Staff/Principal Network Engineer

About Skylight

Skylight is a digital consultancy using design and technology to help government agencies deliver better public services.

We’re at the forefront of a civic movement to reinvent how all levels of government serve families, patients, and many others in today's digital world.

If you want to play a part in driving this critical movement forward, we’d love for you to join our growing team of public interest technologists.

The work we do matters.

About the job

At Skylight, network engineers design and operate the secure, resilient infrastructure that modern digital services depend on. They modernize networks, strengthen connectivity, and embed security and compliance from the ground up.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is launching one of the most ambitious transformations in government — and this is a rare chance to be part of it. You’ll join a high-impact team of product managers, researchers, designers, engineers, and security experts working side-by-side with HHS leadership to modernize the systems people rely on to access healthcare, strengthen cybersecurity that protects personal data, launch digital services used by tens of millions every day, and integrate data and AI responsibly into daily work across the department so teams at every level can make smarter, safer decisions.

As a network engineer on this project, you’ll help re-architect enterprise networks with technologies such as software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) and distributed design. You’ll improve performance, reliability, and security while ensuring compliance with federal standards. Just as importantly, you’ll prepare federal teams to sustain these improvements by sharing knowledge and practices that last — from training and enablement to reusable tools like templates, playbooks, and decision records.

What you’ll do

• Design, build, and operate secure, resilient network infrastructure to support enterprise services
• Re-architect networks using approaches such as SD-WAN and distributed design to improve scalability and performance
• Integrate security and compliance from the start, including alignment with Authority to Operate (ATO) requirements and other federal standards
• Monitor and improve reliability, performance, and availability using metrics, logs, and alerts
• Collaborate with product, engineering, and security teams to ensure networks align with mission and technical needs
• Equip federal teams to sustain improvements by delivering training, enablement, and reusable resources such as templates, playbooks, and decision records

What we're looking for

Minimum qualifications

• Experience designing, implementing, and operating enterprise-scale networks
• Familiarity with modern networking approaches such as SD-WAN or distributed network design
• Understanding of network security and compliance requirements in regulated environments
• Experience monitoring and improving reliability, performance, and availability in production networks
• Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional technical teams
• Commitment to equipping federal teams with documentation, training, and mentoring so improvements last beyond the contract
• Ability to work effectively in a professional services environment
• Passion for improving public outcomes through secure, resilient government services
• A mindset and work approach that align with Skylight’s core values

Nice-to-have qualifications

• Experience with cloud networking in Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, or similar platforms
• Familiarity with compliance and security frameworks such as the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) or the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA)
• Experience supporting modernization or migrations in highly regulated environments
• Track record of mentoring network engineers or building networking practices across organizations
• Experience working effectively on hybrid or distributed teams
• Ability to spend time on-site at HHS in Washington, DC — either by being based locally or by traveling periodically for in-person collaboration

Don’t meet every qualification but think you can do the job? We’d still love to hear from you. If you’re excited about the role, apply. We consider candidates with a range of backgrounds and experiences.

Other requirements

• All work must be conducted within the U.S., excluding U.S. territories. Some federal contracts require U.S. citizenship to be eligible for employment.
• You must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. now and in the future without sponsorship.
• As a government contractor, you may be required to obtain a public trust or security clearance.
• You may be required to complete a company background check successfully.
• Some of our available roles are on federal contracts that require a degree or additional years of experience as a substitute.

Position type

This is a full-time, exempt position.

Location

This is a remote-friendly role. You can be based anywhere in the U.S. Candidates in the Washington, DC area, or those willing to travel there periodically for in-person collaboration, are especially encouraged to apply.

Care package

Salary

We want to give you the most competitive salary possible. After all, you deserve it! To that end, we use the results of our interview process to determine what salary is most appropriate given your current level of seniority. For a Network Engineer at Skylight, the current salary ranges are as follows:

• Associate Network Engineer: $90,000–$125,000
• Network Engineer I: $120,000–$140,000
• Network Engineer II: $135,000–$160,000
• Senior Network Engineer: $150,000–$185,000
• Staff Network Engineer: $170,000–$203,000
• Principal Network Engineer: $180,000–$230,000

Benefits

Your well-being is important to us, so we focus on supporting you in a variety of ways:

• Medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance
• Short-term and long-term disability insurance
• Life and AD&D insurance
• Dependent care FSA, healthcare FSA, health savings account
• Dollar-for-dollar 401(k) match up to 10% of your salary with no vesting period
• Flexible paid time-off-policy (generally around 25 days per year), plus 11 paid federal holidays
• Up to 12 weeks paid-time-off for all eligible new birth, adoption, or foster parents
• Performance rewards, including annual salary increase, annual performance bonus, spot bonuses, and stock options
• Business development / sales bonuses
• Referral bonuses
• Annual $2,000 allowance for professional development
• Annual $750 allowance for tech-related purchases
• Annual swag budget of $100 to display your Skylight pride with some merchandise (hoodies, hats, and more)
• Dollar-for-dollar charity donation matching, up to $500 per year
• Flexible, remote-friendly work environment
• An environment that empowers you to unleash your superpowers for public good

Interview tips

We want you to have a great interview experience with us! Here are some tips to help you prepare for a successful interview:

• Visit ourjoin page to learn more about how our interview process works.
• Check out ourCareer Pathways framework to learn more about the different roles within Skylight and the skills needed to do them.
• If you’d like to request reasonable accommodations during the application or interviewing process, please contact our recruiting team at [email protected].

We participate in E-Verify and upon hire, will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you’re authorized to work in the U.S.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, veteran status, or any other category protected by applicable law.