Lead Network & Secure Access Engineer

Job summary

We are MHCLG

At the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), we work on things that make a real difference to people's lives. We support communities across England through the delivery of secure, reliable and modern digital services using tools like Azure, AWS, Cloudflare and ZScaler.

We are seeking an experienced Lead Network & Secure Access Engineer to provide technical leadership, service ownership and operational oversight of the department's network and connectivity services across office, cloud and hybrid environments. Working closely with Enterprise Architects, Platform Architects, Security Architects, Cloud Platform teams and suppliers, you will help shape network standards, roadmaps and future connectivity services, ensuring they support departmental priorities and long-term technology objectives. You will provide technical leadership, assurance and operational support for networking services while acting as the department's senior technical escalation point for complex connectivity issues during normal business hours.

The role combines hands-on engineering, supplier management and service ownership, with responsibility for network services spanning office connectivity, Microsoft Azure networking, VPN technologies, secure remote access, Zero Trust networking and shared government environments. This role does not currently include line management responsibilities, although this may change over time. The postholder will provide technical leadership and direction across project teams, operational teams, and suppliers. The role is not part of an on-call support rota.

Find out more about our Digital teams and what they are working on through our MHCLG Digital blog. Please note that MHCLG do not offer visa sponsorship and applicants will need a valid visa for the duration of your employment.

Job description

As a Lead Network & Secure Access Engineer, you'll:

• Provide technical input into network standards, roadmaps and future connectivity plans, working with Enterprise Architects, Platform Architects and Security Architects
• Provide technical leadership and operational ownership of network and connectivity services across office, cloud and hybrid environments
• Provide hands-on support and administration of Azure networking, DNS, routing, VPN technologies, firewalls and secure connectivity services
• Administer and support Zscaler services, including policy management, troubleshooting, application onboarding and service improvements
• Support the implementation, operation and continual improvement of Zero Trust and secure access services across departmental environments
• Review, challenge and assure supplier-led network designs, upgrades and service changes, ensuring they meet departmental security, resilience and operational requirements
• Act as the departmental lead for connectivity services delivered through shared government offices, GovWifi, managed service providers and partner organisations
• Maintain and support network monitoring, logging and observability platforms, including Syslog and SIEM integrations
• Lead technical investigations into complex network, performance and connectivity issues, acting as the senior technical escalation point during business hours and coordinating suppliers, support teams and stakeholders to resolve high-priority service issues and service disruptions
• Drive continual service improvement through service assurance, supplier management and implementation of network service enhancements

Person specification

As a Lead Network & Secure Access Engineer, you'll have:

• Strong technical knowledge of designing, deploying and operating enterprise networking technologies including LAN, WAN, Wi‑Fi, routing, DNS, firewalls, VPN technologies and network security
• Experience supporting and troubleshooting enterprise level Microsoft Azure networking and hybrid connectivity solutions for an organisation of more than 4000 users across different digital services on a variety of platforms
• Significant experience in the configuration, administration, support and troubleshooting of secure access and Zero Trust, including Zscaler ZIA and ZPA technologies, as an integral part of both end user and platform connectivity. This experience will include connectivity between end users and private apps alongside troubleshooting complex routing issues involving SIPA and ZPA
• Experience in connection and use of monitoring, logging and observability platforms, including Syslog, SIEM and security monitoring integrations
• Experience leading technical investigations, resolving complex connectivity issues and managing technical escalations within a large operational environment
• Experience contributing technical input into network standards, roadmaps and service improvements whilst working with architects, suppliers and operational stakeholders

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience supporting cloud-to-cloud connectivity solutions, including Azure-to-AWS, hybrid or multi-cloud networking environments
• Experience working within government or public sector technology environments
• Experience supporting connectivity services within shared office or multi-supplier environments
• Experience of GovWifi or cross-government connectivity services
• Experience of network automation and Infrastructure as Code
• Relevant networking, cloud or security certifications

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £58,092, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government contributes £16,829 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).At MHCLG we offer many benefits that range from tailored career pathways and flexible working to MyLifestyle Childcare Voucher and Cycle to Work Schemes. For more information, please click here.

Things you need to know

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