Network Infrastructure Engineer

State of Mississippi

Clinton, MS

Network Infrastructure Engineer

Job Overview

Location: Clinton, Mississippi - 100% onsite; local candidates required; no remote option

Employment Type: W2, Full-Time, 1099

Candidate Pay Rate: $62.06/hour

Experience: 15+ years of experience working with Cisco networking; 5-7+ years preferred for ACI, SDA, ISE, observability, Palo Alto, routing and switching, documentation, and related capabilities

About the Role

The Mississippi State Department of Revenue's Office of Information Technology is seeking a Network Infrastructure Engineer to support and modernize its enterprise data center, campus, and statewide network infrastructure.
This hands-on SME role will design, deploy, secure, troubleshoot, and operate Cisco ACI, SDA, ISE, Catalyst, Palo Alto, and network observability environments supporting mission-critical state operations.

Responsibilities

Design, implement, administer, and maintain Cisco Nexus platforms operating in ACI mode, including VRFs, Bridge Domains, EPGs, ESGs, L3Outs, contracts, fabric policies, multi-tenant segmentation, and fabric health.
Integrate Cisco ACI with Red Hat OpenShift VMM and Isovalent/Cilium container networking platforms.
Configure and optimize RoCEv2 within the ACI fabric for high-performance and low-latency workloads.
Troubleshoot ACI faults, endpoint learning, contracts, fabric health, and multi-tenant segmentation issues.
Develop and maintain Cisco ACI documentation, standards, architecture diagrams, runbooks, and operational procedures.
Deploy, configure, support, and optimize Cisco Catalyst platforms in campus network environments.
Design and maintain Cisco Software-Defined Access architectures, including SDA wired fabric and fabric-enabled wireless.
Manage SDA underlay and overlay networks, policy mapping, authentication integrations, and assurance operations.
Collaborate with wireless engineers to improve wireless coverage, performance, telemetry, and policy enforcement across SDA environments.
Configure and administer Cisco Identity Services Engine for TACACS+ device administration, authentication and authorization policy sets, endpoint profiling, and policy-based network access control.
Integrate Cisco Cyber Vision intelligence into device profiling, segmentation, and access-control workflows.
Support Zero Trust initiatives through identity-centric segmentation and policy integration across ACI and SDA fabrics.
Deploy and manage ThousandEyes for end-to-end visibility, routing-path analysis, and performance monitoring.
Implement and support Cisco Cyber Vision for OT/IoT asset visibility, device classification, and behavior analysis.
Manage DNA Spaces for location analytics, telemetry ingestion, device behavior monitoring, and wireless intelligence.
Analyze observability data and provide meaningful network performance and security insights to leadership.
Troubleshoot complex Layer 2 and Layer 3 networking issues involving VLANs, OSPF, BGP, STP, multicast, TCP/IP, routing, switching, QoS, and network security.
Design, implement, administer, and troubleshoot Palo Alto Networks next-generation firewall security solutions, including policies and security profiles.
Create and maintain architecture diagrams, network standards, runbooks, asset inventories, and other technical documentation.
Support network modernization planning, platform upgrades, procurement activities, lifecycle planning, and statewide technology initiatives.
Provide ongoing support for highly available, enterprise-scale, mission-critical network services across data centers and statewide operations.
Travel occasionally in and out of state and work occasional overtime as required.

Required Qualifications

Minimum of 15 years of professional experience working with Cisco networking.
Hands-on production experience with Cisco ACI and Cisco Nexus platforms.
Deep knowledge of Cisco ACI constructs, including VRF, Bridge Domain, EPG, ESG, L3Out, contracts, fabric policies, and multi-tenant segmentation.
Experience integrating Cisco ACI with Red Hat OpenShift VMM and Isovalent/Cilium.
Proficiency with Cisco Catalyst platforms and Cisco SDA campus architectures, including wired and wireless fabrics.
Experience administering Cisco ISE, including TACACS+, authentication and authorization policy sets, endpoint profiling, and NAC.
Strong understanding of ThousandEyes, Cisco Cyber Vision, and DNA Spaces or comparable observability and analytics tools.
Strong Layer 2 and Layer 3 networking skills, including TCP/IP, VLANs, OSPF, BGP, STP, multicast, routing, switching, QoS, and network security fundamentals.
Palo Alto firewall administration experience, including next-generation firewall configuration, security policies, security profiles, and troubleshooting.
Ability to support high-availability, enterprise-scale infrastructure in fast-paced, mission-critical environments.
Ability to create clear network diagrams, architecture documentation, standards, runbooks, asset inventories, and other technical artifacts.
Strong analytical, communication, collaboration, and advanced troubleshooting skills.
High school education level or equivalent.
Ability to work 100% onsite in Clinton, Mississippi; remote candidates will not be considered.

