Opening for Network/Secops Specialist in New York, NY-Hybrid || Contract

Job Title: Network/Secops Specialist

Location: New York, NY - Hybrid

Mode of Hire: Contract

For final discussion candidate must go to NY (F2F)

Job Description:

Key Responsibilities:

Incident & Request Management (L2.5 Scope)

• Own complex network/security incidents: triage, isolate root cause, restore service within SLAs
• Perform onsite troubleshooting using CLI (Cisco IOS/IOS-XE/NX-OS), packet captures (Wireshark/tcpdump), and log correlation (PAN-OS logs, GlobalProtect, User-ID)
• Resolve service requests: VLAN/subnet provisioning, inter-VLAN routing, ACL/QoS updates, DHCP/DNS changes, Wi-Fi tuning, firewall policy/NAT/VPN changes
• Document timelines, actions, and RCAs in ITSM (e.g., ServiceNow/Jira/Remedy)

Change & Configuration Management

• Plan and implement standard changes with tested rollback plans: routing adjustments (OSPF/EIGRP/BGP), ACLs, QoS, NAT, HA tuning (HSRP/VRRP), SD-WAN policies (if applicable)
• Build and review Palo Alto policies (App-ID, User-ID, security profiles), NAT, objects, zones; configure site-to-site and GlobalProtect VPN
• Maintain configuration backups, baselines, and golden images; enforce hardening and standard templates

Monitoring, Operations & Capacity

• Monitor Cisco network health (errors/discards, interface utilization, RF/Wi-Fi KPIs) and Palo Alto threat/traffic logs; tune alerts to reduce noise and improve MTTR
• Proactively analyze trends (bandwidth, latency, retransmits, auth failures, top talkers, threat types) and recommend capacity/resilience improvements (Dual ISP, HA pairs, SD-WAN, QoS)
• Coordinate with ISPs/carriers; lead circuit turn-ups, failover tests, and RMA/hardware replacements

Security Operations

• Operate and tune Palo Alto security controls: Security/ NAT policies, Threat/URL/ WildFire profiles, Decryption (where approved), DoS/Zone protections
• Investigate alerts/events (PAN-OS, SIEM); collect evidence and escalate per IR playbooks; assist with rule hygiene (remove shadow/unused rules)
• Implement least-privilege design, regular policy reviews, and compliance alignment

Problem Management & Continual Improvement

• Contribute to RCAs for chronic issues; propose permanent fixes and preventive measures.
• Author and maintain SOPs/runbooks, network/security diagrams, and knowledge articles; enable L1/L2 via training/KT.
• Automate repeatable checks/reporting (Python/PowerShell/Ansible-config audits, object cleanup reports, health snapshots).

Stakeholder & Vendor Management

• Serve as onsite technical interface for business users, facilities, and vendors

Qualifications:

• • • Bachelor's degree in computer science, Information Technology, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
    • 8 to 10 years of experience in network support, with a focus on Level 2 / 3 troubleshooting.
• Communications (Written and Oral) - Communicates well. Writes clear, precise, well-organized documents.
• Analysis Skills - Identifies significant problems and opportunities. Analyzes problems and people in depth.
• Team Player - Reaches out to peers. Overcomes we-they. Leads peers to do what is best for company.
• Ideal candidate will be teamwork-oriented, passionate about technology and possess an excellent work ethic and communication skills.
  • • Strong knowledge of networking protocols (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, etc.) and network and security practices.
    • Any firewall domain experience & preferably palo-alto
    • Experience with network monitoring tools and technologies (e.g., Wireshark, SolarWinds).
    • Familiarity with network hardware from leading vendors (Cisco, Juniper, Palo Alto etc.).
    • Knowledge in Cloud (AWS, Azure, Terraform)
    • Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work under pressure.
    • Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.
    • Relevant certifications (e.g., CCIE R & S , CCNP R & S, Any relevant Firewall Certifications CompTIA Network+ will be plus )