work with a project team to implement a portion of an implementation engagement
• Develop thorough project documentation including, but not limited to, detailed implementation plans, strategic migration plans, and high level project plans
  
  

Risk Management

• Escalate issues to the Project Management Office and Director, Network/Security Services before they jeopardize the success or financial viability of an engagement;
• Participate in quarterly meetings with the Infrastructure team to discuss recent engagements, challenges and opportunities; incorporate improvements into the pre-sales process.
  
  

Communications

• Manage cross-functional inter-dependencies;
• Responsible for clear and timely communication to multiple stakeholder groups;
• Responsible for communicating the details of an opportunity / engagement to both the business and technical teams.
  
  

Miscellaneous

• Participate with the Project Management Office in project postmortems and collaborate on recommendations reports in order to identify successful and unsuccessful project elements;
• Perform other duties as assigned.
  
  

Qualifications And Requirements

• 10+ years experience as a Network/Security Engineer;
• Bachelor’s degree in a business or IT-related field is preferred but not required;
• CCIE Cisco certification;
• PCNSE;
• Experience with wireless technologies;
• Experience with Cisco ISE;
• Experience with Cisco ACI;
• Experience with Aruba and Cisco wireless;
• Juniper/F5 certifications a plus;
• Proficiency in MS Office (Including Word, Excel, Outlook, Project, PowerPoint, & Visio);
• Familiarity with Voice over IP systems such as Cisco Call Manager is a plus;
• Proven ability to troubleshoot complex network issues and propose effective solutions;
• Strong critical thinking;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to interface at varying and appropriate levels of management;
• Excellent customer relationship management skills;
• Ability to break down technical concepts into business terms;
• Strong team player with emphasis on soft skills and relationship building;
• Proven ability to solve technical challenges under stressful conditions;
• Well organized, thrive in a sense-of-urgency environment, leverage best practices, and innovate through any problem with a can-do attitude;
• Ability to handle multiple priorities and interruptions with minimal impact on productivity;
• Demonstrate a high level of independent judgment and initiative;
• Ability to maintain a flexible work schedule;
• Must be detail-oriented and proactive in identifying and resolving potential problems;
• Ability to obtain and maintain both pre- and post-sales technical certifications from manufacturers (e.g. Cisco, Juniper, HP, etc.).
  
  

Meridian Group International, Inc. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.