Senior Principal Infrastructure Engineer / SME (Active Directory, ADCS & Infoblox)

KonnectIT • Chicago, IL

1d

About The Position

We are seeking a senior subject matter expert with 10+ years of enterprise experience to architect, secure, and govern core identity, PKI, and network core services. In this senior leadership-level engineering role, you will own the long-term roadmap, security posture, and global availability for Microsoft Active Directory (AD), Microsoft Enterprise Certificate Services (ADCS), and Infoblox (DNS/DHCP/IPAM).

The role covers enterprise Active Directory design and governance, security hardening, Group Policy and compliance, domain mergers and directory consolidation, and hybrid integrations with cloud identity solutions. It also serves as the authority for Microsoft Enterprise PKI lifecycle, trust models, architecture, policy, enrollment, validation, backup, and disaster recovery. For Infoblox, the role owns global Grid architecture and operations, advanced DNS and DHCP management, capacity planning, and API-based and infrastructure-as-code automation.

The position requires expert-level infrastructure engineering, automation, security, and troubleshooting capabilities, along with experience leading cross-functional teams through major transformations, outages, and architectural changes.

Requirements

• 10+ years of dedicated engineering experience in complex, large-scale enterprise infrastructures.
• Expert-level knowledge of Active Directory replication, site topologies, trust relationships, and forensic troubleshooting.
• Deep cryptographic knowledge and proven experience building, migrating, and renewing enterprise-wide ADCS topologies.
• Expert-level administration of Infoblox Grid Manager, including large-scale network discovery, IPAM, and advanced DNS routing.
• High proficiency with PowerShell, Python, or automation platforms such as Ansible or Terraform to manage identity, PKI, and network resources at scale.
• Proven track record working with cross-functional teams through major infrastructure transformations, outages, and architectural shifts.
• Familiarity with ITIL and change control.
• Complex incident management and communication skills.
• Networking experience and ability to collaborate with networking engineers to troubleshoot complex endpoint and server networking issues.
• Knowledge of Active Directory, ADFS, Kerberos, LDAP, GPO, ADCS, Certificate Authorities, CRL, OCSP, NDES, Infoblox NIOS, DNSSEC, DHCP failover, and IPAM.
• Experience with automation and scripting technologies, including PowerShell, Python, Bash, and the Active Directory module.
• Knowledge of Windows Server (2012 through 2022/2025), Red Hat Enterprise Linux, and other Linux distributions.
• Knowledge of storage and file systems including Dell PowerScale, OneFS, CIFS/SMB, NFS, and Everpure File Systems.
• Knowledge of Linux and Unix operating systems and file systems, including interoperability with Windows clients and servers and AD POSIX compatibility.
• Knowledge of advanced Windows permissions, NTFS/ACLs, share permissions, security auditing, and access control lists.
• Knowledge of tiered administration models, