Network Automation Engineer

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Network Automation Engineer (Junior-Mid Level) to support a federal network modernization project in Alexandria, VA. This role is ideal for an early-career network engineer with solid Cisco networking experience and hands-on exposure to Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) tools such as Ansible and Terraform.

You will assist in modernizing network infrastructure, improving repeatability, and supporting automation-ready configurations across enterprise environments.

This is an excellent growth opportunity for someone who wants to expand their automation skills while building on strong Cisco networking fundamentals.

Key Responsibilities

• Support day-to-day management of Cisco network devices (routers, switches, firewalls, wireless controllers).
• Assist with implementing Ansible playbooks and Terraform configurations to automate provisioning and configuration tasks.
• Participate in network configuration, change management, and version-controlled workflows.
• Collaborate with senior engineers to translate manual operational tasks into scripted or automated workflows.
• Help maintain documentation, diagrams, and configuration templates.
• Support troubleshooting across LAN/WAN environments (routing, switching, VLANs, ACLs, QoS).
• Contribute to compliance and security initiatives in alignment with federal IT standards.
• Participate in testing, validation, and deployment of network changes.
• Assist with monitoring and reporting on network health, performance, and device inventory.

Required Qualifications

• 3+ years of Cisco networking experience (routing & switching).
• Bachelor's degree in IT, Computer Science, or related field (or equivalent experience).
• Hands-on experience with Ansible (running playbooks, editing templates, basic automation tasks).
• Hands-on exposure to Terraform (network or infrastructure provisioning).
• Strong understanding of networking fundamentals:
  • TCP/IP
  • VLANs
  • ACLs
  • OSPF / BGP basics
• Familiarity with version control concepts (Git or similar).
• Strong problem-solving and communication skills.
• Ability to work onsite in Alexandria, VA as required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Any professional networking certification (CCNA, CCNP).
• IAT Level II certification (Security+, CCNA-Security, or similar).
• Experience with scripting languages (Python preferred).
• Exposure to cloud networking (AWS, Azure) or virtualization.
• Experience supporting federal IT environments.

Why This Role Is a Good Fit for You

• Gain hands-on experience with network automation in a federal environment.
• Work alongside senior architects who will help grow your automation skills.
• Be part of a large-scale modernization effort with meaningful career advancement potential.
• Great opportunity for an early-career engineer ready to take the next step into automation and IaC.

Compensation

• $70,000 - $85,000
• Benefits: PTO, Paid Holidays, Medical, Dental, Vision, 401(k), Sick Leave (as required by law)

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Keywords:

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