Cisco Network Engineer (Contractual)

We are seeking a highly experienced Cisco Network Engineer to lead the design, deployment, configuration, migration, and troubleshooting of enterprise SD-WAN environments. The ideal candidate must have strong hands-on expertise in Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN/Viptela, vManage, vSmart, vBond, and Catalyst 8000-series routers, with proven experience in production migrations, maintenance-window cutovers, and high-availability network implementations.

Key Responsibilities

Design, stage, configure, and deploy Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN solutions across enterprise branch and data center environments.
Manage vManage templates, device onboarding, template bindings, and centralized/localized SD-WAN policies.
Configure and troubleshoot vSmart/vBond controllers, overlay tunnels, control-plane connectivity, and routing operations.
Deploy and integrate Cisco Catalyst 8000-series routers, particularly Catalyst 8235 and 8475 platforms.
Configure and troubleshoot BGP, OSPF, IPv4/IPv6, route redistribution, and application-aware routing policies.
Execute traditional WAN and Meraki-to-Catalyst SD-WAN migrations, including pre-checks, staging, production cutovers, and post-implementation validation.
Develop Method of Procedure (MOP) documents, rollback plans, implementation checklists, and testing procedures.
Implement resilient WAN connectivity and dual-router high-availability designs.
Coordinate with customer teams on firewall integration, routing paths, network reachability, and core network connectivity.
Prepare as-built configurations, technical documentation, and operational handover materials.

Required Qualifications

7+ years of enterprise networking experience, including at least 3 years of hands-on Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN/Viptela implementation.
Strong practical expertise in vManage, vSmart, vBond, SD-WAN templates, policies, and device onboarding.
Proven experience with production SD-WAN migrations, maintenance-window cutovers, rollback planning, and post-cutover validation.
Strong knowledge of BGP, OSPF, IPv4/IPv6, WAN routing, underlay/overlay architecture, and routing convergence.
Hands-on experience deploying Cisco Catalyst 8000-series routers; Catalyst 8235/8475 experience is highly desirable.
Understanding of high availability, firewall integration, change management, and enterprise network troubleshooting.
Strong implementation documentation, customer coordination, and technical communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

CCNP Enterprise or CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure certification.
Experience migrating traditional WAN or Meraki environments to Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN.
Experience with multi-site enterprise networks, branch connectivity, and data center/headend deployments.