Specialist Network Senior Infrastructure Engineer - Department for Education - SEO

Location

Coventry, West Midlands (England), CV1 2WT : Darlington, North East England, DL1 5QE : Manchester, North West England, M1 2WD : Sheffield, Yorkshire and the Humber, S1 2FJ : City of Westminster, London (region), SW1P 3BT

About the job

Job summary

The Department for Education is seeking to recruit IT Infrastructure Engineers to work across multiple endeavours in the Microsoft Azure public cloud and on premises. We continually seek new & innovative opportunities in our cloud estate for efficiencies, economies of scale and new value to users across established cloud computing platforms to make them better for users, increase value for money and reduce complexity.

Specialist Network Infrastructure Engineers in the Department for Education design, build, operate and support IT network infrastructure resources that underpin internal user services and services to the public.

If you are successful, you will work as part of a team providing specialist IT network capability within the Department’s Infrastructure Engineering Profession, focusing in depth on network topology, connectivity, and boundary controls (firewalls & Web Application Firewalls).

IMPORTANT - This vacancy is using the Civil Service Numerical and Verbal tests. The deadline for completing the tests is the same as the vacancy closing date. Please ensure you complete the tests with sufficient time to complete the written application. 

Job description

As a Senior Network Infrastructure Engineer, you will collaborate with other Infrastructure Engineers to manage, operate and maintain the Department for Education’s physical and cloud networking infrastructure. In a user-centred, agile environment you will assist with driving improvements to modernise the deployment and management of network resources. This includes supporting the primary Lead Network Infrastructure Engineer to phase out outdated practices and implement new initiatives to enhance operation and maintenance. In this highly technical role you will:

• Input into the overall management of the network domain, contributing to plans regarding technology roadmaps, projects, workforce and budgets
• Build, operate and maintain network resources
• Respond to incidents and requests to identify and resolve issues preventing delivery
• Identify patterns and trends within incidents and collaborate with others where required to resolve problems
• Identify technical improvements to automate the deployment of network resources and management tasks where possible
• Advocate user-centric, agile approaches which focus on rapid, effective delivery of high-quality services
• Collaborate with and support third-party suppliers in providing network infrastructure services
• Share knowledge of tools and techniques with the wider team and community, growing awareness, inclusivity and balance.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

Applications will be assessed at the application and interview stages against the following essential criteria. 

• Experience of building, configuring, operating and maintaining network infrastructure resources including switches, Wi-Fi equipment, DHCP, virtual networks (Azure preferably) and other connectivity resources.
• Experience of using automation techniques to configure network services, automate processes and extract information. This may include using software, tooling, scripting and other automation techniques such as Python, PowerShell, Bicep or vendor-specific automation tools.
• Experience of administering boundary and security controls, options and configuration settings to protect cloud computing services, and to mitigate against security threats and vulnerabilities including firewalls, Web Application Firewalls and other access control resources.
• Experience of breaking down IT infrastructure problems into component parts to identify and diagnose root causes; troubleshooting; and identifying problems across different technology areas.
• Experience of problem management techniques: initiating and monitoring actions to investigate patterns and trends to resolve problems; determining the appropriate remedy; assisting with its implementation; and determining preventative measures.

Desirable Criteria 

The following criteria are desirable. Any evidence gathered against these criteria may be used in the event of a tie break to help to make an informed decision.

• Verified credentials, certification or qualifications in the IT network space an advantage particularly Palo Alto, Cisco/Meraki or Barracuda.
• An understanding of the benefits of service levels and service frameworks and how to operate within them to deliver, operate and maintain IT infrastructure services.
• Experience of defining integration builds to combine IT infrastructure components to create a consolidated solution, and co-ordinating & testing build activities across systems.
• Experience of collaborating with, and conveying technical concepts to, both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience of working with and applying design standards, methods and tools; and developing systems designs for review to ensure the selection of appropriate technology, efficient use of resources and integration of multiple systems and technology.
• Experience of reviewing requirements and specifications, defining test conditions and analysing and reporting test activities and results.

Security vetting

If you are successful, you must be prepared to undergo the Security Check (SC) clearance process before you begin your role at DfE. Please see the guidance included under Security (below) for further information.