Network Architect

Pay rate: $86.53 - $91.35 per hr during the initial six-month term. $200K-$215K annually upon conversion. 

This role is the principal network designer and highest-level engineering escalation resource, responsible for leading network modernization initiatives across complex, mission-critical environments. This role provides technical leadership, ensures engineering continuity, supports operational requirements, and maintains the integrity and evolution of the approved network architecture and engineering baseline.

Work Location: Completely on-site in Honolulu, HI, Monday – Friday, 7:00 am to 6:00 pm (HT), based upon the needs and direction of the customer.

Travel: 40%

Basic Required Qualifications and Skills:  

• Must possess an active Cisco CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure or CCIE Security certification at start date.

• Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible network engineering experience, including at least 7 years as a senior architect, chief engineer, technical lead, or comparable authority in complex DoD or national-security environments.
• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in network engineering, computer science, information systems, electrical engineering, cybersecurity, or a closely related discipline.
• Expert knowledge of:
  • Enterprise routing and switching, BGP, OSPF, MPLS, multicast, VRF / VLAN segmentation, QoS, firewalls, SDN, WAN transport, encryption, network management, monitoring, high availability, and PACE communications planning.
• Demonstrated design experience with:
  • Large classified and unclassified DoD networks, including NIPR and SIPR and relevant experience with JWICS, MPE / CENTRIX, CSfC, Type 1 encryption, or CDS interfaces.
• Demonstrated ability to lead senior engineers, enforce technical standards, resolve complex incidents, explain technical risk to senior leaders, and work effectively across multiple locations and time zones.
• Working knowledge of DoD architecture, RMF, Zero Trust, STIGs, vulnerability management, configuration and change control, site integration, testing, operational acceptance, and sustainment.
• Ability to brief general officers, senior Government civilians, program executives, and nontechnical stakeholders clearly and to distinguish validated requirements from assumptions, proposals, risks, and pending Government decisions.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills addressing senior executive leaders and General Officers.
• Able to work both independently and collaboratively, prioritizing tasks as
• Pursuant to a government contract, this specific position requires U.S. Citizenship.
• All applicants must have current DoD TS/SCI clearance eligibility day one and prior to entry on duty.

Desired Qualifications and Skills: It is desirable that the candidate have the following qualifications:

• Master’s degree, from an accredited institution in network engineering, computer science, information systems, electrical engineering, cybersecurity, or a closely related discipline.
• 20+ years of progressively responsible network engineering experience, or comparable authority in complex DoD or national-security environments.
• Other relevant certifications such as ITIL, PMP etc. in ACTIVE status.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: This position will include, but is not limited to, the following tasks:

• Design and maintain the integrated enterprise network architecture supporting distributed command, mission, and sustainment requirements across Hawaii, the Pacific, Alaska, Japan / Okinawa, and Government-directed CONUS locations.
• Translate operational needs into enterprise, logical, physical, cybersecurity, data-flow, and operations architectures that remain synchronized and traceable.
• Own the network technical baseline, including routing, switching, segmentation, QoS, firewalls, encryption, WAN and SDN design, PACE transport, management, monitoring, and high-availability patterns.
• Develop and approve network designs, engineering implementation plans, IP and routing plans, bills of material, configurations, rack elevations, cable schedules, interface records, cutover plans, rollback plans, and as-built packages.
• Ensure HMR or another Government-selected pilot becomes a validated reference design that can be reused through controlled, Government-approved site differences rather than independent redesigns.
• Serve as the senior engineer for Tier 3 and Tier 4 routing, switching, transport, security-boundary, interoperability, latency, QoS, failover, performance, and service-restoration issues.
• Provide technical direction and mentoring to network engineers assigned to designs, installations, cutovers, incidents, and corrective actions.
• Review engineering work for technical accuracy, interoperability, cybersecurity impact, supportability, configuration control, and compliance with the approved baseline before Government submission or implementation.
• Lead root-cause analysis for recurring or mission-significant technical problems and establish corrective actions that can be applied across affected sites.
• Advise the Regional Program Manager and Operations Officer when a project is technically ready to proceed, requires modification, or should be paused because an unresolved issue creates unacceptable mission, cyber, safety, or sustainment risk.
• Integrate Zero Trust, ICAM, segmentation, privileged access, logging, continuous monitoring, vulnerability management, STIG requirements, and configuration control into the network design in coordination with the Cyber / ATO Lead.
• Define system boundaries, trust zones, information exchanges, data paths, classification and releasability considerations, monitoring ownership, latency and QoS needs, and fallback requirements.
• Distinguish same-level protected transport from cross-domain or releasability transfers. Support approved CSfC or Type 1 solutions where appropriate and formal approved CDS interfaces when validated domain crossing is required.
• Establish Primary, Alternate, Contingency, and Emergency network paths and measurable failover, failback, restoration, bandwidth, latency, and monitoring criteria.
• Support the Operations Officer and project managers with technical estimates, dependencies, sequencing, design reviews, site-readiness criteria, engineering risks, and required technical resources.
• Approve technical entry and exit criteria for design freeze, installation, cutover, SIT, SAT, failover testing, operational acceptance, and release of the reference design for reuse.
• Ensure operational handoff addresses monitoring, ticket escalation, configuration management, patching and scanning, spares, warranty, local support, after-hours response, and restoration responsibilities.
• Prepare and execute the technical transition package, including the authoritative architecture, configurations, decision records, cybersecurity artifacts, known risks, open issues, test results, support dependencies, and prioritized recommendations for contract continuation.
• Use incidents, testing, user feedback, scans, and lessons learned to recommend controlled improvements to the approved technical baseline.