Network Operations Lead

Overview The Network Tech Lead will serve as the technical lead and operational steward of enterprise-wide network services across 75+ office locations, including HQ and remote sites. Reporting to the Manager of Network Operations, this individual will be responsible for overseeing day-to-day network operations, ensuring high availability and performance of all network infrastructure (LAN/WAN/WiFi/AV), and leading the team in alignment with modern standards, automation, observability, and infrastructure maturity goals. This role requires strong hands-on expertise, team mentoring capabilities, operational rigor, and experience across both on-prem and cloud networking environments (Azure/AWS). Responsibilities Key Responsibilities: Provide day-to-day leadership and mentoring for the Network Operations team, including senior and junior engineers. Serve as the primary escalation point for complex networking issues and lead root cause analysis for major incidents. Drive the adoption of SOPs and enforce process consistency, quality reviews, and audit trails in line with the organization's operational maturity goals (Levels 1-5). Collaborate with the Network Architect to convert design and strategy into actionable implementation and monitoring plans. Own network observability and proactive alerting across all devices-leveraging tools like Cisco Meraki, ThousandEyes, and ServiceNow for automated incident creation. Ensure consistent monitoring of WiFi, AV systems, and conference rooms; respond to and remediate issues proactively before business impact. Coordinate site-wide upgrades of legacy Cisco Catalyst gear to Meraki-compliant appliances to improve observability and supportability. Conduct regular WiFi site surveys and follow through with remediation plans in collaboration with site stakeholders. Lead the rollout of network automation scripts for common tasks such as configuration backups, firmware checks, and change validations. Champion the integration of alerting platforms with ServiceNow for seamless incident management workflows. Support planning and readiness activities for the Global NOC initiative, ensuring full playbook coverage and training paths for L1/L2 teams. Collaborate closely with Cybersecurity to ensure VPNs, endpoint compliance, and secure networking principles are followed. Provide training, peer reviews, and promote a continuous learning culture within the NetOps team. Participate in vendor evaluations and coordinate with procurement and Cumberland for Cisco contract renewals and equipment acquisition. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): % Network uptime across all office locations (target: 99.95%) Time to resolution for high/critical severity network incidents (target: <1 hour) Qualifications Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or related field (required) Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) or equivalent (required) Azure Network Engineer Associate or AWS Advanced Networking (preferred) ITIL v4 Foundation Certification (preferred) Experience: 7+ years of hands-on experience in enterprise network operations 3+ years in a team leadership or technical lead capacity Experience with Cisco Meraki, Catalyst switches, firewalls, routers, and access points Experience with ThousandEyes, ServiceNow integrations, and enterprise monitoring tools Experience in hybrid cloud networking (Azure Virtual Networks, NSGs, VPN Gateway, AWS VPC) Demonstrated success in mentoring engineers and improving team performance Strong familiarity with AV & conference room infrastructure and network requirements Technical Skills: Routing & Switching (BGP, OSPF, VLANs, STP) Cisco Meraki Dashboard & APIs ThousandEyes deployment and monitoring configuration Network Automation using Python, PowerShell, or Ansible VPNs, SD-WAN, Firewall rules, Load Balancers WiFi Site Survey tools (Ekahau or similar) Network monitoring platforms (SolarWinds, PRTG, etc.) Azure/AWS networking services (VNet, ExpressRoute, Virtual WAN, Transit Gateway) Soft Skills & Attributes: Strong technical and operational leadership Ability to influence without authority across peer teams Proven communication skills to interact with engineers, managers, and senior leadership Detail-oriented with a focus on quality, process, and continuous improvement Ability to multitask and prioritize in a dynamic, fast-paced environment Passion for mentoring and coaching others Need to Have: Proven experience with Cisco Meraki and ThousandEyes Demonstrated success in technical leadership and mentoring Strong knowledge of enterprise networking best practices and standards Experience building and maintaining automation for network tasks Hands-on experience with cloud networking (Azure or AWS) Strong collaboration skills and cross-functional team experience Nice to Have: Experience with global NOC setup or Tier 1/2 playbooks Familiarity with AV/conference room infrastructure support Cisco DNA Center or SD-WAN experience ITIL process maturity or process improvement initiatives Experience working with ServiceNow for automated alert-to-incident integrations Experience participating in vendor contract negotiations and hardware lifecycle planning