Zero Trust Engineer Mid Level

Job Description

Job Description

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Opportunity for advancement
• Paid time off
• Training & development
• Vision insurance

POSITION SUMMARY
Celestial Innovations Group (CIG) is seeking a Zero Trust Architecture Engineer to own end-to-end access policy design across the identity, endpoint, network, and application layers for federal agency clients, spanning the design, implementation, and sustainment of Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) programs. This role is framework-agnostic and vendor-informed: the ideal candidate understands that Zero Trust is a security philosophy and architectural strategy, not a single product or platform, guided by the principle of “never trust, always verify.” The engineer will apply that expertise across one or more leading vendor ecosystems to deliver compliant, mission-ready ZTA solutions aligned with federal mandates including EO 14028, OMB M-22-09, NIST SP 800-207, and the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) guidance.

These responsibilities and strategies are currently shared across three teams and, as a result, are owned by none of them. Current cyber threats require aligning, consolidating, and bridging access control strategies and policies into a unified front, acting as Trust Brokers across the enterprise, so the organization can maintain a strong security posture ahead of adversaries.

Must be located in the DC Metro Area as this role requires onsite and remote support.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Architecture and Strategy

• Lead Zero Trust Architecture assessments, gap analyses, and roadmap development for federal clients
• Design and document ZTA solutions spanning all five pillars: Identity, Device, Network, Application/Workload, and Data
• Translate federal ZTA mandates (EO 14028, OMB M-22-09, CISA ZT Maturity Model) into actionable implementation plans
• Develop architecture artifacts including conceptual, logical, and physical ZTA diagrams using DODAF, TOGAF, or equivalent frameworks
• Support integration of ZTA principles into existing enterprise architectures, hybrid cloud environments, and multi-tenant federal networks
• Drive SASE convergence, consolidating network and security enforcement onto a single policy plane
• Advance security posture design and real-time trust evaluation, with a focus on insider threat detection and response

Implementation and Engineering

• Deploy and configure Zero Trust solutions across one or more vendor platforms (see Vendor Ecosystem section below)
• Own top-level Conditional Access policy design and privileged access governance in Microsoft Entra ID/M365
• Implement Identity and Access Management controls including CAC/PIV authentication, MFA, role-based access control (RBAC), and Just-in-Time (JIT) Privileged Access Management
• Deliver Enterprise Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) support services, with priority focus on PIV-enabled logical access implementation across enterprise systems
• Enforce device posture as a condition of every access decision, integrating SCCM, Intune, Workspace ONE (WS1), Purview, Qualys, and Palo Alto NGFW signals
• Define and enforce application-layer access policy and decisions across M365, Palo Alto NGFW, Entra ID, and Workspace ONE (WS1)
• Configure microsegmentation, Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), software-defined perimeters, and DNS security controls across the network landscape, including Palo Alto, Cisco, and wireless infrastructure
• Deploy Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tooling and enforce device compliance policies at enterprise scale
• Integrate data protection controls including classification, labeling, DLP, and encryption aligned to ZTA data pillar requirements

Compliance and Authorization

• Align ZTA implementations with NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5, NIST SP 800-207, DISA STIGs, and DHS CDM program requirements
• Support the Risk Management Framework (RMF) lifecycle, including SSP authoring, continuous monitoring, and ATO maintenance
• Document ZTA controls for system security packages, POA&Ms, and security assessment reports
• Own access policy exception management, including governance workflows and audit-ready evidence documentation

Client Engagement and Collaboration

• Serve as a trusted ZTA advisor to federal agency stakeholders, program managers, and ISSO/ISSM counterparts
• Produce executive-level briefings, technical white papers, and implementation status reports
• Collaborate cross-functionally with cloud, networking, data analytics, and infrastructure teams to ensure cohesive ZTA integration

VENDOR ECOSYSTEM EXPERIENCE
CIG's ZTA practice is solution-agnostic at the architectural level. Engineers are expected to bring deep expertise in at least one of the following vendor platforms, with cross-platform fluency strongly preferred:

Vendor / Framework & Relevant Capabilities
Palo Alto Networks (Prisma): Prisma Access (ZTNA 2.0), Prisma Cloud, Cortex XDR/XSIAM, NGFW policy, SD-WAN integration, threat prevention across all ZTA pillars
Zscaler: Zscaler Internet Access (ZIA), Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), Zscaler Digital Experience (ZDX), cloud proxy architecture, VPN replacement, SSL inspection
Microsoft Zero Trust: Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD), Conditional Access, Intune/MEM, Microsoft Defender suite, Sentinel SIEM/SOAR, Purview data governance, M365 compliance center
CISA ZT Maturity Model: Five-pillar maturity assessment (Traditional, Initial, Advanced, Optimal), cross-cutting capability mapping, agency self-assessment support, roadmap alignment to federal reporting requirements
Additional Enterprise Tooling: SCCM, Workspace ONE (WS1), Qualys vulnerability management, and Cisco network/wireless fabric, supporting device posture and network segmentation enforcement across the landscape

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Experience

• 5+ years of experience in cybersecurity engineering, network security, or IT infrastructure roles
• 2+ years of hands-on experience designing or implementing Zero Trust Architecture in an enterprise or federal environment
• Demonstrated understanding of ZTA concepts across all five pillars per NIST SP 800-207 and the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model
• Experience supporting federal government clients or DoD/civilian agency environments 

Technical Skills

• Proficiency in at least one of the following: Palo Alto Prisma, Zscaler, or Microsoft Zero Trust stack
• Identity and access management: Entra ID, Active Directory, LDAP, PKI, MFA, PAM tooling
• Network security: microsegmentation, ZTNA, DNS security, SD-WAN, next-generation firewall policy
• Endpoint security: EDR/XDR deployment and management, device compliance policy enforcement
• Cloud environments: Azure, AWS, or hybrid cloud architectures with ZTA overlay
• Familiarity with SIEM/SOAR platforms (Microsoft Sentinel, SumoLogic, Google SecOps, or equivalent)

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Active certifications in one or more ZTA vendor platforms: PCCSE, PCNSE, Zscaler ZCCA-IA or ZCCA-PA, Microsoft SC-100 (Cybersecurity Architect Expert)
• Additional certifications: CISSP, CISM, CompTIA Security+, Cloud+ or relevant AWS/Azure security certifications
• Familiarity with RMF processes: NIST SP 800-37, SSP authoring, ATO package preparation
• Experience with ServiceNow, Salesforce, or IT service management tooling in a federal context
• Multi-vendor ZTA integration experience (e.g., combining Palo Alto and Zscaler capabilities within a single architecture)

Flexible work from home options available.