Job Type: Contract (6-Month Engagement with potential for conversion)
Contract Length: 6-month engagement
Target Start Date: ASAP
Work Location/Structure: Flexible Hybrid/Remote (On-site presence is preferred 3 days per week, but experienced remote candidates will be considered.)
About the Opportunity:
Our client, a leader in the Higher Education sector, is looking for a skilled Network Security Engineer/Architect to join their team for a 6-month engagement. This project involves leading critical network security initiatives, including a firewall hardware replacement and an attack surface reduction program, while providing subject matter expertise and hands-on guidance to an internal security team. This is a high-impact role that requires a self-motivated professional who can hit the ground running and deliver results quickly.
Key Responsibilities & Deliverables:
This role is focused on the successful completion of specific tasks and deliverables. Your responsibilities will include:
- Serve as the subject matter expert for network security and networking, with deep expertise in Palo Alto firewall technology.
- Lead and advise on firewall architecture, configuration, and best practices, covering security profiles, IDS/IPS, URL filtering, policy design, segmentation, and operational troubleshooting.
- Translate high-level security strategy and design into practical engineering implementation plans.
- Partner with Network, Security Operations Center (SOC), and Network Operations Center (NOC) teams to ensure security solutions align with the organization’s security posture and operational needs.
- Provide technical expertise and mentorship to the in-house team on network and security best practices.
We are looking for someone with a proven track record of successful contract engagements. The ideal candidate will have:
- 10+ years of experience in network and security roles, with 3-5 years in a formal Architect or Lead/Principal capacity.
- Deep expertise in Palo Alto firewall technology, including Panorama management. This isn't a learning role—you need to be a subject matter expert.
- Strong understanding of core networking fundamentals (e.g., BGP, OSPF, segmentation, routing/switching, VRFs) and EVPN/VXLAN fabric concepts.
- Demonstrated ability to work autonomously and manage your own time effectively to meet project goals.
- Experience with SASE/ZTNA concepts and network authentication/NAC solutions (e.g., ClearPass, Palo Alto Cloud Identity Engine).
- Strong communication skills to provide clear and concise status updates to the project team and technical mentorship to the in-house team.
- Preferred Certifications: CISSP, PCNSE (Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Engineer).
