Job Description
Job Description
About CENIC:
Join the team that connects California to the world — advancing education and research statewide by providing the world-class computing network essential for innovation, collaboration, and economic growth. Our organization operates the California Research and Education Network (CalREN), a high-capacity computer network with more than 8,000 miles of optical fiber. The network serves over 20 million users across California, including the vast majority of K-20 students, together with educators, researchers, and individuals at other vital public-serving institutions.
**We are looking for Network Engineers at various levels: mid-career > senior > technical expert > and leadership roles! Please see our career center for other positions available.**
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Principal Engineer, Network plays a strategic leadership role in designing, implementing, and evolving CENIC’s multiple networks, including CalREN, Pacific Wave, and the Western Regional Network. This position supports the organization through senior-level technical expertise, complex problem-solving, long-term planning, and mentorship. The Principal Engineer, Network works across teams and with external partners to ensure the ongoing reliability, performance, and scalability of CENIC’s backbone and member-facing infrastructure.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: None
LOCATION: Hybrid. La Mirada, CA
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
Network Planning and Design
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Lead the design and evolution of optical and Layer 2/3 backbone and access networks to support growing bandwidth, service, and resilience needs
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Create, publish, and maintain comprehensive written strategic and tactical goals and project plans for CENIC networks
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Evaluate and plan for the adoption of emerging network services, technologies, and protocols
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Set engineering direction through the authorship and enforcement of architectural standards, design templates, and configuration policies
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Conduct traffic and capacity analyses to inform long-term infrastructure decisions
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Keep up-to-date with emerging trends and technologies in the networking industry and the larger research & education community
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Occasional travel to conferences to advocate for and connect with the community
Technical Leadership
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Serve as a senior technical authority and architectural decision-maker for CENIC’s backbone and member-serving networks and services
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Translate organizational strategy into technical roadmaps that align with long-term infrastructure and service goals
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Lead the evaluation and adoption of emerging technologies to ensure network resiliency, scalability, and relevance
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Represent CENIC in high-level external engagements, technical alliances, and initiatives within the wider research & education community
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Proactively identify systemic challenges or risks and drive coordinated solutions across departments
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Partner with the NOC, Security, and Program Management teams on design, deployment, and troubleshooting efforts
Mentorship and Internal Support
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Serve as a technical resource and mentor for engineers across the team
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Assist with technical reviews, training, and knowledge sharing
Automation and Tooling
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Identify and implement opportunities for automation of provisioning, monitoring, and configuration workflows
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Contribute to the selection and improvement of network visibility and performance tools
REQUIRED EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE:
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Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field with at least 10 years of advanced network engineering experience (ISP, research & education, enterprise-scale backbones)
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Deep mastery of IP (BGP, OSPF, IS-IS), MPLS (Segment Routing), VPN services (L2VPN, IPVPN), and traffic engineering concepts
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Proven track record designing and operating large-scale IP and optical networks (100G+)
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Familiarity with the configuration, operation, and evaluation of major vendors, such as Cisco, Juniper, Arista, and Nokia
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Demonstrated ability to guide others: mentor engineers, lead peer reviews, and drive adoption of best practices
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Strong communication skills for engaging collaborators, senior leadership, and external stakeholders
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Background in research & education, public sector, or nonprofit backbone networks
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Experience in capital planning, vendor selection, or managing high-impact network rollouts
Preferred SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE