Network Operations Center; NOC Engineer

Job Title:
Network Operations Center (NOC) Engineer

Job Location
- Hybrid
- Charlotte, NC, USA

The Network Operations role is responsible for proactive monitoring, first‑level diagnosis, and L1/L1.5 troubleshooting across a complex, multi-vendor network environment. This is not a simple “catch‑and‑dispatch” position — the role requires hands‑on technical investigation, first‑level corrective actions, precise documentation, and active participation in troubleshooting bridges.

The position ensures maximum network availability by validating alerts, executing runbooks, performing diagnostics, escalating with accurate data, and maintaining high-quality operational documentation.

• Proactive monitoring and event validation using Solar Winds, Thousand Eyes, Net Scout, and Dynatrace to identify real issues vs. false positives.
• Perform L1/L1.5 troubleshooting, following runbooks to analyze alerts, investigate performance issues, and execute permitted first‑level corrective actions.
• Run diagnostics to assess routing, switching, and firewall health (CPU, memory, HA state, sessions, logs).
• Document investigative steps clearly in the ticketing system, ensuring accurate and complete technical details.
• Participate in incident bridges, providing real‑time updates and contributing to initial triage and correlation.
• Escalate to L2/L3 teams with structured findings, logs, diagnostics, and impact assessments.
• Maintain and update documentation, including SOPs, troubleshooting guides, and diagrams to support operational readiness.

• 10+ years of strong understanding of routing and switching protocols
  :
  • BGP, OSPF, STP, VLANs, ACLs
• Knowledge of load balancing and firewall concepts.
• Familiarity with packet flow, logs, and traffic analysis.

• Monitoring tools:
  Solar Winds, Thousand Eyes, Net Scout, Dynatrace
• Exposure to key OEMs:
  • Arista
    , Forti Gate
    , Cisco
    , F5
• CLI troubleshooting skills across network devices.

• Own daily operations, shift governance, and escalation processes.
• Ensure SLA compliance and reporting.
• Manage stakeholder communication (internal and external).
• Lead process improvement initiatives and operational readiness.
• Mentor and guide team across all levels.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, IT, Networking
  , or equivalent.

• CCNA / CCNP
• Network+
• ITIL Foundation

• Medical/Dental/Vision/Life Insurance
• Paid holidays plus Paid Time Off
• 401(k) plan and contributions
• Long-term/Short-term Disability
• Paid Parental Leave
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan

At Cognizant, we're eager to meet people who believe in our mission and can make an impact in various ways. We strongly encourage you to apply even if you only meet the required skills listed. Consider what transferrable experience and skills make you a unique applicant and help us see how you’d be beneficial to this role.

Please note, this role is not able to offer visa transfer or sponsorship now or in the future

At Cognizant, we strive to provide flexibility wherever possible, and we are here to support a healthy work-life balance through our various wellbeing programs. Based on this role’s business requirements,
this is a hybrid position requiring 3 days a week at the client site in Charlotte, NC, USA.

The working arrangements for this role are accurate as of the date of posting. This may change based on the project you’re engaged in, as well as business and client requirements. Rest assured; we will always be clear about role expectations.

We're excited to meet people who share our mission and can make an impact in a variety of ways. Don't hesitate to apply, even if you only meet the minimum requirements listed. Think about your transferable experiences and unique skills that make you stand out as someone who can bring new and exciting things to this role.

The salary, other compensation, and benefits information is accurate as of the date of this posting. Cognizant reserves the right to modify this information at any time, subject to applicable law.

Cognizant is an equal opportunity employer. Your application and candidacy will not be considered based on race, color, sex, religion, creed, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.