Preferred Qualifications

CCNA certification.
CCNP Data Center, CCNP Enterprise, CCIE, Cisco Specialist-ACl, Cisco Specialist-SDA, or Cisco Specialist-ISE certification.
PCNSA, PCNSE, or PCCSA certification from Palo Alto Networks.
ThousandEyes, Cisco Cyber Vision, or related platform training.
Hands-on experience with container networking, virtualization integrations, Red Hat OpenShift VMM, and Cilium/Isovalent.
Familiarity with NIST frameworks and state-level cybersecurity requirements.
Experience with network automation tools and technologies, including Python, Ansible, and REST APIs.
Prior experience in state government or large enterprise network environments.
Experience with NoSQL databases and healthcare integration engines.
Experience with infrastructure-as-code, CI/CD pipelines, and DevOps practices.
Experience managing migrations from on-premises data centers to cloud environments.
Project Management Professional certification or similar credential.
Master's degree in technology, management, or a related discipline.
Experience with HIPAA Security Rule compliance and CMS ARC AMPE security requirements.
Knowledge of Palo Alto NGFW fundamentals, threats, App-ID, NAT, URL filtering, WildFire, security profiles, and policy development.

Required Skills & Technologies

Primary Skills

Cisco ACI
Cisco Nexus
Multi-tenant segmentation
Software-Defined Access
Cisco ISE
NAC
Palo Alto Networks
Cisco Catalyst
ThousandEyes
Cisco Cyber Vision
DNA Spaces
L2/L3 routing
Switching
TCP/IP
QoS
Network security
Red Hat OpenShift VMM
Cilium
TACACS+

Secondary Skills

CCNA
CCNP Data Center
CCNP Enterprise
CCIE
PCNSA
PCNSE
PCCSA
NIST
Python
Ansible
REST APIs
Container networking
Virtualization
Network automation
State-level cybersecurity requirements
NoSQL
Healthcare integration engines
Infrastructure as Code
CI/CD
DevOps
Cloud migration
Project Management Professional (PMP)
HIPAA Security Rule
CMS ARC AMPE security requirements
WildFire
App-ID
URL filtering
NAT

How to Apply

To apply for this exciting opportunity, please contact:

Recruiter Contact: Show email

Update Your Resume: Please add any missing skills or certifications that align with the role.
Apply Online: Click the "Apply" button at the end of the job description and complete the required details. and upload the below matrix
Submit Supporting Documents: Upload a photo ID. If you are not a U.S. citizen or Green Card holder (GC-EAD), please include your work authorization details.
Confirmation: Once submitted, reply to this email to let me know. I'll review your updated materials and, if there's a match, schedule a video interview to discuss further.

Matrix

Required Qualifications

# of Required Years

Experience working with Cisco networking	15 Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Hands-on experience with Cisco ACI in production environments.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Deep knowledge of ACI constructs (VRF, BD, EPG, ESG, L3Out, contracts).	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Experience integrating ACI with OpenShift VMM and Cilium/Isovalent.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Proficiency with Cisco Catalyst platforms and SDA fabric technologies.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Experience administering Cisco ISE including TACACS+ and policy-set based NAC.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Strong understanding of ThousandEyes, Cyber Vision, and DNA Spaces or comparable tools.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Solid command of core TCP/IP, routing, switching, QoS, and network security fundamentals.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Ability to develop clear diagrams, documentation, and architectural artifacts.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Strong analytical and communication skills with the ability to work in fast-paced, mission-critical environments.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Cisco ACI, Nexus platforms, multi‑tenant segmentation.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
SDA campus architectures.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Cisco ISE policy sets and NAC.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Palo Alto firewall administration and security profiles.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Strong L2/L3 routing and switching skills.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Preferred Skills
Cisco certifications such as CCNP Data Center, CCNP Enterprise, CCIE, or equivalent experience.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Hands-on experience with container networking and virtualization integrations.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Familiarity with NIST frameworks and state-level cybersecurity requirements.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Experience with network automation tools (Python, Ansible, REST APIs).	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Prior work in state government or large enterprise network environments.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
PCCSA – Palo Alto Networks Certified Cybersecurity Associate	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Foundational security, NGFW basics, threats, App-ID, and policy.	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
PCNSA – Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Administrator	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)
Focuses on NGFW configuration, security profiles, NAT, App-ID, URL filtering, WildFire	5-7+ Years	________________ (Years of Experience)

Please describe your key engagements over the past two (2) years (Required).

Please describe how past work experience relates to this position (Required).

References of submitted candidates required. Please provide the following information.

Must three submit references with resume.

First/last name of reference
Title
Company Name
Job title of contractor while reporting to this supervisor/manager
Telephone number.

Email Address (if available)

We appreciate your time and interest in this opportunity. Our team will review your application carefully and respond promptly.

Vacancy posted more than 2 months ago

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