Network Architect (Hybrid - Kennesaw, GA)

Company Overview:

Headquartered in suburban Atlanta, Georgia, Artivion, Inc. is a medical device company focused on developing simple, elegant solutions that address cardiac and vascular surgeons' most difficult challenges in treating patients with aortic diseases. Artivion has over 1,400 employees worldwide with sales representation in over 100 countries. The Company has manufacturing facilities located in Atlanta, Georgia, Austin, Texas and Hechingen, Germany. Additionally, it has sales and distribution offices in various countries throughout Europe, Asia, and South America. For additional information about Artivion, visit our website, www.artivion.com.

Position Overview:

The Network Architect oversees the design, configuration, testing, and delivery of sophisticated network and security solutions in a global IT setting. This position is crucial for key sites in the U.S. and Germany, along with locations throughout EMEA, LATAM, and APAC. The ideal candidate should prioritize critical thinking, take initiative, and adopt a proactive stance. They will engage directly in project execution, blending technical skills with a focus on resilience, high performance, redundancy, and implementing zero trust principles. Strong written and verbal communication skills are vital for effective collaboration with cross-functional teams, stakeholders, and customers around the globe.

Position Responsibilities:

• Offer technical guidance on designing and implementing comprehensive network security solutions, utilizing a range of technologies, such as cloud platforms, firewalls, and zero trust architecture.
• Keep abreast of emerging technologies and effective practices in network security to provide affordable, scalable solutions that align with business requirements.
• Evaluate, implement, and manage network toolsets designed to monitoring, measure, and report network and system performance. Focus on leveraging advanced technologies to enhance early detection of potential issues, ensuring optimal operations.
• Diagnose and address performance and scalability issues, providing clear, actionable recommendations to optimize systems. Deliver practical guidance for protocol optimizations, traffic management, and network adjustments to enhance performance, scalability, and reliability.
• Take the lead in drafting global architecture, engineering, and operational roadmaps, ensuring they are closely aligned with business strategies and adhere to industry best practices.
• Develop and establish dependable networking solutions for voice, data, multimedia, and secure cloud applications.
• Provide specialized troubleshooting and escalation assistance to tackle and resolve intricate network and security challenges worldwide.
• Conduct testing and validation of network configurations for new applications and services, working with cross-functional teams to ensure performance expectations are met.
• Mentor and support team members by helping them develop expertise in architectural and engineering best practices through guidance, training, and hands-on experience.
• In accordance with corporate audit and compliance strategies, ensure that network designs comply with regulatory standards (e.g., FDA, NIST) and engage in IT risk management projects.

Qualifications:

• Educational Background: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field is required; a Master's degree is preferred.
• Professional Experience: Minimum 10 years of hands-on experience in analyzing, designing, configuring, troubleshooting, and optimizing complex enterprise networks in global environments.
• Certifications: Relevant certifications such as Cisco CCNP/CCIE, Palo Alto PCNSE, or equivalent are essential; additional certifications in cloud networking (e.g., Azure Network Engineer Associate) and zero trust security frameworks are highly desirable.
• Technical Proficiency: Demonstrated expertise in resiliency, high-performance, redundancy, zero trust principles, and best practice architecture using advanced networking tools and protocols.
• Collaboration and Documentation: Proven ability to work collaboratively in cross-functional global teams, with a strong emphasis on maintaining detailed network documentation and adhering to formalized design and approval processes.
• Network Management and Security Tools: Expertise with Cisco, Meraki, Palo Alto Panorama, and related network management platforms.
• Monitoring and Infrastructure Utilities: Proficiency in network monitoring tools like SolarWinds and Infoblox for performance tracking and optimization.
• Network Operating Systems: Hands-on experience with IOS-XE, PAN-OS, and Meraki environments.
• Routing and Switching Expertise: Advanced knowledge of complex routing and switching, including protocols like BGP, OSPF, and EIGRP.
• WAN and Remote Access Solutions: Design and management of SD-WAN, site-to-site VPNs, and user remote access VPNs using Cisco ASA, Meraki, and Palo Alto.
• Firewall Configuration and Management: In-depth experience with Palo Alto firewalls (preferred), as well as Cisco ASA and Meraki security solutions.
• Quality of Service (QoS): Strong understanding and implementation of QoS configurations on routers and switches.
• High-Performance and Redundant Architectures: Proven ability to design and support resilient, secure, and best-practice network architectures for global operations.