Principal Network Architect
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Oct 24, 2026. First seen by Alion on Oct 22, 2026.
At Brightspeed, we are reimagining how people live, work, play and connect by providing fast, reliable internet connections and an awesome customer experience in twenty states throughout the Midwest and South.
Backed by funds managed by Apollo Global Management, our vision is to accelerate the upgrade of copper to fiber optic technologies, bringing faster and more reliable internet service to many rural markets traditionally underserved by broadband providers, while delivering best-in-class customer experience.
Be a part of the team that will make this vision a reality….designing and building a world class fiber network and creating a customer experience second to none.
Brightspeed has an exciting opportunity for a Principal Network Architect for Transport to join our growing team. As Principal Network Architect, you will be responsible for the development of tactical and strategic solutions that deliver on the corporate vision while establishing architecture standards.
As a Network Architect for Transport, you will be responsible for the engineering, design, deployment, optimization, and lifecycle support of Brightspeed’s optical and packet transport infrastructure. You will work closely with Network Architecture, Lab, Planning, Operations, Field Engineering, vendors, and other technical teams to ensure the transport network provides the capacity, resiliency, performance, and reliability required to support Brightspeed’s broadband, voice, Ethernet, and enterprise services.
As Principal Network Architect you will have the following responsibilities:
Serve as a technical Subject Matter Expert (SME) for optical and packet transport technologies, including DWDM, OTN, ROADM, Ethernet, and high-capacity wavelength services.
Engineer and support metro, regional, and backbone transport networks supporting broadband, voice, enterprise, mobile backhaul, and network infrastructure connectivity.
Develop detailed transport network designs based on capacity requirements, traffic forecasts, network topology, resiliency requirements, and service growth.
Engineer 10G, 100G, 400G and emerging higher-speed optical transport solutions, including wavelength assignments, optical paths, equipment requirements, and capacity planning.
Design and engineer DWDM/ROADM optical networks, including wavelength routing, amplification, dispersion considerations, optical power budgets, and fiber-loss requirements.
Support transport platforms and technologies from vendors such as Ciena, Nokia, Cisco, Fujitsu, Infinera, Ribbon, and other strategic Brightspeed suppliers.
Develop detailed engineering packages, bills of material (BOMs), equipment configurations, fiber assignments, port assignments, rack requirements, and implementation documentation.
Work closely with Network Planning and Architecture to translate network strategy and capacity requirements into executable transport engineering designs.
Partner with Operations, Field Engineering, and implementation teams to ensure transport solutions can be successfully deployed, commissioned, monitored, and supported.
Perform capacity analysis and identify network augmentations required to address bandwidth growth, congestion, equipment limitations, and network resiliency.
Engineer network diversity and protection strategies to minimize single points of failure and improve overall network availability.
Support fiber route analysis and identify potential route diversity, fiber exhaust, span-loss, capacity, and resiliency risks.
Review and validate transport network designs, including optical paths, circuit routing, equipment configurations, fiber assignments, and network protection schemes.
Provide technical support for complex transport network incidents, chronic network issues, performance degradation, and escalations.
Assist Operations with troubleshooting optical impairments, high loss, degraded wavelengths, equipment failures, fiber-related issues, and transport network alarms.
Support network migrations, equipment replacements, capacity augments, technology upgrades, network grooming, and legacy platform retirement initiatives.
Develop and maintain transport engineering standards, design guidelines, approved configurations, and operational best practices.
Evaluate new transport technologies, platforms, optics, and software releases through technical analysis, lab testing, Proof of Concept (POC), and field validation.
Work with Network Architecture and the Brightspeed lab to validate new transport platforms, optics, configurations, and network designs before production deployment.
Participate in vendor technical reviews and evaluate proposed solutions for technical compliance, interoperability, scalability, reliability, and lifecycle considerations.
Identify technical risks and develop mitigation strategies associated with capacity, fiber availability, equipment lifecycle, interoperability, resiliency, and network performance.
Maintain accurate network engineering documentation and ensure engineering records reflect deployed network configurations.
Provide technical guidance and recommendations to Network Planning, Architecture, Operations, Product, and leadership regarding transport network requirements and investment priorities.
Continually assess the existing transport environment and identify opportunities to improve capacity, reliability, operational efficiency, scalability, and cost effectiveness.
WHAT IT TAKES TO CATCH OUR EYE:
Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline; equivalent telecommunications experience may be considered.
15+ years of telecommunications network engineering experience, with significant experience in optical or packet transport networks.
Strong working knowledge of DWDM, CWDM, OTN, ROADM, Ethernet, MPLS, and carrier-grade transport technologies.
Experience engineering and supporting carrier-class optical platforms, preferably including Ciena 6500, Nokia 1830 PSS/GX, Cisco NCS platforms, or comparable transport systems.
Experience with metro, regional, long-haul, and backbone transport network architectures.
Knowledge of Ethernet services and transport technologies, including VLANs, LAG, L2VPN, MEF services, QoS, and Ethernet OAM.
Experience performing network capacity planning, traffic analysis, circuit grooming, network augmentation, and infrastructure forecasting.
Experience developing detailed network engineering documentation, including diagrams, equipment requirements, port assignments, fiber assignments, BOMs, implementation packages, and Methods of Procedure (MOPs).
Experience with fiber characterization and optical test equipment such as OTDRs, optical power meters, spectrum analyzers, and Ethernet/transport test sets.
Familiarity with test platforms from vendors such as VIAVI, EXFO, Spirent, or Equivalent.
Experience identifying potential design, capacity, performance, resiliency, interoperability, and support risks and developing appropriate mitigation strategies.
Strong troubleshooting and analytical skills with the ability to isolate complex issues across fiber, optical, transport, Ethernet, and packet layers.
Understanding of telecommunications facilities, including racks, power, grounding, fiber distribution, patch panels, DC power systems, and environmental requirements.
Strong troubleshooting and analytical skills with the ability to isolate complex issues across fiber, optical, transport, Ethernet, and packet layers.
BONUS POINTS FOR:
Master’s Degree
Telecom/Cable/Internet Service Provider industry experience
WHY JOIN US?
We aspire to contemporary ways of working.
Recognized as a Top Workplace by the Charlotte Observer, Brightspeed HQ is located on the 7th floor of the new Vantage South End - East Tower in Charlotte, NC. We prioritize hiring talent in the Charlotte area, whenever possible, to make it a truly vibrant destination for our hybrid workforce. At Brightspeed, we have roles that are designated as remote, hybrid, office or field-based, depending on the position, business needs and individual circumstances. We also invest in technology that enables our entire team to stay connected. Why? Because Brightspeed recognizes the value of finding the best talent for the job, wherever they may be.
We offer competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits.
Our benefits and paid time off programs reflect our underlying belief in promoting overall wellness through physical, emotional and financial health. Brightspeed offers a comprehensive benefit program, including competitive medical, dental, vision, and life insurance; an employee assistance program; a 401K plan with company match and a host of voluntary benefits.
Inclusion and belonging are at the center of our grounding belief in Being Real.
When we bring our authentic selves to work, everyone is better as a result. A diverse team helps us be fierce advocates for more accessible, inclusive and high-quality internet, because we believe doing so promotes equity in the communities we serve.
Brightspeed is an Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to inclusion of all qualified individuals, including individuals with a disability/veterans. If you require reasonable accommodation to complete a job application or to otherwise participate in the hiring process, please contact [email protected] to initiate the accommodations process.
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