Network Engineer

Company Overview
Venatore is a woman-owned small business headquartered in Tampa, Florida, providing mission-driven technology and professional services to federal defense and civilian agencies. We deliver expertise in information technology, engineering, logistics, and program support to help our clients achieve operational excellence and mission success. Venatore’s team combines technical depth, agility, and commitment to quality in every engagement, fostering an environment where innovation and service go hand in hand.

Position Overview
Venatore is seeking a highly skilled Network Engineer/Administrator Tier 2 / Senior Computer Network Architect to support the operational mission at USCENTCOM Headquarters. This onsite role places the selected candidate at the core of critical national defense infrastructure, where they will be responsible for supporting, maintaining, and evolving enterprise datacenter network architectures. The position requires close collaboration with government and contractor stakeholders and supports a dynamic, mission-focused environment. An active SECRET clearance (with TS eligibility) and U.S. citizenship are required.

Responsibilities

Datacenter Network Operations & Engineering

• Deploy, support, and optimize datacenter infrastructure and enterprise network services in support of USCENTCOM operations.
• Install, configure, maintain, and upgrade physical and virtual servers, as well as associated network hardware and software.
• Analyze existing datacenter architectures to improve workflows, resolve systemic issues, and optimize performance and reliability.
• Advance and modernize datacenter network fabrics, ensuring scalability, resilience, and adaptability as technologies evolve.

Network Troubleshooting & Support

• Troubleshoot and resolve service-impacting network outages across complex enterprise environments.
• Diagnose and remediate issues related to routing, switching, cabling, LAN infrastructure, and server connectivity.
• Support both traditional and virtualized environments, including IP underlay and overlay networks, Ethernet, and multicast traffic.
• Perform root cause analysis and implement corrective actions to prevent recurring issues.

Collaboration & Mission Support

• Serve as a hands-on member of the USCENTCOM Network Operations team.
• Collaborate with internal work centers, USCENTCOM clients, and external DoD organizations.
• Coordinate closely with information services, contract personnel, government leadership, and IT staff to ensure mission alignment.
• Contribute to a highly reliable operating environment requiring adaptability, multitasking, and rapid response to changing priorities.

Requirements

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• 3–5 years of hands-on datacenter networking experience.
• Demonstrated experience working with VMware technologies, including vSphere Distributed Switches (VDS) and NSX.
• Strong technical proficiency with Cisco Nexus platforms (7000/9000 series) and NX-OS.
• Experience implementing and supporting networking protocols such as OSPF, IS-IS, BGP/MP-BGP, GRE, NAT, vPC, FabricPath, OTV, and VXLAN.
• Proven ability to troubleshoot large, complex enterprise and cloud-enabled network environments.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to organize workflows, prioritize tasks, and work independently with minimal supervision.
• Ability to collaborate effectively in a team-oriented environment.
• Active SECRET clearance with TS eligibility.
• U.S. citizenship.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with EIGRP routing protocols.
• Knowledge of LAN/WAN design principles and enterprise network architecture.
• Experience with Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE).
• Familiarity with Cisco Nexus Dashboard.
• Additional experience with VMware NSX, VDS, and hypervisors.
• Prior experience supporting IT Service Management environments or highly reliable organizations.

Benefits

• 16 days of paid time off (PTO)
• 10 paid federal holidays
• Comprehensive medical, dental & vision coverage
• 401(k) with company matching
• Paid paternity leave
• Reserve & National Guard duty leave
• Optional pet insurance