Firewall Engineering Manager

Job Description

Description

Leidos is seeking an experienced Firewall Engineering Manager to lead a team of security and network engineers responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining NASA’s enterprise firewall and perimeter security infrastructure. This role provides hands-on technical leadership, operational oversight, and strategic direction to ensure the security, resilience, and reliability of NASA’s Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), Mission Networks, and cloud-connected environments.

The selected candidate will manage the Firewall Engineering Team and serve as a key technical authority for enterprise firewall operations, modernization initiatives, migration planning, and the integration of next-generation security technologies. This position requires strong leadership skills, deep expertise in firewall and network security engineering, and the ability to collaborate effectively with NASA leadership, cybersecurity teams, program managers, and cross-domain engineering groups.

• Lead and manage the Firewall Engineering Team, providing oversight for enterprise firewall, IDS/IPS, and perimeter security system design, implementation, and operations.
• Implement NASA’s firewall and perimeter security strategy in alignment with zero-trust principles, mission requirements, and cybersecurity frameworks.
• Serve as the senior escalation point for complex firewall, policy, and cross-domain security issues.
• Develop and maintain firewall standards, configuration baselines, rule governance processes, and lifecycle management practices.
• Oversee enterprise firewall migrations, data center and cloud integrations, segmentation initiatives, and modernization efforts.
• Support proposal development and Basis of Estimates (BOEs) related to firewall engineering and security architecture.
• Drive improvements in automation, orchestration, change control, and monitoring to enhance security and operational efficiency.
• Ensure compliance with NASA, Federal, and organizational security policies and directives.
• Mentor and develop engineering staff, fostering technical growth and operational excellence.
• Deliver technical briefings, reports, and recommendations to NASA and Leidos leadership.

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or a related technical field (Master’s preferred).
• 10–12+ years of experience in network security or firewall engineering, including 5+ years in a technical leadership or management role.
• Proven experience managing or supporting large-scale, mission-critical firewall and perimeter security infrastructures.
• Strong expertise with next-generation firewall platforms (e.g., Palo Alto, Fortinet, Cisco, Juniper).
• Solid understanding of routing/switching concepts, intrusion detection/prevention, segmentation, and zero-trust security.
• Demonstrated ability to lead engineering teams in complex, high-visibility environments.
• Experience supporting large infrastructure programs, including proposal development and BOEs.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• U.S. Citizenship required; must be eligible for a NASA or Federal security clearance.

• Experience supporting government, aerospace, or NASA environments.
• Relevant industry certifications (e.g., CISSP, CCNP Security, PCNSE, JNCIS/JNCIP Security).
• Experience with cloud networking, cloud-native firewall solutions, or SDN-based security models.
• Experience managing geographically dispersed engineering teams.

Come break things (in a good way). Then build them smarter.

We're the tech company everyone calls when things get weird. We don’t wear capes (they’re a safety hazard), but we do solve high-stakes problems with code, caffeine, and a healthy disregard for “how it’s always been done.”

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit

Pay and Benefits

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement. More details are available at -benefits.

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Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.