Principal Network Engineer - Voice

Principal Network Engineer - Voice
Contract role 6+ months
Waltham MA
The Voice/Telephony Engineer provides expert-level design, integration, and support of enterprise telephony services across both legacy PBX platforms and modern IP-based systems (e.g., Cisco Call manager and Microsoft Teams Voice, VoIP). Operating with substantial autonomy, the engineer leads the technical development and lifecycle management of voice infrastructure solutions, ensuring alignment with enterprise architecture and business requirements. This role serves as the principal advisor on telephony systems and drives continuous service improvement initiatives in collaboration with internal teams and external vendors.
Section 4 - Position Responsibilities
Telephony Strategy, Design & Architecture
• Lead the design and evolution of enterprise voice systems, integrating legacy PBX platforms (e.g., Avaya and Nortel) with modern IP-based telephony solutions (e.g., Cisco Call manager) and cloud-based solutions (e.g. MS Teams).
• Develop scalable, resilient, and secure telephony architectures that align with broader enterprise IT strategies.
• Define technical standards and contribute to voice-related architecture roadmaps and governance.
Implementation & Lifecycle Management
• Oversee deployment, upgrades, and decommissioning of telephony systems, ensuring minimal service disruption and optimal performance.
• Manage migration initiatives from legacy to IP-based platforms, applying structured change and release management practices.
• Define and maintain lifecycle management plans and asset inventories for telephony infrastructure.
Operations, Support & Optimization
• Provide expert-level troubleshooting and resolution of complex voice-related incidents and performance issues.
• Collaborate with network teams to ensure voice traffic quality and reliability, applying QoS and SIP diagnostics.
• Monitor system performance and lead continuous improvement efforts including performance tuning and capacity planning.
Advisory & Stakeholder Engagement
• Act as the subject matter expert (SME) for enterprise voice services, advising business and IT stakeholders on capabilities, constraints, and risks.
• Translate business requirements into technical specifications and influence telephony investment decisions.
• Lead vendor engagements, contract reviews, and evaluation of emerging voice technologies.
Governance, Compliance & Documentation
• Ensure voice systems are compliant with corporate security policies and relevant regulations (e.g., E911, call logging, data protection).
• Develop and maintain detailed technical documentation, diagrams, and SOPs for telephony environments.
• Contributes to the development and enforcement of telephony governance policies, design standards, and operational procedures.
Section 5 - Key Skills, Experience & Qualifications
Required Skills & Competencies:
• Telephony Systems: Advanced proficiency in legacy PBX (Avaya, Nortel) and modern IP telephony systems (e.g., CISCO Call manager).
• Integration Expertise: Demonstrated experience integrating hybrid voice environments and migrating PBX to IP voice solutions.
• Networking Knowledge: Strong understanding of network protocols related to voice: SIP, RTP, QoS, VLANs, firewall traversal, NAT.
• Problem Solving: Proven ability to lead root cause analysis and resolution of major voice incidents across platforms.
• Project Delivery: Experience leading telephony workstreams within cross-functional projects, balancing timelines and risks.
• Business Acumen: Ability to align technical decisions with business drivers and clearly communicate trade-offs to stakeholders.
• Governance & Compliance: Awareness of telephony-related compliance and ability to ensure alignment with corporate policies.
Qualifications & Certifications:
• Education: Bachelors degree in Telecommunications, Information Technology, or a related field preferred.
• Certifications (Preferred):
• Avaya Certified Support Specialist (ACSS) / Avaya Services Technical Associate (ASTA)
• Cisco CCNP Collaboration
• ITIL Foundation
• Experience:
• 5-7 years in telephony engineering supporting hybrid environments.
• Experience leading or contributing to large-scale telephony transitions or integration efforts.
Section 6 - Working Model
• Hybrid/Remote flexibility based on organizational policy.
• Occasional on-call or off-hours support may be required for critical deployments or incident response supporting a multi-national organization across multiple time zones.