Network Automation Engineer

Core4ce is a team of innovators focused on strengthening national security and advancing warfighting outcomes. They are seeking a Mid-Level Automation Engineer to design, build, and maintain infrastructure and network automation solutions, playing a critical role in scaling operations and integrating systems.

Responsibilities:

• Automation & IaC: Design, develop, and maintain advanced automation workflows, playbooks, and modules using Ansible and Terraform to provision, configure, and manage infrastructure and networking devices
• Scripting & Integration: Write clean, scalable scripts (primarily in Python) utilizing libraries like Paramiko for SSH-based network/server automation and interact seamlessly with RESTful APIs for third-party integrations
• Network Automation: Apply a deep understanding of networking concepts (routing, switching, firewalls, load balancing) to automate network provisioning, state validation, and configuration management
• System Architecture: Collaborate with cross-functional engineering and operations teams to architect automated, self-healing, and scalable infrastructure solutions
• Tool Development: Build and maintain custom tooling, utilizing both frontend and backend development skills, to create self-service automation portals for internal teams
• Troubleshooting & Optimization: Proactively identify performance bottlenecks, troubleshoot complex automation failures, and ensure the reliability of CI/CD pipelines
• Mentorship & Best Practices: Champion code quality, perform code reviews, maintain comprehensive documentation, and help guide junior engineers in automation best practices
• This position is designed to be flexible, with responsibilities evolving to meet business needs and enable individual growth

Requirements:

• 3–5 years of proven experience in IT automation, DevOps, Network Engineering, or a related field
• Secret Clearance with Tier 5 investigation
• Hands-on, production-level experience with Ansible (playbooks, roles, inventory management) and Terraform (state management, modules, providers)
• Solid understanding of core networking concepts (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VPNs, BGP/OSPF) and experience automating network hardware or virtual appliances
• Strong proficiency in Python, including practical experience with Paramiko (or Netmiko) and consuming/building REST APIs
• Strong background in Linux/Unix systems administration
• Proficiency with Git and collaborative workflows (e.g., branching, merging, pull requests)
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to troubleshoot complex, multi-tier system issues independently
• Experience with backend development (e.g., Flask, FastAPI, Django, Node.js) and frontend development (e.g., React, Vue.js, or HTML/CSS/JS) to build custom internal automation dashboards
• Relevant industry certifications such as Red Hat Certified Specialist in Ansible Automation, HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate, or Cisco DevNet
• Experience provisioning resources in AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud Platform
• Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and pipeline orchestration tools (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI, GitHub Actions)
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Network Engineering, or equivalent practical experience