Lead Network Engineer

Description Location: Washington, DC

Employment Type: Full-Time

Program: Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

Pay Range: $140,000 - $195,000 annually

Position Overview Xtreme Solutions is seeking a Senior Network Engineer to serve as the technical lead supporting the Congressional Budget Office's enterprise Cisco infrastructure.

This role provides leadership for network architecture, modernization initiatives, Zero Trust implementation, cybersecurity integration, and infrastructure optimization. The successful candidate will collaborate with government stakeholders while mentoring engineering staff and leading network design decisions across highly secure enterprise environments.

What You'll Do

• Design, implement, and optimize Cisco enterprise networking environments.

• Lead architecture for:

• Core networking

• Distribution

• Access

• Edge infrastructure

• Design network security aligned with:

• NIST SP 800-53

• NIST SP 800-207 (Zero Trust)

• Implement:

• Network segmentation

• Micro-segmentation

• Identity-aware access controls

• Least privilege architecture

• Lead Cisco ISE / 802.1X / Network Access Control (NAC) implementations.

• Review and optimize firewall policies and perimeter security.

• Integrate enterprise networking with SIEM and Network Detection & Response (NDR) platforms.

• Lead vulnerability remediation planning and device lifecycle management.

• Coordinate firmware management and infrastructure modernization.

• Support cybersecurity assessments, audits, compliance reviews, and incident response.

• Develop:

• Architecture diagrams

• Implementation plans

• Security impact analyses

• Validation procedures

• Rollback plans

• SOPs

• Root Cause Analyses

• Audit evidence packages

• Serve as the senior technical advisor to CBO stakeholders while mentoring junior engineers.

Requirements Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of enterprise network engineering experience

• 5+ years supporting Cisco enterprise environments in a senior engineering or architecture role

• Demonstrated expertise in:

• Enterprise network design

• Infrastructure modernization

• Segmentation

• Perimeter security

• Experience with:

• Firewall optimization

• Cisco ISE / 802.1X

• Network Access Control (NAC)

• SIEM and NDR integration

• Vulnerability management

• Incident response

• Experience supporting highly regulated environments such as:

• Federal Government

• Legislative Branch

• Defense

• Financial Services

• Healthcare

• Exceptional technical writing skills with experience producing engineering documentation and government-ready deliverables.

Preferred CertificationsHighly Desired Certifications Include

• CCNP Enterprise
• CCNP Security
• CCIE Enterprise Infrastructure
• CCIE Security

Additional Preferred Certifications

• CISSP
• CISM
• Security+
• Cisco CyberOps
• Fortinet NSE
• Palo Alto PCNSE
• Juniper Professional Certifications
• AWS Networking or Security
• Microsoft Azure Networking
• ITIL Foundation
• RMF / NIST cybersecurity experience