Senior Firewall Rules & Automation Engineer

World Wide Technology is looking for a Senior Firewall Rules & Automation Engineer. This role is part of WWT s Strategic Resourcing services and is a contract role. The candidate will be supporting a WWT customer and will be employed by one of WWT s preferred partners. The partner will provide full compensation and benefit information prior to employment with the partner.

Why WWT?

At Worldwide Technology, we work together to make a new world happen. Our important work benefits our clients and partners as much as it does our people and communities across the globe. WWT is dedicated to achieving its mission of creating a profitable growth company that is also a Great Place to Work for All. We achieve this through our world-class culture, generous benefits, and by delivering cutting-edge technology solutions for our clients.

WWT was founded in 1990 in St. Louis, Missouri. We employ more than 10,000 people globally and close nearly $20 billion in revenue in 2023. We have an inclusive culture and believe our core values are the key to company and employee success. WWT is proud to have been included on the FORTUNE "100 Best Places to Work For " list 12 years in a row!

Want to work with highly motivated individuals on high-performance teams? Join WWT today!

Rate/Salary: A reasonable estimate of the current pay range for this position is $90.00 to $95.00 hourly on W2 hourly. Actual pay will be based on a variety of factors, including shift, location, experience, skill set, performance, licensure and certification, and business needs, and will be set by your employer. The range for this position in other geographic locations may differ. Certain positions may also be eligible for variable incentive compensation, such as bonuses or commissions, that is not included in base pay.

Senior Firewall Rules & Automation Engineer

6 Months

Columbus, OH

Job Summary

The Senior Firewall Rules & Automation Engineer in the Strategic Initiatives Group is responsible for designing, optimizing, and automating firewall policies across complex enterprise environments. This role is central to the organization s efforts to modernize network security, enforce segmentation, and support digital transformation initiatives. You ll lead strategic projects involving firewall rule lifecycle management, policy-as-code, and integration with cloud and hybrid platforms, while collaborating with architects, cybersecurity teams, and infrastructure leaders to ensure secure and scalable connectivity.

In addition, this role functions as a Network Strategic Initiatives leader advising, communicating, and driving delivery for global and transformational programs. When global 'critical incidents' arise, the leader rapidly aligns teams on a tactical response, identifies resolution paths, and documents gaps to evolve into standards, governance, or longer-term initiatives. The position is designed to serve holistically, connecting product teams to strategic goals and milestones while ensuring execution from the ground up. This position requires the ability to build from the ground up establishing frameworks, governance, delivery models, and operational mecnisms scale across a global enterprise.

This role is not limited to technical depth it demands multi-disciplinary expertise, leadership across matrixed environments, and proven ability to execute from zero by building frameworks, governance, and delivery models. Familiarity with Agile/Lean practices is expected, enabling incremental value delivery and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities

Firewall Policy Design & Optimization

• Architect and implement enterprise firewall rule sets across data centers, cloud platforms, and edge environments.
• Design zone-based segmentation strategies and micro segmentation policies to reduce attack surface.
• Conduct rule audits, cleanup initiatives, and policy rationalization to eliminate redundancy and reduce complexity.

Automation & Policy-as-Code

• Develop automation workflows for firewall rule provisioning, validation, and decommissioning using tools like Ansible, Terraform, and Python.
• Implement policy-as-code frameworks to enforce standardized rule creation and change control.
• Integrate firewall automation with ITSM platforms (e.g., ServiceNow) and CI/CD pipelines.

Cloud & Hybrid Integration

• Design and manage firewall policies across cloud-native platforms (AWS Security Groups/NACLs, Azure NSGs, Google Cloud Platform Firewall Rules).
• Implement transit gateway and hub-spoke architectures with integrated firewall controls.
• Collaborate with cloud architects to align network security with cloud governance models.

Security & Compliance

• Ensure firewall configurations meet regulatory and internal compliance standards (PCI-DSS, HIPAA, NIST).
• Implement logging, alerting, and telemetry for firewall events using SIEM platforms (Splunk, Sentinel).
• Support incident response and forensic investigations by providing firewall logs and traffic analysis.

Strategic Leadership & Collaboration

• Lead strategic initiatives such as Zero Trust segmentation, cloud perimeter modernization, and firewall-as-a-service adoption.
• Partner with enterprise architects, cybersecurity teams, and application owners to align firewall policies with business needs.
• Present technical strategies, risk posture, and automation outcomes to executive stakeholders.
• Tactical Response Rapid activation to resolve global incidents, codify playbooks, and translate lessons learned into enduring standards.
• Network Consulting Conduct assessments, provide reference architectures, and guide decision-making with executive-ready recommendations.
• Solution & Planning Define and execute well-structured solution packages (HLD, LLD, BoM, QA, automation models) aligned with the One Management model. Empsize Infra-as-Code, observability, and governance at every stage.
• Gap Analysis Map as-is to to-be states across people, process, technology, and compliance, prioritizing remediation into quick wins and strategic programs.
• Policy-as-Code and automation-first delivery, rmonizing firewall and cloud perimeter controls, detecting drift, and ensuring compliance.

Required Skills & Qualifications

Technical Expertise

• Deep understanding of firewall technologies (Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, Cisco ASA/Firepower, Check Point).
• Proficiency in rule management, NAT, VPNs, and application-layer filtering.
• Strong scripting and automation skills (Python, Ansible, Terraform).
• Familiarity with cloud-native firewall constructs and SDN/SASE architectures.

Certifications

• Preferred: PCNSE (Palo Alto), NSE4+ (Fortinet), CCNP Security, AWS/Azure Security Specialty

Experience

• 7+ years in network security engineering with a focus on firewall management.
• 3+ years leading automation or strategic infrastructure initiatives.