Senior Network Engineer - Firewall Automation(Hybrid)

ABOUT US

We’re the world’s leading provider of secure financial messaging services, headquartered in Belgium. We are the way the world moves value - across borders, through cities and overseas. No other organisation can address the scale, precision, pace and trust that this demands, and we’re proud to support the global economy.

We’re unique too. We were established to find a better way for the global financial community to move value - a reliable, safe and secure approach that the community can trust, completely. We’re always striving to be better and are constantly evolving in an ever-changing landscape, without undermining that trust. Five decades on, our vibrant community reflects the complexity and diversity of the financial ecosystem. We innovate diligently, test exhaustively, then implement fast. In a connected and exciting era, our mission has never been more relevant. Swift now has a presence in 200+ countries and legal territories to serve a community of more than 12,000 banks and financial institutions.

In this role you will:

• Dynamic Challenges: Tackle a mix of proactive design work and reactive troubleshooting, from architecting secure network segments to resolving urgent firewall alerts during peak traffic or attack scenarios
• Leadership Opportunities: Streamline and enhance firewall network automation strategies (Python, APIs, infrastructure-as-code). Work closely with networking and security squads to automate request handling, policy lifecycle activities, and change execution steps and also mentoring junior engineers.
• Continuous Improvements: Improve firewall policy provisioning efficiency by developing or optimizing tooling, scripts, and integrations (e.g., REST APIs, automation pipelines, dashboards) to reduce manual effort and errors. Adapt cutting-edge security trends including AI-assisted engineering tools into network engineering best practices
• Cross-Functional Interaction: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate requirements into secure, scalable, and maintainable application solutions. Oversee implementation of automated deployment pipelines and operational processes to improve consistency, reliability, and efficiency
• High Impact: Work will directly influence Swift’s security posture, protect mission critical systems and data while enable business operations through reliable, secure and optimized network access
• This position is mission critical and offers flexible work (minimum 2 days onsite and maximum 3 days from home - per week), hence required to be a local candidate
• Be required to perform weekend deployment activities and on-call (estimated: One week including weekend per month), on a rotational basis with peer team members Expected to arrive within 1 hour as Live/Production access is only possible from within office.

We are seeking professionals with:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related field
• 10+ years of solid work experience
• Hands-on expertise with firewall platforms such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks or Check Point
• Strong knowledge of network architecture, protocols, and large-scale system design
• Hand-on experience with Firewall management platforms Forti Manager, Forti Analyzer, Checkpoint Smart-1
• Familiarity with security policy management tools like Algosec Security Management System
• Familiarity with SD-WAN, Zero Trust architecture and next-generation firewall (NGFW) features
• Familiarity with concepts like Zero Touch/Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC)
• Experience with automation/scripting (Python, Ansible, Bash) and APIs for firewall management
• Experience supporting Linux platforms.
• Autonomous, driven, with strong ability to quickly adapt and respond to change
• Customer oriented and quality mindset - we continually strive to deliver true customer value.
• Design and Architecture: Lead the automation design, configuration, and deployment of enterprise-grade high-available firewall solutions to protect network boundaries.
• Policy Management: Develop, Implement, and maintain firewall policies, security profiles, NAT rules, and application controls aligned with Swift security standards and compliance requirements.
• Team Leadership: Mentor and guide a team of network security engineers, providing technical direction and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
• Incident Response: Oversee troubleshooting and resolution of complex firewall-related incidents, including performance bottlenecks, security breaches, and misconfigurations.
• Monitoring and Optimization: Utilize tools (e.g., SevOne, WireShark, SMARTS, Splunk) to monitor firewall performance, analyze traffic patterns, and optimize configurations for efficiency and security.
• Collaboration: Partner with Enterprise network, Data Center network, Architecture, SOC, Security and Operational teams to integrate firewalls systems with broader network infrastructure and applications.
• Documentation: Maintain detailed documentation of firewall configurations, processes, and procedures for audit and operational purposes.
• Compliance: Ensure firewall deployments meet industry standards and regulations (e.g., PCI-DSS, GDPR, ISAE, DORA).
• Research and Innovation: Stay ahead of emerging threats and technologies, recommending upgrades or new tools to enhance network security.
• Communication: Strong verbal and written skills in English to articulate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Network Vendor certifications such as Fortinet, Checkpoint, Palo Alto, Cisco, Juniper
• Knowledge of Cisco ACI, F5 LTM, Juniper SRX Platform
• Knowledge of Certificate Authority
• DevOPS Tools: Jira, Confluence
• Language: Python, Shell scripting
• Exposure to container technology - Docker, OpenShift, Kubernetes

What we offer

We give you the freedom to be yourself. We are creating an environment of unique individuals - like you - with different perspectives on the financial industry and the world. A diverse and inclusive environment in which everyone’s voice counts and where you can reach your full potential.

We are committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation related to accessibility during your application or interview, please contact [email protected] or indicate this in your application.

Please note that this mailbox is not monitored for general recruitment enquiries and should only be used for accessibility or accommodation-related requests (for example related to vision, hearing or neurodiversity).

All requests are confidential and will not affect your candidacy.

Don’t meet every single requirement? At Swift, we are dedicated to building a workplace where people can bring their full selves and ideas to the team, so if you are excited about this role, we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet every single qualification.