Lead Collaboration Services Engineer

The Hartford•Hartford, CT

3d•$128,800 - $193,200•Hybrid

About The Position

The Lead Engineer for Microsoft 365, Azure, and AI Productivity Platforms serves as a senior technical leader responsible for architecting, governing, and operating M365 tenants. The role includes ownership of tenant administration, backup and disaster recovery, policy management, alongside deep involvement in Azure identity architecture, privileged access (PIM), RBAC, and conditional access for AI services. This engineer partners closely on Microsoft licensing lifecycle management, vendor coordination, and financial governance, ensuring accurate forecasting, true-ups, and enterprise agreement alignment. A core focus is designing and managing AI productivity platforms, including Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini Enterprise, with responsibilities spanning multi-environment deployments, rollout strategies, and integration through connectors and identity federation. The position also leads complex integration engineering efforts, supports enterprise change management programs, collaborates with InfoSec on security posture and compliance, and drives incident resolution for high-impact production issues. Additionally, the role requires strong leadership in mentoring engineers, cross-functional collaboration, vendor engagement, and delivering strategic, enterprise-grade solutions through advanced technical expertise in M365, Azure, automation, and AI platform architectures.

Requirements

Microsoft 365 Administration – Expert-level tenant administration (Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, Microsoft Teams, Power Platform), group-based licensing, M365 admin center, storage/policy management, M365 DSC
Azure Identity & Access Management – Deep expertise in Azure Entra ID (Azure AD), PIM, RBAC, Conditional Access, hybrid identity, application registrations, service principals, OAuth/SAML/WIF authentication
AI Platform Architecture – Proven experience with Microsoft Copilot (M365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, agents, extensibility, connectors) and/or Google Cloud Platform (Gemini Enterprise, WIF, SCIM, Vertex AI, GCP organizational policies)
Microsoft Licensing & Procurement – Strong knowledge of Enterprise Agreement (EA), Server and Cloud Enrollment (SCE), license reservations, true-up management, Microsoft invoice processing, and vendor coordination (Microsoft, SHI)
Azure Billing & Cost Management – Hands-on experience with Azure Cost Management, invoice retrieval, Coupa/ERP integration, PO number mapping, and budget forecasting
PowerShell & Automation – Proficiency in PowerShell scripting, Microsoft Graph API, Azure CLI, and infrastructure-as-code for tenant configuration management
Enterprise Integration – Experience with ServiceNow connectors, Microsoft Graph connectors, API authentication (OAuth/SAML), Model Context Protocol (MCP), Zscaler/SASE platforms, and CDN integration
Information Security – Knowledge of DLP, conditional access, application registration reviews, least-privilege access, and partnership with InfoSec teams
Change Management – Experience leading enterprise change assessment programs, coordinating cross-functional impact analysis, and DCR submission processes
Incident Management – Proven ability to triage production incidents, coordinate vendor escalations (Microsoft Premier Support), and manage critical service restorations
Vendor Management & Negotiation – Strong partnership and negotiation skills with Microsoft, SHI, Google, and enterprise vendors at executive and technical levels
Cross-Functional Collaboration – Demonstrated ability to partner with Security (THIP), Procurement, Finance, and business units to drive platform adoption and resolve complex issues
Technical Communication – Excellent written and verbal skills; ability to create technical documentation (TDDs, test plans, runbooks), present to leadership, and explain complex concepts to non-technical stakeholders
Mentorship & Knowledge Transfer – Proven experience mentoring engineers on complex technical topics, operational processes, and best practices
Strategic Thinking & Independent Execution – Ability to operate independently, prioritize competing demands, drive multi-quarter initiatives, and make sound technical/business decisions in ambiguous situations
Incident Leadership – Ability to serve as technical escalation point, coordinate resolution across teams/vendors, and provide expert guidance during high-pressure incidents
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field (or equivalent experience)
10+ years enterprise IT experience with 5+ years in Microsoft 365 and Azure administration at global/near-global admin level

Nice To Haves

Microsoft certifications strongly preferred: Microsoft 365 Certified: Enterprise Administrator Expert, Azure Administrator Associate, Identity and Access Administrator Associate, Security Administrator Associate
Google Cloud certifications preferred: Professional Cloud Architect, Cloud Engineer, Workspace Administrator
ITIL Foundation or service management certification preferred

Responsibilities

Architecting, governing, and operating M365 tenants.
Ownership of tenant administration, backup and disaster recovery, policy management.
Deep involvement in Azure identity architecture, privileged access (PIM), RBAC, and conditional access for AI services.
Partnering on Microsoft licensing lifecycle management, vendor coordination, and financial governance.
Designing and managing AI productivity platforms, including Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini Enterprise.
Leading complex integration engineering efforts.
Supporting enterprise change management programs.
Collaborating with InfoSec on security posture and compliance.
Driving incident resolution for high-impact production issues.
Mentoring engineers, cross-functional collaboration, vendor engagement.
Delivering strategic, enterprise-grade solutions through advanced technical expertise in M365, Azure, automation, and AI platform architectures.