Wireless Network Architect
Position Summary
The Wireless Network Architect is responsible for the architecture, design, implementation, optimization, and strategic direction of enterprise wireless networking solutions. This role serves as a senior technical authority for Wi-Fi and wireless infrastructure, ensuring secure, scalable, resilient, and high-performing connectivity across corporate offices, operational facilities, campuses, and other enterprise environments.
The Wireless Network Architect will partner with Network Engineering, Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Cloud, End User Computing, application teams, vendors, and business stakeholders to define wireless standards and deliver solutions aligned with enterprise technology and security requirements. The ideal candidate combines deep hands-on wireless engineering expertise with strong architecture, troubleshooting, documentation, and stakeholder-management capabilities.
Key Responsibilities
Wireless Architecture & Design
- Develop and maintain the enterprise wireless network architecture, standards, roadmaps, and reference designs.
- Design highly available and scalable Wi-Fi 6/6E/7 and 802.11-based wireless solutions for enterprise environments.
- Conduct wireless site assessments and develop designs based on coverage, capacity, application performance, device density, and business requirements.
- Define standards for wireless controllers, access points, antennas, authentication, network segmentation, RF configuration, and supporting infrastructure.
- Perform predictive and post-deployment wireless surveys using industry-standard RF planning and analysis tools.
- Develop wireless designs for offices, warehouses, industrial facilities, outdoor environments, high-density locations, and other complex environments.
- Evaluate emerging wireless technologies and provide recommendations for enterprise adoption.
Engineering & Implementation
- Lead the technical design and implementation of new wireless infrastructure and major wireless upgrades.
- Configure, integrate, and optimize wireless controllers, access points, management platforms, authentication services, and related networking technologies.
- Partner with Network Engineering teams on LAN/WAN, routing, switching, VLAN, DHCP, DNS, QoS, NAC, and firewall requirements supporting wireless services.
- Develop implementation plans, migration strategies, testing procedures, rollback plans, and technical acceptance criteria.
- Provide technical leadership during large-scale wireless deployments, refresh programs, office expansions, acquisitions, and infrastructure modernization initiatives.
- Ensure wireless solutions meet enterprise availability, performance, security, and scalability requirements.
Wireless Performance & RF Optimization
- Analyze RF environments and identify interference, channel utilization, roaming, coverage, capacity, and performance issues.
- Optimize channel allocation, transmit power, channel width, data rates, band utilization, and access-point placement.
- Troubleshoot complex wireless connectivity and performance issues involving authentication, roaming, latency, packet loss, interference, and application performance.
- Establish wireless performance baselines and monitor key network health metrics.
- Perform root-cause analysis for major wireless incidents and develop long-term corrective actions.
Security & Compliance
- Partner with Cybersecurity teams to develop and maintain secure enterprise wireless standards.
- Design and support secure wireless authentication using technologies such as 802.1X, RADIUS, EAP, WPA2/WPA3 Enterprise, certificates, and Network Access Control (NAC).
- Develop secure architectures for corporate, guest, BYOD, IoT, operational, and specialized wireless networks.
- Ensure wireless infrastructure complies with enterprise cybersecurity policies, regulatory requirements, and industry best practices.
- Support vulnerability remediation, firmware lifecycle management, security assessments, and audit requirements.
Architecture, Standards & Governance
- Create and maintain wireless architecture diagrams, design documents, configuration standards, engineering specifications, and operational documentation.
- Establish enterprise standards for access-point placement, controller architecture, SSIDs, RF configuration, authentication, segmentation, and monitoring.
- Participate in architecture review boards and technical governance processes.
- Evaluate wireless hardware, software, and vendor solutions through proofs of concept and technical assessments.
- Develop technology lifecycle and refresh strategies for enterprise wireless infrastructure.
- Provide technical guidance and mentorship to network engineers and support teams.
Vendor & Project Leadership
- Serve as a technical liaison with wireless technology vendors, telecommunications providers, implementation partners, and managed service providers.
- Review vendor designs, statements of work, implementation plans, and technical recommendations.
- Support budgeting, capacity planning, hardware forecasting, and technology lifecycle initiatives.
- Provide technical leadership for wireless projects from requirements gathering and architecture through implementation and operational handoff.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor''s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Network Engineering, Telecommunications, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
- 7+ years of enterprise networking experience, including significant hands-on experience designing and supporting large-scale wireless environments.
- Advanced knowledge of IEEE 802.11 wireless standards, RF fundamentals, wireless security, roaming, channel planning, capacity planning, and interference management.
- Strong experience with enterprise wireless networking platforms such as Cisco Wireless/Catalyst, Cisco Meraki, Aruba, Juniper Mist, or comparable technologies.
- Strong understanding of enterprise routing and switching, including TCP/IP, VLANs, DHCP, DNS, QoS, routing protocols, switching, firewalls, and network segmentation.
- Experience with enterprise authentication and security technologies including 802.1X, RADIUS, EAP, WPA2/WPA3 Enterprise, NAC, and certificate-based authentication.
- Experience performing wireless site surveys, RF analysis, and wireless performance assessments.
- Experience troubleshooting complex Layer 1–7 network and wireless performance issues.
- Ability to develop detailed network architecture diagrams, engineering documentation, standards, and implementation plans.
- Demonstrated experience leading complex infrastructure initiatives in large enterprise environments.
- Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and stakeholder-management skills.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with Cisco Catalyst Center, Cisco ISE, Cisco Prime, Meraki Dashboard, Aruba Central, Juniper Mist, or similar enterprise network-management platforms.
- Experience with wireless design and survey tools such as Ekahau, Hamina, AirMagnet, or equivalent technologies.
- Familiarity with SD-WAN, SD-Access, Zero Trust, SASE, NAC, and cloud-managed networking architectures.
- Experience supporting high-density, industrial, manufacturing, utility, healthcare, warehouse, or other mission-critical wireless environments.
- Experience with network automation using Python, APIs, Ansible, Terraform, or similar technologies.
- Understanding of cloud networking and integration with Microsoft Azure, AWS, or other cloud platforms.
- Experience with network monitoring, observability, and performance-management platforms.
- Relevant certifications such as CCNP Enterprise, CCIE Enterprise Wireless, CWNP/CWNE, Aruba Certified Professional/Expert, Juniper, or equivalent credentials.
Key Competencies
- Wireless Architecture: Ability to translate business and technical requirements into scalable enterprise wireless solutions.
- RF Expertise: Advanced understanding of wireless propagation, interference, capacity, roaming, and performance optimization.
- Technical Leadership: Ability to provide architectural direction and serve as an escalation point for complex networking challenges.
- Security Focus: Incorporates security, segmentation, authentication, and compliance requirements into wireless architecture.
- Problem Solving: Uses data-driven analysis to diagnose and resolve complex network performance issues.
- Communication: Effectively communicates technical concepts to engineers, leadership, vendors, and non-technical stakeholders.
- Documentation & Governance: Maintains clear architecture standards, diagrams, configurations, and operational documentation.
- Continuous Improvement: Identifies opportunities to improve network reliability, automation, scalability, security, and operational efficiency.
Success Measures
Success in this position will be measured through wireless availability and performance, reduction of recurring connectivity issues, successful delivery of wireless modernization initiatives, adherence to architecture and security standards, improved network visibility, and delivery of a scalable wireless architecture capable of supporting evolving enterprise business and technology requirements.
