Sr Network Engineer

Sr Network EngineerContract for hire, candidates must be local to the Dallas area Hybrid: onsite Monday – Friday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Friday remoteOur client is looking for an experienced Network Engineer with strong LAN/WAN Routing and Switching experience with a specialization in Palo Alto Firewall Administration experience.This role will be part of a Global Network Team, delivering architecture, implementation, and support services to the Enterprise's global network.Required Skills: -10+ years IT experience, with at least 5 years LAN networking experience specializing in Network Implementation, troubleshoot and resolving complex network communications issues.This includes hands on experience managing multiple LANs over WAN serving a minimum of 1,000 users using PCs and other Ethernet devices.-Minimum 4 years of WAN experience including the use of point-to-point VPNs, MPLS and coordinating circuit installation with vendors. Emphasis on Cisco, Palo Alto, and Aruba network components.Education: Bachelors Degree requiredCertification(s): CCNA requiredDesired: CCNP; Palo Alto, Checkpoint or other Firewall certification; other networking related certifications & course completion certificates.Duties/Responsibilities:Managing and supporting major components including but not limited to: -Cisco Systems routers, switches, WLC and wireless devices -Cisco ACI Data Center Infrastructure -Palo Alto Networks Firewalls and Cato Networks SASE/SDWAN branch infrastructure, along with their associated management platforms such as Panorama for Palo Alto. - Keen understanding and practical knowledge of IP, Network Security, Network Management platforms, and routing/switching necessary for supporting the production environment. - Working knowledge of WireShark or other brand name protocol analyzers as well as Netflow collection and analysis. Understanding of debugging techniques such as analysis of dump files, tracing, performance tuning, and monitoring required. -Aruba Wireless and ClearPass Network Access Control (NAC) -F5 Load-Balancers LTM and GTM -Other utilities include: TACACS, Aruba ClearPass, Tufin FW automation, Solarwinds Orion, Extrahop, and Infoblox IPAM - Strong design and operational knowledge and understanding of Software Defined Networking and Cloud computing concepts and architecture. - Working knowledge of MS-Visio®. The candidate will be expected to demonstrate this knowledge by showing and explaining maps that they created for previous work or projects. - Will support the International/Domestic, On-Prem and Cloud based Firewall infrastructure with an eye to redesign and simplify the architecture. - Participate in, and represent the network teams interests, in architecture discussions and decision processes stemming from other technology areas. - Responsible for root cause analysis of problems & production slowdowns and will use network tools like protocol analyzers & network management software to help make these determinations & recommend short- & long-term resolutions. - Proficient oral and written communication skills are required to effectively communicate with operations and other technical groups for training, troubleshooting and problem resolution closure, as well as keeping network documentation current. Additionally, the candidate should be able to communicate to end users and effectively convey recommendations that end users can understand and implementBenefits of Working for our Client:-Convenient N. Dallas location -State of the art technology -Strong emphasis on team