Cisco ACI Automation & Network Scripting Specialist
Role details
Job location
Tech stack
Job description
We are seeking a highly skilled Cisco ACI Automation and Network Scripting Specialist to support the engineering, automation, optimisation, and day-to-day operations of large-scale data centre network environments. The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in Cisco ACI fabric, programmability, API-driven network automation and SDN concepts within enterprise or regulated environments., Cisco ACI Engineering & Operations
- Design, implement, and manage Cisco ACI fabric across multi-site data centre environments.
- Configure ACI components including tenants, VRFs, EPGs, contracts, L3Outs, multipod environments and APIC clusters.
- Lead troubleshooting, root-cause analysis and performance optimisation of SDN environments.
- Develop automation for lifecycle management of ACI policies and configurations.
Network Automation & Scripting
- Build and maintain automation workflows using Python, Ansible, Bash, Terraform or similar tools.
- Use Cisco ACI APIs (REST, XML/JSON), ACI Toolkit and Cobra SDK for automated fabric management.
- Develop CI/CD pipelines for network configuration deployment and validation.
- Implement infrastructure-as-code approaches to standardise and streamline network provisioning.
Operational Excellence & Governance
- Ensure alignment with internal security, compliance and architectural standards.
- Produce operational documentation, design diagrams and automation runbooks.
- Collaborate with security, cloud and platform teams to integrate ACI within the wider technology ecosystem.
- Support transition towards policy-based and software-defined networking models.
Innovation & Continuous Improvement
- Evaluate new Cisco ACI features, SDN technologies, and automation tools for adoption.
- Drive reduction of manual effort through reusable templates and automation frameworks.
- Contribute to networking strategy, architectural enhancements and long-term technology roadmaps.
Requirements
Do you have experience in XML?, * Strong hands-on experience with Cisco ACI, APIC, multi-site architectures and SDN principles.
- Proficiency in Python, YAML, JSON and REST APIs.
- Experience with automation tools such as Ansible, Git, Jenkins, Terraform or equivalents.
- Strong understanding of core networking technologies, including:
- BGP, OSPF, VXLAN, EVPN, MPLS
- Layer 2 / Layer 3 switching and routing
- Security policies, segmentation and firewalls
- Experience operating in large-scale or regulated enterprise environments (financial services preferred).
- Ability to troubleshoot complex technical issues in mission-critical environments.
Desirable Skills
- CCNP/CCIE, DevNet Professional/Expert or equivalent certifications.
- Experience with cloud networking (AWS, Azure) and hybrid connectivity.
- Experience automating Cisco Nexus, next-generation firewalls, or F5 load balancers.
- Familiarity with monitoring platforms such as Splunk, Grafana, AppDynamics, or ACI Health Score.