Sr Lab Network Engineer

At F5, we strive to bring a better digital world to life. Our teams empower organizations across the globe to create, secure, and run applications that enhance how we experience our evolving digital world. We are passionate about cybersecurity, from protecting consumers from fraud to enabling companies to focus on innovation. 
 

Everything we do centers around people. That means we obsess over how to make the lives of our customers, and their customers, better. And it means we prioritize a diverse F5 community where each individual can thrive.

POSITION SUMMARY:

We are looking for a passionate, high-energy individual to help build and manage the network that powers the Product Development Labs for F5. The F5 Lab Network Engineer plays a critical role to our Product Development team by providing valuable lab services and tools for the F5 Product Development Lab. The lab supports both production systems and customized/flexible testing environments used by Test and Product Development teams. As a Sr. Lab Network Engineer, you’ll have the opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology and work with talented individuals. The ideal candidate will have experience in Network Engineering and Network Automation in an Operations environment at a global enterprise scale. Arista, Juniper, Cisco, Dell switches, Palo Alto firewalls, BIG-IP (F5), Infoblox, NCM, and DMZ networking.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Design, monitor, and improve the performance and reliability of lab network and virtual lab services.
• Configure and manage enterprise-grade switches (Arista, Juniper, Cisco, Dell) and firewalls (Palo Alto).
• Handle Layer 2 and Layer 3 network configurations including VLANs, STP, OSPF, BGP.
• Manage PXE booting environments for automated OS provisioning.
• Configure and maintain BIG-IP (F5) load balancers and related services.
• Design and maintain DMZ network segments, including firewall rule creation and management.
• Implement and manage Infoblox for IP address management and DNS/DHCP services.
• Use Network Configuration Manager (NCM) for automated configuration backups and compliance.
• Set up and manage switching authentication mechanisms (802.1X, RADIUS/TACACS).
• Maintain core Security Protocols in designing the Network diagram
• Plan and execute lab hardware infrastructure, including rack layouts, cabling, and power planning.
• Collaborate with architects and vendors to align lab infrastructure with emerging technologies and product roadmaps.
• Lead automation efforts for network configuration and troubleshooting using scripting languages (Python, Bash, Perl).
• Maintain inventory tools and perform capacity planning.
• Respond to service tickets and support requests in a timely manner.
• Deploy and support production and pre-production environments for core lab systems.
• Research and implement new technologies to enhance lab capabilities.
• Create and maintain scripts/tools to automate configuration, usability, and troubleshooting.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Strong hands-on experience with:
• Arista EOS, Juniper JunOS, Cisco IOS/NX-OS, Dell Networking OS
• Palo Alto firewalls and DMZ rule management
• BIG-IP (F5) configurations and traffic management
• Infoblox IPAM/DNS/DHCP
• NCM for network device configuration management
• Switching authentication (802.1X, RADIUS, TACACS)
• PXE booting, DHCP/TFTP/NFS setup
• Deep understanding of L2/L3 networking, routing protocols, and high availability systems
• Building for Security, Monitoring solutions and Log Capturing solutions for Switches.
• Experience with virtualization platforms Network connectivity: OpenStack, VMware, Hyper-V, KVM
• Familiarity with Linux, Windows, and systems engineering
• Scripting and automation experience (Python, Bash, Perl)
• Exposure to cloud platforms Networking (AWS, Azure) will be add-ons
• Experience with storage technologies Network Configurations
• Knowledge of Software Defined Networking (SDN) is a plus
• Database administration experience (PostgreSQL, MySQL, NoSQL)

QUALIFICATIONS:  

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Engineering, or related field (or equivalent work experience)
• 10+ years of experience in enterprise network environments
• 6+ years of experience with virtualization platforms
• Strong problem-solving, decision-making, and communication skills
• Ability to quickly learn and adopt new technologies

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• May require occasional on-call support and work outside normal hours (evenings/weekends)
• Occasional travel (approx. 5%) via automobile or airplane
• Work performed in a standard office environment with regular use of computers and communication tools

#LI-ZB1

The Job Description is intended to be a general representation of the responsibilities and requirements of the job. However, the description may not be all-inclusive, and responsibilities and requirements are subject to change.

F5 maintains broad salary ranges for its roles in order to account for variations in knowledge, skills, experience, geographic locations, and market conditions, as well as to reflect F5’s differing products, industries, and lines of business. The pay range referenced is as of the time of the job posting and is subject to change.

You may also be offered incentive compensation, bonus, restricted stock units, and benefits. More details about F5’s benefits can be found at the following link: https://www.f5.com/company/careers/benefits. F5 reserves the right to change or terminate any benefit plan without notice. 

Please note that F5 only contacts candidates through F5 email address (ending with @f5.com) or auto email notification from Workday (ending with f5.com or @myworkday.com).

Equal Employment Opportunity

It is the policy of F5 to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and employment applicants without regard to unlawful considerations of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, sensory, physical, or mental disability, marital status, veteran or military status, genetic information, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws. This policy applies to all aspects of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, benefits, training, discipline, and termination.  F5 offers a variety of reasonable accommodations for candidates. Requesting an accommodation is completely voluntary. F5 will assess the need for accommodations in the application process separately from those that may be needed to perform the job. Request by contacting [email protected].