[Hiring] Senior Technical Consultant @Ahead

Role Description

We are seeking a Senior Technical Consultant to lead firewall, network access control, and SASE engagements across diverse enterprise environments. This role spans three core technology pillars:

• Next-generation firewall design and deployment (Cisco Secure Firewall, Palo Alto Networks)
• Cisco ISE-based network access control and identity services
• SASE/Zero Trust architectures (Zscaler, Palo Alto Prisma Access, Cisco Secure Access, Netskope)

The ideal candidate combines deep hands-on expertise across these platforms with strong consulting skills, owning end-to-end delivery from discovery and design through implementation, testing, and knowledge transfer. This is a client-facing role that requires the ability to lead technical workstreams, produce professional documentation, and communicate complex security strategies to both technical and executive audiences.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of network security, infrastructure security, or security engineering experience, with at least 3 years in a consulting, professional services, or client-facing delivery role.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience designing and deploying Cisco Secure Firewall (FTD/FMC) and Palo Alto Networks NGFW (PAN-OS/Panorama) in enterprise production environments.
• Production experience deploying Cisco ISE for 802.1X authentication, TACACS+ device administration, and network access policy enforcement across wired, wireless, and VPN environments.
• Production experience with at least one SASE platform (Zscaler ZIA/ZPA, Palo Alto Prisma Access, Cisco Secure Access, or Netskope) including SWG, CASB, and ZTNA configuration.
• Strong understanding of routing protocols (BGP, OSPF, EIGRP), VPN technologies (IPsec, SSL/TLS), network segmentation, and Zero Trust architecture principles.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS VPC, Azure VNet, GCP VPC) including security groups, network firewalls, and hybrid connectivity architectures.
• Experience with identity and access management platforms (Okta, Microsoft Entra ID, SAML 2.0, SCIM) and their integration with firewall, NAC, and SASE solutions.
• Experience integrating security platforms with SIEM (Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel), syslog infrastructure, and automation tools (Terraform, Ansible) for centralized visibility and repeatable deployments.

Requirements

• CCIE Security or CCNP Security certification.
• Palo Alto PCNSE or PCNSC certification; Zscaler ZCCA/ZCCP; Cisco Secure Access or Netskope certifications.
• CISSP, CompTIA Security+, or equivalent industry security certification.
• Firewall migration experience including ASA to FTD conversions and cross-vendor platform migrations with rule translation and optimization.

Benefits

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• 401(k)
• Paid company holidays
• Paid time off
• Paid parental and caregiver leave
• Plus more! See benefits here for additional details.