Associate Network Engineering

Position and Company Summary: Client is seeking a Network Staging Lab Engineer responsible for the preparation, staging, validation, testing, and documentation of network infrastructure equipment prior to deployment into production environments. This role supports global network expansion, refresh, and migration projects by ensuring all network devices are configured, tested, and validated according to company standards before shipment and installation.

Network Staging & Validation

Receive, inventory, and track network equipment entering the staging lab.
Rack, stack, cable, and power network devices including routers, switches, firewalls, load balancers, and out-of-band management equipment.
Install and validate hardware components, optics, power supplies, and cabling.
Load operating systems, firmware, and approved software releases.
Verify software and firmware versions against approved security and vulnerability baselines.
Perform configuration deployment and baseline validation testing.

Execute pre-deployment checklists and acceptance testing.
Verify routing, switching, security, and management functionality.
Document device serial numbers, software versions, and configuration status.
Coordinate equipment packaging and shipment to deployment sites.
Maintain chain of custody and secure handling of equipment and configuration data from receipt through shipment.

Maintain staging lab inventory and asset records.
Manage spare equipment and lab consumables.
Ensure lab standards, ESD-safe handling, cable management, labeling, and documentation are maintained.
Support lab automation initiatives, including zero-touch provisioning (ZTP), automated configuration validation, and integration with a network source of truth (e.g., NetBox).

Troubleshoot hardware and configuration issues identified during staging.
Process RMAs with vendors for dead-on-arrival or failed hardware.
Work with network engineering, operations, vendors, and project managers to resolve deployment blockers.
Participate in root cause analysis for failed staging and deployment activities.

Documentation & Process Improvement

Create and maintain staging procedures and deployment runbooks.
Update standard operating procedures (SOPs).
Identify opportunities to automate repetitive staging and validation tasks.

Education: Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Network Engineering, or equivalent experience.

3+ years of hands-on experience with networking equipment.
Experience with staging, deployment, or network operations environments.
Experience working in data center environments.

Technical Skills

Strong knowledge of:
Ethernet switching
TCP/IP networking
VLANs
Routing fundamentals (OSPF, BGP)
Network security fundamentals
Experience with network vendors such as Cisco, Juniper, Arista, Palo Alto, Fortinet, or equivalent.
Familiarity with console access, terminal software, and remote management tools.
Experience using configuration templates and network documentation.

Ability to rack and cable network equipment.
Ability to lift up to 50 lbs, consistent with company safety guidelines.
Ability to work in laboratory and data center environments.
Occasional after-hours work during critical deployments and travel to deployment sites may be required.

CCNP, JNCIA, or equivalent certification.
Familiarity with IS-IS and Segment Routing (SR-MPLS).
Experience with network automation and scripting (Python, Ansible) and version control (Git).
Experience with zero-touch provisioning (ZTP) or a network source of truth such as NetBox.
Experience supporting large-scale data center or cloud networking environments.
Familiarity with asset management and inventory systems.

Success Metrics
Staging turnaround time per device and per deployment order.
First-pass yield: percentage of devices deployed with no on-site configuration or hardware fixes.
Inventory accuracy as measured by periodic audits.
Successful completion of staging validation test plans in compliance with operational and engineering standards.
Number of manual staging and validation tasks automated.

Scripting experience to automate repetitive tasks (e.g., Bash or PowerShell).
Working knowledge of Python for network automation, such as configuration generation, device validation, or data collection using libraries like Netmiko or NAPALM.
Experience using Ansible for network configuration management, with playbooks maintained in Git.
Experience building or using AI-assisted automation for network operations, such as using LLM-based agents (e.g., Claude Code) to generate configurations, write validation scripts, or automate staging workflows.