Principal M365 Exchange & Collaboration Architect

SAIC•Flexwork, VA

About The Position

We are seeking a highly experienced Principal M365 and Exchange Architect to support a federal customer in designing, operating, and modernizing enterprise collaboration, messaging, and identity platforms. This role provides architectural leadership and hands-on technical expertise across Microsoft 365, Exchange (SE and Online), Entra ID, Teams, and hybrid cloud environments in a highly regulated setting. The ideal candidate will function as a technical authority and trusted advisor to government stakeholders, leading architecture decisions, large-scale migrations, and platform optimization efforts while ensuring security, compliance, and operational excellence.

Requirements

Highly experienced Principal M365 and Exchange Architect
Experience designing, operating, and modernizing enterprise collaboration, messaging, and identity platforms.
Architectural leadership and hands-on technical expertise across Microsoft 365, Exchange (SE and Online), Entra ID, Teams, and hybrid cloud environments.
Experience in a highly regulated setting.
Function as a technical authority and trusted advisor to government stakeholders.
Experience leading architecture decisions, large-scale migrations, and platform optimization efforts.
Ensuring security, compliance, and operational excellence.
Experience with hybrid and cloud-based collaboration systems.
Experience with federal security, compliance, and governance requirements.
Experience evaluating Microsoft roadmap features and recommending adoption strategies.
Senior-level administration and architectural oversight of Exchange SE and Exchange Online environments.
Experience architecting and managing mail flow, security, compliance, retention, and eDiscovery solutions.
Experience leading and supporting enterprise migrations, including hybrid-to-cloud transitions and tenant consolidations.
Experience architecting, configuring, and supporting Microsoft Teams deployments, integrations, and lifecycle management.
Experience designing and supporting hybrid identity solutions using Entra ID and Entra ID Connect.
Experience implementing and maintaining identity synchronization, access controls, and governance policies.
Experience supporting conditional access, privileged identity management, and zero trust initiatives.
Experience designing and maintaining PowerShell-based automation frameworks.
Experience developing scripts and tools for administration, monitoring, reporting, and compliance validation.
Experience applying engineering best practices to scripting, version control, and documentation.
Experience supporting Azure and VMware environments hosting collaboration and identity workloads.
Experience providing guidance on capacity planning, performance optimization, patching, and lifecycle management.
Experience ensuring infrastructure configurations align with architectural standards and security requirements.
Experience acting as technical lead on task orders, projects, and modernization initiatives.
Experience collaborating with government stakeholders to translate requirements into implementable technical designs.
Experience supporting ServiceNow workflows, including complex incidents, problems, and changes.
Experience providing technical input to project plans, schedules, and risk mitigation strategies.
Experience producing and maintaining architecture diagrams, design documents, SOPs, and operational runbooks.
Experience supporting audits, assessments, and compliance activities through accurate documentation.
Experience contributing to architecture reviews and change control boards.
Experience mentoring junior contractor staff and providing technical escalation support.
Experience promoting knowledge transfer and operational continuity for government personnel.

Responsibilities

Serve as the lead architect for Microsoft 365, Exchange, and collaboration services in support of a federal customer.
Design and maintain enterprise reference architectures, standards, and patterns for hybrid and cloud-based collaboration systems.
Provide architectural guidance aligned with federal security, compliance, and governance requirements.
Evaluate Microsoft roadmap features and recommend adoption strategies based on mission needs.
Provide senior-level administration and architectural oversight of Exchange SE and Exchange Online environments.
Architect and manage mail flow, security, compliance, retention, and eDiscovery solutions.
Lead and support enterprise migrations, including hybrid-to-cloud transitions and tenant consolidations.
Architect, configure, and support Microsoft Teams deployments, integrations, and lifecycle management.
Design and support hybrid identity solutions using Entra ID and Entra ID Connect.
Implement and maintain identity synchronization, access controls, and governance policies.
Support conditional access, privileged identity management, and zero trust initiatives in coordination with security teams.
Design and maintain PowerShell-based automation frameworks to improve operational efficiency and reliability.
Develop scripts and tools for administration, monitoring, reporting, and compliance validation.
Apply engineering best practices to scripting, version control, and documentation.
Support Azure and VMware environments hosting collaboration and identity workloads.
Provide guidance on capacity planning, performance optimization, patching, and lifecycle management.
Ensure infrastructure configurations align with architectural standards and security requirements.
Act as technical lead on task orders, projects, and modernization initiatives.
Collaborate with government stakeholders to translate requirements into implementable technical designs.
Support ServiceNow workflows, including complex incidents, problems, and changes.
Provide technical input to project plans, schedules, and risk mitigation strategies.
Produce and maintain architecture diagrams, design documents, SOPs, and operational runbooks.
Support audits, assessments, and compliance activities through accurate documentation.
Contribute to architecture reviews and change control boards.
Mentor junior contractor staff and provide technical escalation support.
Promote knowledge transfer and operational continuity for government personnel.