Job description

• • We are seeking an experienced and highly skilled Senior Identity & Access Management Architect (Level 12) to provide enterprise architecture leadership for Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft 365, and hybrid identity services. This principal-level role defines, designs, and governs secure, resilient identity capabilities across on-premises and cloud environments. • • The architect will own the end-to-end strategy for directory services, Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), authentication, identity operations, and identity integrations. • • You will act as a senior technical decision-maker and SME for identity architecture, establishing standards for MFA, Conditional Access, modern authentication, lifecycle controls, and Zero Trust while ensuring identity services support operational needs and regulatory obligations. Enterprise Identity Architecture (AD and Hybrid Identity) • Lead the design and architecture of Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID hybrid environments, including domain and forest strategy, AD and Entra migrations and consolidations, tenant integration, identity synchronization, and identity transition planning for mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. • Define enterprise standards for identity lifecycle, identity operations, authentication, directory services, MFA, Conditional Access, and Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM). • Architect high availability, disaster recovery, and scalability models for identity systems. • Lead modernization efforts such as legacy domain remediation, AD hardening, cloud identity integration, and secure Microsoft 365 administrative architecture. • Provide AD and Entra privileged-identity requirements and integration guidance to teams responsible for enterprise PAM platforms. Identity Security Strategy & Zero Trust • Develop and enforce identity security strategy aligned to Zero Trust architecture principles. • Define and implement controls for tiered administration, privileged role activation through Entra PIM, PAWs, AD tiering, credential protection, MFA, Conditional Access, and attack surface reduction. • Lead initiatives to reduce identity-based risk, including privileged account sprawl, excessive standing access, stale accounts, and unmanaged service or non-human identities. • Drive adoption of passwordless and modern authentication technologies, including MFA, FIDO2, and Windows Hello for Business. • Partner with PAM and security teams to align AD and Entra privileged identities with least-privilege, just-in-time access, monitoring, and credential lifecycle controls. Cross-Platform Identity Integration • Architect integration among Active Directory, Entra ID, Microsoft 365, IAM and identity governance platforms, identity security tools, and enterprise applications. • Define identity and access architecture standards across Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Google Cloud Platform (GCP), including workforce access, privileged roles, workload identities, federation, and governance. • Define standards for SSO, federation, and authentication protocols (SAML, OIDC, OAuth). • Oversee identity integration across on-premises, cloud, SaaS, and third-party systems, including appropriate integration with PAM platforms when privileged identities are in scope. • Ensure consistent identity governance across all platforms, including human, service, workload, and other non-human identities. Active Directory Engineering Governance • Define standards for AD object design, OU structure, GPO strategy, DNS integration, and identity synchronization. • Lead AD health, performance, and security initiatives including audits, remediation, and optimization. • Oversee enterprise-wide initiatives such as AD consolidation, domain migrations, and forest restructuring. • Provide expert escalation support for complex AD-related issues. Security, Risk & Compliance Oversight • Ensure identity platforms meet applicable regulatory and security standards, including SOX, PCI, and NIST. • Lead efforts to audit and monitor directory activity, privileged role use, authentication, and access control effectiveness. • Partner with SIEM, endpoint, and security teams to integrate identity telemetry for detection and response, including capabilities such as CrowdStrike Identity Threat Protection and other identity security tools. • Define access review, certification, and governance processes across identity systems. Technical Leadership & Strategy • Serve as the principal architect and SME for identity and access management across the organization. • Define the long-term architectural roadmap for identity services, aligning with enterprise and cybersecurity strategy. • Provide hands-on guidance and technical direction to IAM engineers and architects. • Influence executive stakeholders and drive adoption of secure identity practices across business units. Incident Response & Operational Excellence • Provide expert-level support during identity-related incidents, including AD compromise, credential attacks, Entra role misuse, authentication failures, and identity service disruptions. • Lead root cause analysis and remediation for identity security incidents, coordinating with PAM platform owners when privileged access tooling is involved. • Establish monitoring, alerting, and response procedures for identity infrastructure and identity threat detections. • Ensure resilience and recovery capabilities for identity services. Reporting & Documentation • Develop architectural documentation, standards, and design patterns for enterprise identity systems. • Provide executive-level reporting on identity security posture, risks, and initiatives. • Maintain detailed documentation for AD, Entra ID, Microsoft 365 identity architecture, Entra PIM, and related privileged-identity integrations to support operational continuity. Continuous Improvement & Innovation • Stay current with advancements in Active Directory security, Entra ID, Microsoft 365, cloud IAM, modern authentication, identity threat protection, and privileged-identity practices. • Evaluate emerging technologies, including AI-enabled identity capabilities and governance approaches for non-human identities, to improve identity security and operational efficiency. • Maintain awareness of emerging agentic AI security considerations, including agent identity, delegated authority, permissions, credential use, and appropriate human oversight. • Drive automation initiatives across identity lifecycle, provisioning, access governance, identity operations, and privileged role management. • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Security, or a related field, or equivalent work experience. • 7+ years of experience in identity and access management, directory services, identity security, or related enterprise architecture roles. • Deep expertise in Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID, including hybrid identity, identity synchronization, authentication, directory security, and enterprise-scale architecture. • Required experience designing and governing Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), privileged role activation, approval, access review, and least-privilege controls. • Strong knowledge of Microsoft 365 administration and architecture, including identity, role, authentication, and security dependencies across the platform. • Knowledge of cloud IAM concepts and access models across Microsoft Azure, AWS, and GCP, including federation, privileged roles, workload identities, and governance. Deep expertise in every cloud platform is not required. • Strong experience with identity operations and security controls, including MFA, Conditional Access, SSO, federation, passwordless authentication, identity lifecycle, access governance, and monitoring. • Working knowledge of privileged access management concepts and the ability to provide AD, Entra, and privileged-identity requirements to PAM platform teams. Familiarity with CyberArk or an equivalent PAM platform is beneficial; deep platform administration expertise is not required. • Knowledge of applicable regulatory and security frameworks, including SOX, PCI, and NIST, and their relationship to identity and access controls. • Knowledge of AI-related identity risks and controls, workload identities, service accounts, machine identities, and other non-human identities is preferred. • Awareness of agentic AI security, including agent identities, delegated permissions, credential handling, and human oversight, is a plus. • Experience with CrowdStrike Identity Threat Protection or other identity threat detection and response or identity security tools is a plus. • Experience with scripting and automation, such as PowerShell or Python, for identity administration, reporting, and control enforcement is a plus. • Strong troubleshooting, problem-solving, and analytical skills. • Excellent communication skills with the ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and present technical information to non-technical stakeholders. • Experience leading enterprise identity architecture, modernization, security, or operational improvement initiatives. • Significant experience supporting mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, or other large-scale Active Directory and Entra ID migrations and consolidations—including tenant, domain, forest, identity synchronization, coexistence, and transition planning—is a strong plus.

