Wifi Engineer

WiFi Core Release Engineer (Carrier-Grade Wireless Operations)

Location: Onsite (Standard business hours + on-call rotation)

About the Role

We are seeking a highly skilled WiFi Core Release Engineer to support a nationwide, carrier-grade WiFi and AAA infrastructure. This position focuses on break/fix operations, controller upgrades, and release engineering across WiFi core platforms, authentication systems, access gateways, and large-scale public SSID networks. The ideal candidate has hands-on experience operating end-to-end wireless architectures in a fast-paced production environment and is comfortable owning high-visibility network changes.
You will work closely with engineering, planning, mobility core, automation, and anomaly-detection teams to deliver highly reliable wireless connectivity to millions of users. This is a high-impact operational role with strong visibility across leadership and adjacent network teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Execute release engineering activities for new hardware, software, and firmware across WiFi controllers, AAA platforms, access gateways, and supporting network infrastructure.
• Review and refine network architecture change plans, implement upgrades, and create/maintain Methods of Procedure (MOPs) for all release activities.
• Lead or participate in break/fix troubleshooting across WiFi core elements, including controllers, APs, authentication systems, WAG/iWAG, load balancers, and routing/switching components.
• Commission and decommission WiFi network hardware and services in alignment with planned migration programs and modernization initiatives (including WiFi
  7).
• Support public SSID and mobile offload systems, ensuring seamless roaming, authentication reliability, and high service availability.
• Collaborate with cross-functional groups (core engineering, RF engineering, wireless operations, automation teams) during escalations, releases, and post-maintenance validation.
• Contribute to the development of automation tooling using Python or Ansible to enhance operational efficiency.
• Participate in an on-call rotation for high-priority service events.

Required Experience

• 5-15 years in WiFi operations, wireless engineering, or carrier-grade network support.
• Hands-on experience with:
  • WiFi Controllers (Cisco WLC/Catalyst 9800, Aruba Mobility Master/Conductor, Juniper Mist, or similar)
  • AAA/RADIUS platforms-preferably Linux-based (Free RADIUS, ISE, Clear Pass, or equivalent)
  • WAG/iWAG, mobile offload, public WiFi, or Hotspot 2.0/Passpoint ecosystems
  • Routing & Switching: vendor-agnostic experience with BGP, OSPF, VLANs, trunking, HA, redundancy, etc.
• Strong Layer 1-7 troubleshooting skills with the ability to diagnose failures across controllers, AAA, RF, transport, or core systems.
• Comfortable writing and executing MOPs, running changes in live environments, and coordinating rollback plans.
• Basic-to-intermediate Linux CLI proficiency (systemctl, journalctl, log analysis).
• Experience with Python and/or Ansible for workflow automation.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with WiFi 6/6E or WiFi 7 technologies.
• Knowledge of ANQP, 802.11u, EAP methods, Rad Sec, or Hotspot 2.0/Passpoint architecture.
• Exposure to carrier-grade NOC practices: incident management, severity bridges, RCA documentation.
• Familiarity with load balancers, DNS, firewalls, or virtualization environments used in large WiFi core infrastructures.

What This Role Offers

• Work on one of the largest public and mobile WiFi deployments in the country.
• Direct influence on upcoming WiFi 7 controller migrations and automation initiatives.
• High-visibility work touching millions of users across mobile and public networks.
• Cross-functional collaboration with leading engineering and operations teams.
• Opportunity to grow into senior release engineering, WiFi core architecture, or automation leadership paths.

Job Type & Location
This is a Contract position based out of Denver, CO.
Pay and Benefits
The pay range for this position is $50.00 - $70.00/hr.
Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If…