Active Directory Engineer – Journeyman

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Illinois.

📋 Description

• Manage, maintain, secure, troubleshoot, and recover the Microsoft Active Directory Domain Services environment that supports the USMEPCOM ENLIST program.

• Oversee directory objects, organizational units, Group Policy Objects, trusts, replication, schema modifications, delegated permissions, domain services, and recovery functionalities.

• Install, configure, maintain, troubleshoot, and recover AD DS; handle users, computers, groups, service accounts, and other directory entities.

• Establish and uphold OU structures, permissions, and delegated administration following least-privilege principles.

• Develop, test, deploy, and troubleshoot GPOs while evaluating changes for security implications and customer impact.

• Configure and resolve issues related to domain and forest trusts, AD sites, subnets, site links, replication topology, domain-controller health, SYSVOL, DFSR, time synchronization, AD-integrated DNS, and FSMO roles.

• Facilitate domain-controller installation, upgrades, demotion, retirement, supported AD-version transitions, and controlled schema extensions.

• Handle escalated account, group, and permission changes while diagnosing authentication, authorization, policy, trust, and replication issues.

• Provide expert support during identity and authentication incidents, including conducting root-cause analysis and implementing corrective measures.

• Maintain and execute AD backup, restoration, deleted-object recovery, and forest-recovery protocols; assist with COOP and disaster-recovery exercises.

• Aid integration testing between AD and Okta or other sanctioned identity platforms, focusing on synchronization, authentication flows, mappings, provisioning, and identity protocols.

• Automate directory management, health validation, and reporting processes; review audit logs; implement DISA STIGs and security baselines; support RMF controls and remediation efforts.

• Keep updated SOPs, recovery plans, configuration baselines, and directory diagrams; deliver health, risk, and modernization reports.

• Collaborate with cybersecurity, Service Desk, systems, cloud, network, application, COOP, and Government identity stakeholders.

⛳️ Requirements

• A Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Information Systems, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience as permitted by the labor category.

• At least six (6) years of relevant experience in Active Directory administration, identity engineering, Windows infrastructure, systems engineering, or a similar field.

• Direct, hands-on experience in administering Microsoft AD DS within an enterprise setting, including objects, OUs, GPOs, trusts, replication, schema, delegated permissions, and directory recovery.

• Expertise in troubleshooting authentication, authorization, Group Policy, replication, and trust issues, alongside supporting AD backup, restoration, and disaster recovery.

• Experience in testing identity integrations or supporting identity-modernization activities, with a clear understanding of the differences between core AD DS and external ICAM, federation, or cloud-identity services.

• Excellent written, verbal, analytical, and technical problem-solving abilities.

• An Active Secret clearance or higher is mandatory.

• Preferred: Experience in integrating AD with Okta, and with Microsoft Entra ID or hybrid identity solutions.

• Preferred: Experience in supporting federal or DoD identity environments, including CAC, PIV, certificate-based authentication, and PKI.

• Preferred: Familiarity with SAML, OIDC, OAuth, SCIM, LDAP, Kerberos, NTLM, AD FS, or similar federation technologies.

• Preferred: Proficiency in using PowerShell for AD administration and automation tasks.

• Preferred: Experience in applying DISA STIGs to AD and Windows infrastructure and supporting RMF authorization processes.

• Preferred: Understanding of Zero Trust identity principles and experience with privileged-access, identity-governance, or audit tools.

🏝️ Benefits

• Commitment to affirmative action and equal employment opportunity.

• Reasonable accommodations provided for individuals with disabilities.

• Occasional after-hours maintenance, COOP exercises, disaster-recovery testing, incident response, on-site support, or travel may be required.