Requirements

Must-haves

The architect will own the end-to-end strategy for directory services, Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), authentication, identity operations, and identity integrations.
Enterprise Identity Architecture (AD and Hybrid Identity)
Define enterprise standards for identity lifecycle, identity operations, authentication, directory services, MFA, Conditional Access, and Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM).
Architect high availability, disaster recovery, and scalability models for identity systems.
Lead modernization efforts such as legacy domain remediation, AD hardening, cloud identity integration, and secure Microsoft 365 administrative architecture.
Provide AD and Entra privileged-identity requirements and integration guidance to teams responsible for enterprise PAM platforms.
Identity Security Strategy & Zero Trust
Develop and enforce identity security strategy aligned to Zero Trust architecture principles.
Define and implement controls for tiered administration, privileged role activation through Entra PIM, PAWs, AD tiering, credential protection, MFA, Conditional Access, and attack surface reduction.
Lead initiatives to reduce identity-based risk, including privileged account sprawl, excessive standing access, stale accounts, and unmanaged service or non-human identities.
Drive adoption of passwordless and modern authentication technologies, including MFA, FIDO2, and Windows Hello for Business.
Partner with PAM and security teams to align AD and Entra privileged identities with least-privilege, just-in-time access, monitoring, and credential lifecycle controls.
Cross-Platform Identity Integration
Architect integration among Active Directory, Entra ID, Microsoft 365, IAM and identity governance platforms, identity security tools, and enterprise applications.
Define standards for SSO, federation, and authentication protocols (SAML, OIDC, OAuth).
Oversee identity integration across on-premises, cloud, SaaS, and third-party systems, including appropriate integration with PAM platforms when privileged identities are in scope.
Ensure consistent identity governance across all platforms, including human, service, workload, and other non-human identities.
Active Directory Engineering Governance
Define standards for AD object design, OU structure, GPO strategy, DNS integration, and identity synchronization.
Lead AD health, performance, and security initiatives including audits, remediation, and optimization.

Nice-to-haves

Knowledge of AI-related identity risks and controls, workload identities, service accounts, machine identities, and other non-human identities is preferred.
Awareness of agentic AI security, including agent identities, delegated permissions, credential handling, and human oversight, is a plus.
Experience with CrowdStrike Identity Threat Protection or other identity threat detection and response or identity security tools is a plus.
Experience with scripting and automation, such as PowerShell or Python, for identity administration, reporting, and control enforcement is a plus.

Application prep

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Keywords to mirror

azureawsgcpaipython

Platform: oracle-cloud
Effort: medium

Benefits

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Vision