Senior Packet Core Engineer Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

***We are unable to sponsor for this permanent full-time role***

***Position is bonus eligible***

Prestigious Financial Institution is currently seeking a Senior Network Security Engineer with strong Cisco and Palo Alto experience. Candidate will have deep expertise in Palo Alto firewalls, including design, deployment, migration, and ongoing optimization of security policies in complex enterprise environments. The engineer will partner across infrastructure teams to ensure secure, highly available connectivity, while also supporting internal and external stakeholders with a strong service mindset. 

This role requires advanced troubleshooting capabilities, including hands-on experience with Palo Alto CLI-based debugging typical of Tier 2/Tier 3 TAC scenarios, as well as strong foundational networking knowledge across routing protocols and packet-level analysis. The ideal candidate is a natural communicator who can drive problem resolution in large, cross-functional settings, clearly articulate technical findings, and influence outcomes across engineering, security, and operations teams. Success also requires the ability to communicate effectively with senior leadership—translating deep technical issues, risks, and trade-offs into concise, actionable insights—while mentoring junior engineers and helping elevate the overall capability of the team. 

Responsibilities: 

• Design, deploy, and migrate Palo Alto firewall solutions across global environments, including architecture of security policies, segmentation, SSL decryption, and centralized management  

• Lead complex security and network integrations by applying strong core networking principles (BGP, OSPF, routing design, failover, traffic engineering) to ensure resilient, high-performance connectivity  

• Partner with network, cloud, and infrastructure teams to design and implement secure, scalable connectivity across on-prem and hybrid environments  

• Serve as a senior escalation point, driving advanced troubleshooting across firewalls and underlying network infrastructure, including deep packet, flow, and session-level analysis  

• Support network security operations and incident response, diagnosing complex connectivity issues involving routing, NAT, policy enforcement, and application behavior  

• Mentor engineers and NOC staff, reinforcing strong networking fundamentals, structured troubleshooting, and operational best practices  

• Manage and prioritize work intake while delivering clear, direct communication to both technical stakeholders and senior leadership  

• Evaluate and recommend enhancements to security architecture, firewall capabilities, and network design to continuously improve reliability and security posture 

Qualifications 

• 7+ years of network and security engineering experience across enterprise routing, switching, and firewall platforms, with strong foundations in secure connectivity and network design  

• 5+ years of hands-on experience managing Palo Alto firewalls, including SSL decryption, security profiles, and Panorama-based centralized management (required)  

• Strong, demonstrated experience designing and troubleshooting complex network and security environments, including routing protocols (BGP, OSPF), NAT, and packet-level analysis in production environments  

• Deep understanding of TCP/IP, traffic flows, and structured troubleshooting methodologies across network and security domains  

• Strong understanding of network security design principles, including segmentation, access control, and secure architecture patterns (zone-based design, microsegmentation, zero-trust concepts)  

• Experience leading firewall migrations and contributing to enterprise network security architecture  
• Experience with scripting or API-driven automation to improve operational efficiency 

Preferred Skills:

• Experience across additional enterprise networking platforms and edge technologies, including Arista or similar environments, proxy platforms, load balancers (e.g., F5), and multi-vendor infrastructure  

• Experience with cloud networking and security, including AWS networking constructs and security controls, as well as edge security platforms such as Cloudflare or similar services  

• Familiarity with modern application and container networking models, including Kubernetes networking, segmentation, and network policies  

• Experience participating in or leading multi-vendor infrastructure migrations in large-scale environments  

• Relevant industry certifications such as Palo Alto, Cisco, or equivalent