OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY - MAINE IT

NETWORK SERVICES

Opening Date: June 27, 2025

Closing Date:  July 14, 2025

Job Class Code: 0871
Grade: 29
Salary: $71,616.48 - $100,535.76*/Annually (includes 15% recruitment & retention stipend and eligible for an annual 5% training bonus)
Position Number: 004250166

OVERVIEW:

The Department of Administrative and Financial Services (DAFS) Office of Information Technology (MaineIT) provides information technology support to over 13,000 employees through a wide variety of program areas for the State of Maine. MaineIT oversees a large-scale enterprise infrastructure and applications that support critical and diverse business needs of the State of Maine and its agencies. 

The State of Maine is in the process of upgrading and installing new data center firewalls to the latest CheckPoint systems. When completed, this technology advance will bring the State of Maine to a state-of-the-art security infrastructure. 

MaineIT is seeking a highly talented individual who will represent our C.A.R.E. values in all that they do.  At MaineIT we:  

• Practice Customer-focus, ensuring that our customers are heard, and their needs are met.
• Hold ourselves to a high level of Accountability by being transparent with our stakeholders.
• Maintain an effective level of Responsiveness by providing timely updates in a proactive manner.
• Strive to provide Empathy driven, people-focused services by applying emotional intelligence skills and behaviors.

ABOUT THE JOB DETAILS:                                                                                         

MaineIT is seeking a senior technical professional who is highly proficient in network firewalls with further experience in a Cisco centric network.  The selected individual will join as a contributing team member with other highly qualified network security staff and will assist in engineering, installing, and maintaining enterprise level CheckPoint security systems.   

Technical duties include:

• Evaluating, developing and implementing policies using CheckPoint’s enterprise tools.  Possess prior experience in firewall infrastructures and security practices.
• Monitoring and reacting to security events produced by CheckPoint and other security systems.
• Engineering, maintenance, troubleshooting all aspects of CheckPoint systems.
• Engineering and enhancing Firewall, VPN, IPS and related designs.
• Overseeing firewall performance through monitoring using provided tools.
• Installing, enhancing, diagnosing, correcting, and maintaining network firewalls and related security systems/software for an enterprise-level security system.
• Provide technical knowledge, mentor other team members and/or supervisory leadership skills, establish development opportunities for other technical personnel.
• Provide administrative and vendor support and advise IT management on best practices to guide decision-making.

To be successful, the selected candidate must be trained and experienced in network firewalls, be able to learn new products and tools quickly, be able to solve complex issues timely, exercise sound judgement and analysis, and offer viable solutions.  This role requires an understanding of networking and performance management/capacity planning, hardware and software configurations, integrations, and all facets of implementation.

Work is performed under limited supervision.  This position is in Augusta, Maine.  The Network Security Section requires 24x7 support; therefore, the position will be on-call in a weekly rotation format.

WHAT WILL YOU DO?

• Work with an outstanding team of IT professionals – you will share knowledge and you will learn about the most complex IT systems in the State of Maine.
• Use your skills to solve problems and contribute directly to solutions that make a difference.
• Proactively engage on requests and projects that require CheckPoint services.
• Perform a full range of system administration functions from design, acquisition, configuration, installation, monitoring, and maintenance of CheckPoint systems.
• Share technical knowledge about CheckPoint systems, security switches, routers and other network security software and hardware.
• Develop complex reports and provide solutions to performance issues.
• Maintain configuration standards, documentation of network devices, including servicing and upgrading of equipment. 
• Create, maintain and enhance network security systems and make appropriate changes when design needs change.

WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU:

We need a candidate who can deliver and contribute as a positive team player, a person who understands network systems and associated security risks and can make decisions to effectively improve work and performance levels.  We need a person who can successfully develop others and who will take the extra steps to make sure quality work is delivered to our customers in a timely and consistent manner.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• A minimum of 8 years of a combination of related post-secondary education, technical certifications, or technology related work experience.  Related training, internship experience etc. may be credited as related experience on a month-per-month basis

Preference will be given to candidiates with current CheckPoint or other firewall vendor certifications, and multiple years’ experience in a responsible role.  AWS and/or Azure administration experience a plus.  VPN experience a plus.

The selected candidate will be required to pass the required background checks(fingerprinting may be required) as a condition of employment.

This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship or STEM OPT extensions.

Benefits of working for the State of Maine:

No matter where you work across Maine state government, you find employees who embody our state motto—"Dirigo" or "I lead"—as they provide essential services to Mainers every day. We believe in supporting our workforce's health and wellbeing with a valuable total compensation package, including:

• Work-Life Fit – Rest is essential. Take time for yourself using 13 paid holidays, 12 days of sick leave, and 3+ weeks of vacation leave annually. Vacation leave accrual increases with years of service, and overtime-exempt employees receive personal leave.
• Health Insurance Coverage – The State of Maine pays 85%-95% of employee-only premiums ($11,196.96 - $12,514.32 annual value), depending on salary. Use this chart to find the premium costs for you and your family, including the percentage of dependent coverage paid by the State. 
• Dental Insurance – The State of Maine pays 100% of employee-only dental premiums ($387.92 annual value).
• Retirement Plan – The State contributes the equivalent of 13.29% of the employee's pay towards the Maine Public Employees Retirement System (MainePERS). 

State employees are eligible for an extensive and highly competitive benefits package, covering many aspects of wellness. Learn about additional wellness benefits for State employees from the Office of Employee Health and Wellness.

Note: Benefits may vary somewhat according to specific collective bargaining agreements and are prorated for anything less than full-time.

There's a job and then there's purposeful, transformative work. Our aim is to create a workplace where you can learn, grow, and continuously refine your skills. Applicants demonstrate job requirements in differing ways, and we appreciate that many skills and backgrounds can make people successful in this role. 

As an Equal Opportunity employer, Maine State Government embraces a culture of respect and awareness. We are committed to creating a strong sense of belonging for all team members, and our process ensures an inclusive environment to applicants of all backgrounds including diverse race, color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, age, ancestry, national origin, familial status or genetics. 

If you’re looking for a great next step, and want to feel good about what you do, we’d love to hear from you. Please note reasonable accommodations are provided to qualified individuals with disabilities upon request.

Thinking about applying?

Research shows that people from historically excluded communities tend to apply to jobs only when they check every box in the posting. If you’re currently reading this and hesitating to apply for that reason, we encourage you to go for it! Let us know how your lived experience and passion set you apart.