Senior Network Engineer Job Waco area,Texas USA,IT/Tech

We are seeking an experienced Senior Network Engineer for a 12-month contract position based in Waco, Texas. This role is responsible for the architecture, design, implementation, and optimization of enterprise network infrastructure across multiple locations within a rapidly growing manufacturing organization. As a senior technical leader, you will own complex network solutions end to end, drive strategic network initiatives, mentor engineers, and serve as the highest point of escalation for critical network issues — ensuring high availability, performance, and security across all network services.

A central focus of this role is leading the organization's standardization on the Juniper platform, driving the migration and unification of network infrastructure to Juniper (Junos) across all sites.

Responsibilities

Serve as senior technical lead and top escalation point for LAN/WAN, SD-WAN, wireless, and firewall environments
Architect and design scalable, resilient, and secure network solutions across multiple sites
Lead the company-wide standardization and migration of network infrastructure onto the Juniper (Junos) platform across all sites
Lead root-cause analysis and resolution of complex network incidents, outages, and performance issues
Define and oversee network monitoring, capacity planning, and availability strategies using enterprise tools
Lead incident response and direct on-call escalations
Lead deployment and configuration of network infrastructure (switches, routers, firewalls, VPNs)
Own the network aspects of site buildouts, relocations, and upgrades (MDF/IDF, circuits, redundancy)
Establish and govern change management standards for network changes
Define and enforce standardized Juniper (Junos) configurations across all sites
Design and maintain firewall architecture, network segmentation, and secure access controls
Drive compliance with corporate security policies (e.g., MFA, NAC, Zero Trust)
Lead vulnerability remediation and serve as network subject-matter expert for audits (SOX, ISO, etc.)
Lead network-related projects (cloud connectivity, tenant migrations, SD-WAN rollout)
Manage vendor and service provider relationships (e.g., ISPs, hardware vendors), including evaluation and selection
Establish documentation standards for network designs, diagrams, and standard operating procedures
Mentor and provide technical guidance to junior and mid-level engineers
Own the long-term network roadmap and lead architecture decisions
Identify and drive initiatives to improve performance, reliability, and cost efficiency
Champion network automation to reduce manual effort and operational risk

Qualifications

Required
- Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field (or equivalent experience)
- 10+ years of hands‑on network engineering experience, including senior or lead responsibilities
- Proven experience designing and leading enterprise network architectures
- Expert knowledge of TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VLANs, and routing protocols (OSPF, BGP)
- Expert knowledge of switching technologies (Layer 2/3)
- Expert knowledge of firewalls and VPN technologies
- Deep, hands‑on expertise with Juniper enterprise network hardware and Junos OS (e.g., EX, QFX, MX, SRX)
- Working knowledge of Cisco, Fortinet, and Aruba platforms to support transition and interoperability during standardization
- Advanced proficiency with network monitoring and troubleshooting tools
- Extensive experience with SD-WAN technologies
- Cloud networking experience (Azure, AWS)
- At least 2 Advanced certifications such as:
  - Juniper JNCIP / JNCIE (strongly preferred)
  - CCNP / CCIE
  - Fortinet NSE 4 or higher