Job Type
Full-time
Location
Washington, DC, US (Primary)
Job Description
VAE, Inc. designs, deploys, and sustains mission-critical enterprise IT environments supporting federal customers. We're seeking an experienced Senior Network Engineer who enjoys hands-on technical work, takes ownership of complex environments, and can operate independently while collaborating with a small, high-performing engineering team.
This role is ideal for a seasoned engineer who prefers deep technical responsibility over people management and values long-term stability in a secure environment.
What You'll Do
- Design, implement, and sustain enterprise network infrastructures supporting high availability and mission operations
- Serve as a senior technical resource for network troubleshooting, outage resolution, and performance optimization
- Perform root-cause analysis on complex network issues and drive permanent fixes
- Configure, maintain, and troubleshoot Cisco and Juniper routing and switching platforms
- Configure, administer, and troubleshoot Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE), including policy sets and authentication/authorization workflows
- Configure and support next-generation firewalls, including Juniper SRX and Cisco Firepower platforms
- Support firewall rule management, policy validation, and traffic-flow troubleshooting across secured boundaries
- Maintain accurate technical documentation, diagrams, and standard operating procedures
- Participate in planning and implementation of network upgrades and architectural improvements
- Ensure compliance with DoD security and configuration standards
Why This Role
- Own and influence a mission-critical enterprise network, not just tickets
- Work in a stable, security-focused environment with long-term programs
- Be part of a small, senior engineering team where expertise is valued
- Opportunity to deepen skills in network security, access control, and boundary protection
Qualifications
- 8+ years of hands-on network engineering experience in enterprise or government environments
- Strong understanding of TCP/IP, IPv4, routing, switching, and network troubleshooting
- Proven experience with Cisco and/or Juniper network devices
- Hands-on experience configuring and administering Cisco ISE
- Experience supporting Juniper SRX firewalls and Cisco Firepower (FMC-managed)
- Strong understanding of firewall policies, security zones, and traffic inspection
- Familiarity with DoD STIGs and operating in compliance-driven environments
- CCNA, CCNP, JNCIS, or JNCIP certification (active or previously held)
- Ability to work on-site in Washington, DC (5 days per week)
- Active Top Secret clearance (required to start)
- DoD 8570 IAT Level II certification (Security+ or equivalent)
Desired (Nice-to-Have) Skills
- Experience integrating Cisco ISE with 802.1X, TACACS+, or network access control workflows
- Exposure to advanced firewall features such as IDS/IPS, URL filtering, or application-layer inspection
- Familiarity with vulnerability scanning tools (e.g., Nessus)
- Basic scripting or automation exposure (PowerShell, Ansible, etc.)
Clearance Level
Top Secret
Certifications
CCNA, CCNP, JNCIS, or JNCIP certification (active or previously held) and DoD 8570 IAT Level II
