Principal Network Engineer

At Wizards of the Coast, we connect people around the world through play and imagination. From our genre-defining games like Magic: The Gathering® and Dungeons & Dragons® to our growing multiverse, we continue to innovate and build new ways to foster friendship and connection. That’s where you come in!

We are looking for a Principal Network Engineer to act as the technical lead for our enterprise network transformation. This is the most advanced IC role on the Network Engineering team — the creator behind the Zero Trust Network Access framework, the owner of our Palo Alto Panorama environment, and the engineer who makes critical decisions when complexity and security intersect. You will collaborate directly with the Senior Manager of Network & Cloud Infrastructure and work alongside IAM, Cloud Infrastructure, and Security teams to develop a network that is identity-verified, device-posture-checked, and enforces least privilege from edge to cloud. You will close that chapter permanently.

What You'll Do:

• Act as the technical expert for the Network 2.0 ZTNA program — own the architecture, lead design reviews, establish engineering standards, and address any critical issues during implementation.
• Build and validate the full ZTNA architecture across all primary and international sites — defining network zones, segmentation policy, and device posture requirements that eliminate lateral movement risk
• Own Palo Alto Panorama at the platform level — template hierarchy, device group build, policy push governance, and configuration drift elimination across all on-premises and cloud-connected NGFWs
• Develop the AWS and Palo Alto Panorama cloud integration — specifying how cloud-native firewall policy, VPC topology, and on-premises ZTNA fabric come together within a unified enforcement plane
• Lead the Palo Alto Cloud Identity Engine (CIE) architecture (Year 2, joint with IAM): build the identity-to-network enforcement model, author the network zone taxonomy, and own the IP-to-identity rule migration that eliminates all IP-based user firewall rules
• Guide GlobalProtect architecture choices — agent setup, split tunneling policy, certificate trust chain, and version compliance standards maintained through Intune
• Author and maintain the network architecture documentation, build decision records, and runbook library that the broader team completes tasks from — you write the standard; the team operates to it.
• Lead the global site topology mapping effort by detailing all international sites. Define the tiered support model and produce the hardware refresh sequencing plan linked to the ZTNA rollout waves.
• Partner with the Automation / Network Reliability Engineer to build self-healing policy frameworks, Panorama API automation patterns, and CI/CD pipeline standards for network configuration changes
• Represent Network Engineering in cross-functional architecture reviews alongside IAM, Cloud Infrastructure, Security, and Central Technology — you are the network perspective in discussions where enterprise architecture is determined

What You'll Bring:

• 10+ years of enterprise network engineering with demonstrated depth in large-scale architecture building — not just operations
• Expert-level Palo Alto NGFW and Panorama proficiency — template hierarchy, device groups, security policy development, NAT, decryption policy, and multi-vsys environments
• Proven ZTNA architecture experience — you have built a ZTNA deployment, not just configured one; you understand the segmentation model, the policy logic, and the failure modes
• Extensive understanding of GlobalProtect — including agent architecture, gateway setup, certificate trust, split tunneling policy, and diagnosing issues across various endpoint types at scale
• AWS network architecture hands-on — VPC build, Transit Gateway, Direct Connect, AWS Network Firewall, and cloud-native connectivity patterns that integrate with on-premises enforcement
• Understanding of identity-to-network enforcement patterns — how identity signals (Okta groups, Entra device compliance, CIE) translate into firewall policy and how that architecture scales
• grasp of SD-WAN concepts and Prisma SD-WAN or equivalent — intelligent path selection, application-aware routing, and WAN optimization in a multi-site enterprise
• Experience authoring network architecture documentation, design decision records, and engineering standards that other engineers can develop against with confidence
• Ability to function as a trusted individual contributor alongside a senior manager — you develop the technical depth so the manager can handle the program; you do not require micromanagement and you do not generate it.
• Clear communicator across technical and non-technical audiences. You can explain a zone segmentation model to a CISO and a Panorama template hierarchy to a junior engineer in the same afternoon.

Nice to Have:

• Practical experience with Palo Alto Cloud Identity Engine (CIE) — incorporating Okta or Entra group membership into NGFW policy enforcement
• Network automation depth — Python, Ansible, or Panorama API scripting for policy automation, compliance checking, or self-healing configurations
• Background in GCP network setup — VPC Service Controls, Cloud Armor, or hybrid connectivity patterns between GCP and on-premises ZTNA fabric
• Experience working in a multi-studio, multi-site entertainment or gaming enterprise with geographically distributed international infrastructure
• Active certifications: PCNSE (Palo Alto Certified Network Security Engineer), ZTNA specialist, or AWS Advanced Networking Specialty

In compliance with local law, we are disclosing the compensation range for this role. The range listed is just one component of Wizards of the Coast’s total compensation package for employees. Employees may also be eligible for annual and long-term incentives. In addition, Wizards of the Coast provides a variety of benefits to employees. Here’s a look at what your benefits package may include: Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance, Paid Vacation Time & Holidays, Generous 401(k) match, Paid Parental Leave, Volunteer Program, Employee Giving & Matching Gifts Programs, Tuition Reimbursement, Product Discounts, and more.

Wizards is committed to equality of opportunity in all aspects of employment. We are committed to making all employment decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, marital status, or any other legally protected status.

The above is intended to describe the general content of and the requirements for satisfactory performance in this position. It is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of the duties, responsibilities, or requirements of the position.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. If you are selected to move forward in our application process and need to request an accommodation, please let your recruiter or coordinator know.

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