Sr.Architect-Network

Responsibilities:

Architect enterprise network strategies and frameworks spanning cloud, on-premises, and hybrid environments, with Fortinet as the core platform

Design and lead Fortinet Secure SD-WAN deployments (FortiGate, FortiOS, FortiManager, FortiAnalyzer), including overlay and underlay topology, SLA-based steering, and failover strategy

Design and own client and third-party connectivity: site-to-site and partner IPsec VPN, ADVPN, SSL-VPN, and remote access

Architect NAT strategy for client connectivity, including source and destination NAT, VIPs, IP pools, NAT-T, and overlapping address space resolution

Evaluate and recommend network technologies, tools, and frameworks, and integrate third-party solutions including firewalls, load balancers, routers, and legacy Palo Alto and Cisco platforms

Partner with business stakeholders, project managers, and IT teams to align network designs with organizational and client goals

Ensure designs meet security best practices, regulatory standards (PCI-DSS, SOC 2), and organizational policy

Produce and maintain documentation, cutover runbooks, and rollback plans for review by client architecture teams

Serve as senior technical escalation point and mentor to engineers

Drive innovation by proposing and piloting emerging network technologies

Education:

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent practical experience

Certifications:

Required: Fortinet NSE 4 minimum

Strongly preferred: NSE 7 (Enterprise Firewall or SD-WAN) or higher

Preferred: AWS, Azure, or other cloud networking certification

Experience:

15+ years of hands-on network engineering and architecture experience in enterprise or managed services environments

Significant production experience with Fortinet in complex, multi-site environments

Knowledge & Skills:

Deep, hands-on Fortinet expertise: FortiGate, FortiManager, FortiAnalyzer, and Fortinet SD-WAN

Expert-level IPsec VPN design and troubleshooting (IKEv2, DPD, NAT-T, route-based and policy-based tunnels, ADVPN)

Expert-level NAT design and troubleshooting across client, partner, and overlapping-subnet scenarios

Deep expertise in routing and switching protocols (BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, MPLS), including BGP as the SD-WAN underlay and overlay routing protocol

Strong understanding of firewall policy design, load balancers, QoS, and traffic shaping

Experience with cloud networking (AWS/Azure VPN gateways, Direct Connect, ExpressRoute)

Proficiency with network design and diagramming tools (Visio, Lucid, or similar)

Experience with scripting and automation (Python, Ansible, FortiManager API, or similar)

Experience leading production cutovers with minimal disruption in regulated environments

Familiarity with Fortinet ZTNA (access proxy, FortiClient EMS) and zero trust concepts is a plus

Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to present to both technical and executive audiences