SENIOR DATA CENTER NETWORK ENGINEER (HYBRID)

Description

Job Summary: We are seeking a Senior Data Center Network Engineer for a strategic telecommunications project focused on automation, security, and NetDevOps transformation. Key Highlights: 1. Direct participation in the transformation of Data Center infrastructures 2. Technologically demanding projects in automation, security, and observability 3. Opportunity to lead technical initiatives and contribute to NetDevOps #### **SENIOR DATA CENTER NETWORK ENGINEER (HYBRID LISBON)** Portuguese company hiring for hybrid work Location: Lisbon, Portugal * Candidates must already be located in Portugal Work Model: Hybrid — approximately 60% remote and 40% on-site Language Requirements: **Portuguese** at a very good level, preferably native. **English** minimum B1 level * ️Years of experience: Senior (8\+ years) **Sector:** Telecommunications Contract: B2B Rate €2200 \- 2200 RV * Instructions: Submit your CV in Portuguese and ensure all skills and experiences matching the opportunity's requirements are included. This will significantly increase your chances of success. #### **About the Opportunity** We are looking for a **Senior Data Center Network Engineer** to join a strategic telecommunications sector project with a strong focus on automation, security, and transformation toward a **NetDevOps** model. You will play a key role in designing and evolving Data Center network infrastructures, including switching fabrics, Data Center Interconnect (DCI), perimeter security, telemetry, and observability. We seek a senior, autonomous profile capable of assuming end-to-end technical responsibility. #### **Key Responsibilities** * Participate in the design and evolution of Data Center network architecture; * Work with spine-leaf fabrics, VXLAN/EVPN, BGP, OSPF, multi-tenancy, DCI, QoS, and traffic engineering; * Design and enhance perimeter security solutions, segmentation, micro-segmentation, IDS/IPS, VPN, and load balancing; * Develop and maintain automation solutions for provisioning, configuration, and lifecycle management of switches, firewalls, and load balancers; * Implement CI/CD pipelines and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) for network changes; * Create automated validation processes, pre-production testing, dry-runs, virtual labs, and rollback mechanisms; * Implement telemetry and observability dashboards for monitoring and capacity planning; * Support resolution of complex incidents and perform root cause analysis; * Produce technical documentation, configuration standards, security policies, and automation best practices; * Mentor less experienced professionals and promote NetDevOps practices; * Collaborate with internal teams and vendors in evaluating new technologies and proof-of-concepts. #### **Mandatory Technical Requirements** **Data Center Networking** * Solid experience with spine-leaf architectures; * Proficiency in VXLAN/EVPN, BGP, and OSPF in fabric environments; * Knowledge of vPC/MLAG, STP, Layer 2 protection mechanisms, multicast, and QoS; * Experience with multi-tenant architectures and Data Center Interconnect technologies, including EVPN Multi-Site; * Integration with virtualization and container platforms, notably VMware and Kubernetes; * Knowledge of storage networking, including iSCSI and RoCE; * Experience in multi-vendor environments, such as Cisco Nexus NX-OS/ACI, Arista EOS/CloudVision, Juniper QFX/Apstra, or Nokia. **Perimeter Security** * Solid experience with next-generation firewalls, such as Palo Alto, Fortinet, Cisco, or Check Point; * Configuration of security policies, NAT, IPsec/SSL VPN, and traffic inspection; * Knowledge of segmentation, micro-segmentation, DMZ, and Zero Trust principles; * Experience with IDS/IPS, DDoS mitigation, WAF, and load balancers, such as F5 or equivalent; * Knowledge of network device hardening and control plane protection. **Automation and Development** * Advanced Python knowledge applied to network automation; * Experience with Git, testing, code reviews, and software development best practices; * Proficiency in Ansible for large-scale configuration management; * Knowledge of YANG models and NETCONF, RESTCONF, and gNMI interfaces; * Experience with CI/CD pipelines in GitLab or GitHub applied to network changes; * Validation using virtual labs, such as