Principal IT Engineer - Networking

About Us

Since 1989, SHI International Corp. has helped organizations change the world through technology. We've grown every year since, and today we're proud to be a $16 billion global provider of IT solutions and services.

Over 17,000 organizations worldwide rely on SHI's concierge approach to help them solve what's next. But the heartbeat of SHI is our employees - all 7,000 of them. If you join our team, you'll enjoy:

* Our commitment to diversity, as the largest minority- and woman-owned enterprise in the U.S.

* Continuous professional growth and leadership opportunities.

* Health, wellness, and financial benefits to offer peace of mind to you and your family.

* World-class facilities and the technology you need to thrive - in our offices or yours.

Job Summary

The Principal IT Engineer - Networking designs, implements, and operates enterprise network solutions with a primary focus on Cisco and Meraki wired and wireless technologies. This role is responsible for the day-to-day reliability and performance of campus and branch connectivity, partners with security and infrastructure teams to integrate identity and access controls (e.g., Cisco ISE), and drives continuous improvement through standardization, documentation, and automation.

The Principal IT Engineer leads incident triage and resolution, executes change activities using established change-management practices (e.g., Service Now), mentors junior engineers, and contributes to technical direction and roadmap planning.

This position is hybrid and requires regular onsite presence in Somerset, NJ or Austin, TX, with scheduling determined by business needs.

Role Description

Wireless LAN (Cisco & Meraki)

* Design, configure, and operate Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers (e.g., Catalyst 9800 series) and Meraki wireless networks.

* Plan and optimize RF designs (channel, power, roaming, capacity) and validate changes using surveys and spectrum analysis.

* Implement and maintain SSIDs, guest access, segmentation, and wireless security standards aligned to corporate policies.

* Troubleshoot complex wireless issues across controller, access point, client, and authentication layers; lead root-cause analysis and remediation.

* Integrate wireless access with Cisco ISE (802.1X, MAB, posture/policy) to enforce identity-based access controls.

* Monitor wireless health and user experience; define and improve alerts, KPIs, and operational runbooks.

Routing & Switching (LAN/WAN)

* Design, implement, and maintain enterprise LAN/WAN infrastructure, including campus and branch connectivity.

* Configure, optimize, and troubleshoot routing and switching technologies (e.g., VLANs, STP, HSRP/VRRP, OSPF, BGP; EIGRP where applicable).

* Operate Cisco switching and routing platforms (e.g., Catalyst, Nexus) and associated services (DHCP relay, DNS dependencies, NTP, QoS).

* Engineer resiliency and high availability, including redundant paths, fast convergence, and failover testing, and document design decisions.

* Monitor and analyze performance using telemetry and network-management methods (e.g., SNMP, Net Flow) to drive performance improvements.

* Plan and execute upgrades, expansions, and lifecycle refreshes in partnership with site IT, security, and application stakeholders.

Operations, Monitoring & Continuous Improvement

* Lead incident triage, escalation, and resolution for network-related events; perform root-cause analysis and implement preventative actions.

* Maintain operational hygiene, including monitoring and alert tuning, capacity tracking, asset and configuration accuracy, and routine health checks.

* Execute changes through established change-management processes (e.g., Service Now), including risk assessment, implementation planning, and backout procedures.

* Create and maintain network documentation (standards, diagrams, runbooks) and promote reuse and standardization across sites.

* Automate repeatable tasks and reporting using scripts and APIs; identify opportunities to reduce manual effort and improve reliability.

* Partner with service desk teams and junior engineers to enhance troubleshooting workflows and knowledge-sharing resources.

Behaviors and Competencies

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