3rd Line Infrastructure Engineer Lead

Net Consulting is seeking a highly experienced and technically proficient 3rd Line Lead Infrastructure Engineer to lead the delivery and support of complex infrastructure solutions across secure environments. This role is ideal for a senior engineer with deep expertise in container orchestration, networking, virtualisation, and enterprise monitoring and security platforms, who is ready to take ownership of technical leadership and mentoring responsibilities.

Based primarily at a client site in Corsham, Wiltshire, with travel to other customer locations. You will lead a team of 3rd line engineers, act as the final escalation point for critical issues, and work closely with architects and stakeholders to shape infrastructure strategy and delivery.

You must be eligible for UK Security Check (SC) clearance, with the potential to progress to Developed Vetting (DV) clearance.

Responsibilities

Lead the 3rd Line Infrastructure Support Team, providing technical direction, mentoring, and oversight

• Act as the final escalation point for complex infrastructure issues across:
  
  
  • Kubernetes, K3s, OpenShift, Podman, Rancher
    
    
  • Dell servers, Cisco firewalls, Juniper and Cisco switches
    
    
  • Brocade fabric switches, SAN storage, VMware, VDI
    
    
  • SolarWinds, Endace packet probes, Gigamon, Nexor data diodes
    
    
  • ESXi and KVM Hypervisors
    
    
  • Windows Server OS
    
    
  • RedHat Enterprise Linux OS
    
    
• Collaborate with architects and project teams to design and implement robust, scalable infrastructure solutions
  
  
• Own and drive root cause analysis for major incidents and recurring problems
  
  
• Ensure documentation, standards, and procedures are maintained and continuously improved
  
  
• Champion automation, infrastructure-as-code, and continuous improvement initiatives
  
  
• Represent the infrastructure team in technical governance, change advisory boards, and stakeholder meetings
  
  
• Support capacity planning, performance tuning, and lifecycle management of infrastructure assets
  
  
• Participate in and lead on-call rotations for high-priority incidents
  
  Skills & Experience
  
  Essential
  
  Extensive experience in a 3rd line infrastructure support or senior systems engineering role
  
  Proven leadership experience, including mentoring and team coordination
  
  
• Deep technical expertise in:
  
  
  • Container platforms: Kubernetes, OpenShift, K3s, Podman, Rancher
    
    
  • Networking: Cisco firewalls/switches, Juniper switches, Brocade fabrics
    
    
  • Storage & Virtualisation: SAN, VMware ESXi, VDI, KVM Hypervisor
    
    
  • Monitoring & Security: SolarWinds, Endace, Gigamon, Nexor
    
    
  • Operating Systems: Windows Server, Linux
    
    Strong diagnostic and troubleshooting skills across complex, multi-vendor environments
    
    Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
    
    Eligible for UK SC clearance
    
    Full UK Driving Licence
    
    Desirable
    
    Experience with infrastructure automation (e.g., Ansible, Terraform)
    
    Scripting skills (e.g., PowerShell, Bash, Python)
    
    Familiarity with ITIL processes and secure government environments
    
    Exposure to MOD or defence sector standards and compliance
    
    Person Specification
    
    Integrity & Professionalism: Demonstrates honesty, ethical behaviour, and professionalism in all interactions, reflecting NCL’s commitment to transparency and trust
    
    Customer Focus: Committed to delivering value and building long-term partnerships with clients by understanding their needs and exceeding expectations
    
    Collaboration: Works effectively as part of a team, contributing to shared goals and supporting colleagues across departments
    
    Adaptability: Thrives in a fast-paced, evolving environment and is able to manage changing priorities with resilience
    
    Accountability: Takes ownership of tasks and decisions, showing initiative and responsibility in delivering high-quality outcomes
    
    Curious and proactive in learning new technologies and staying current with cyber threats and security trends
    
    Clear communicator, able to explain technical issues to both technical and non-technical audiences
    
    Detail-oriented, with strong analytical and problem-solving skills
    
    Committed to sustainability, showing awareness of environmental and social responsibility in the workplace
    
    Health & Wellbeing Awareness: Values a positive work/life balance and contributes to a supportive and respectful working environment
    
    Company Benefits
    
    Competitive Salary
    
    Workplace Benefits: Contributory Pension Scheme, Private Medical Insurance, Life Assurance, Critical Illness Cover, Health & Wellbeing
    
    25 Days’ Annual Leave (in addition to Bank Holidays)
    
    Performance Bonuses (Personal & Company)
    
    Excellent Career Progression Opportunities
    
    On-call/call-out allowance, where applicable