Lead Network Automation Architect

Job Description We are seeking a highly experienced Lead Network Automation Architect to drive the modernization, automation, and reliability of large-scale global network infrastructure. The ideal candidate will combine deep expertise in enterprise networking, Kubernetes networking, Infrastructure-as-Code, GitOps, CI/CD automation, and advanced troubleshooting of complex hybrid environments. This individual will serve as the highest-level technical authority for network automation, design standards, deployment pipelines, and critical escalations. Experience within telecommunications, VoIP, SaaS platforms, and cloud-native environments is strongly preferred. Core Responsibilities: - Design and implement enterprise-scale Network-as-Code (NaC), Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), and GitOps solutions using Terraform, Ansible, Python, and Git as the single source of truth, eliminating manual deployment processes. - Build, optimize, and maintain CI/CD pipelines for network infrastructure, including automated testing, dry-run validation, deployment approval gates, and security/compliance checks to enable zero-downtime deployments. - Design, deploy, and support Kubernetes networking architectures, including Project Calico, OVN, VXLAN overlays, network policies, container networking, and integration with physical underlay networks. - Lead the design, modernization, and review of enterprise network architectures, providing expertise in BGP, OSPF, data center networking, multi-site routing, and high-availability solutions. - Serve as the Tier-4 escalation engineer for complex network incidents, troubleshooting overlay/underlay failures, asymmetric routing, microbursts, path selection issues, and network performance bottlenecks. - Lead root cause analysis (RCA) and drive long-term remediation and continuous improvement initiatives to enhance network reliability, scalability, and operational efficiency. - Implement Security-as-Code practices by automating validation and enforcement of ACLs, firewall policies, security groups, and configuration standards before production deployments.