Containerlab or GNS3; * Experience with streaming telemetry, SNMP, gRPC, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, or equivalent tools. #### **Professional Experience** * Minimum of **8 years of experience in network engineering**; * At least **5 years in large-scale Data Center environments**, enterprise or service provider; * Minimum of **3 years of hands-on experience in production network automation projects**; * Experience in Data Center transformation projects, migration to VXLAN/EVPN, infrastructure consolidation, segmentation, or micro-segmentation is highly valued. #### **Education and Certifications** Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Telecommunications, or a related field. Equivalent proven professional experience may also be considered. Valued certifications include: * Cisco CCNP or CCIE Data Center; * Juniper JNCIP-DC or JNCIE-DC; * Arista ACE at an advanced level; * Palo Alto PCNSE; * Fortinet NSE 7/FCSS or equivalent; * Cisco DevNet Professional or Expert; * Red Hat Certified Specialist in Ansible Automation; * Python programming certifications. Candidates are expected to hold, preferably, at least one Expert-level or equivalent certification. #### **Ideal Profile** We seek an experienced Data Center networking professional with strong automation capabilities and an integrated view of architecture, security, and operations. The ideal candidate is autonomous, analytical, and results-oriented, able to lead technical initiatives and assume responsibility from design through to production deployment. Clear communication with both technical and management teams, mentoring of junior professionals, and consistent performance under critical conditions are essential. Curiosity, continuous learning, and the drive to accelerate NetDevOps adoption will be fundamental to success in this role. #### **Why Consider This Opportunity?** * Direct participation in the transformation of large-scale Data Center infrastructures; * Technologically demanding projects in automation, security, and observability; * Exposure to multi-vendor environments and modern architectures; * Opportunity to lead technical initiatives and contribute to NetDevOps adoption; * Hybrid work model with a predominantly remote component; * Opportunity to serve as a technical reference and support team development. #### **Questions for Candidates** When applying, please indicate in your CV or cover message: * How many years of experience do you have in network engineering and large-scale Data Centers? * Which spine-leaf, VXLAN/EVPN, BGP, and OSPF architecture projects have you delivered? * Which Data Center switching vendors and platforms have you worked with? * What experience do you have with next-generation firewalls, micro-segmentation, IDS/IPS, WAF, and load balancers? * Which network automation solutions have you developed using Python and Ansible? * Do you have production experience with CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code, automated testing, and network change rollbacks? * Which tools do you use for telemetry and observability? * Have you participated in Data Center migrations or transformation programs? What was your role? * Do you hold any Expert-level or equivalent certification? * Are you available for the hybrid model, with approximately 40% on-site presence in Lisbon? * What is your proficiency level in Portuguese and English? #### **Recommended Keywords for Your CV** Data Center Networking, Senior Network Engineer, NetDevOps, Network Automation, Spine-Leaf, VXLAN, EVPN, BGP, OSPF, vPC, MLAG, STP, Multicast, QoS, Multi-Tenancy, Data Center Interconnect, DCI, EVPN Multi-Site, VMware, Kubernetes, iSCSI, RoCE, Cisco Nexus, NX-OS, Cisco ACI, Arista EOS, CloudVision, Juniper QFX, Apstra, Nokia, Next-Generation Firewall, Palo Alto, Fortinet, Cisco, Check Point, NAT, IPsec VPN, SSL VPN, IDS, IPS, DDoS, WAF, F5, Micro-Segmentation, Zero Trust, Python, Ansible, Git, GitLab, GitHub, CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code, IaC, YANG, NETCONF, RESTCONF, gNMI, gRPC, SNMP, Streaming Telemetry, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, Containerlab, GNS3, Network Security, Network Observability, Capacity Planning, Root Cause Analysis, CCNP Data Center, CCIE Data Center, JNCIP-DC, JNCIE-DC, Arista ACE, PCNSE, DevNet, Ansible Automation \#00351776