Network Engineer – Data Center & Security

About This Opportunity CTI Staffing is partnering with a growing IT integration and managed services organization to find a Network Engineer for their data center and integration center operations based in Hanover Park, IL. This team manages network infrastructure supporting large-scale client integration, staging, and deployment work, keeping switching, routing, wireless, and security running smoothly across multiple concurrent client environments.

It's a chance to work hands-on with modern data center networking in a fast-paced managed services environment.

What You'll Do

Manage and support network infrastructure across multiple data center and client-specific environments Maintain highly available switching, routing, wireless, and security platforms Monitor performance and proactively identify optimization and scalability improvements Configure, manage, and troubleshoot Palo Alto Next-Generation Firewalls Design and document enterprise networking solutions, including spine-and-leaf architectures Serve as a technical escalation point for network issues affecting client environments Support client hardware, software, and infrastructure deployment projects Collaborate with engineering, security, and project teams to deliver client solutions Requirements What You Bring Must-Have: 5+ years of experience in enterprise network engineering, data center operations, or managed services Strong hands-on experience with Cisco switching, routing, and wireless technologies Demonstrated expertise deploying and supporting Palo Alto Networks firewalls Experience managing complex multi-site, multi-client network environments Strong understanding of TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, NAT, VLANs, VPNs, and QoS Experience configuring and troubleshooting BGP, OSPF, and EIGRP Ability to independently manage multiple projects and competing priorities Strong customer service orientation and communication skills Nice-to-Have: Cisco CCNP Enterprise certification or equivalent experience Palo Alto PCNSE certification Experience with spine-and-leaf architectures and modern data center designs Familiarity with Nexus 9000 and Cisco Catalyst platforms Experience with cloud networking (Azure/AWS connectivity) Technical Environment: Cisco switching/routing, Palo Alto NGFW, spine-and-leaf/VXLAN architectures, enterprise wireless, cloud connectivity (Azure/AWS) What Success Looks Like: Stable, well-documented network operations across multiple client environments within the first 90 days Trusted as a technical escalation point for network issues by month 3 Contributing to data center modernization initiatives (spine-and-leaf, automation) by month 6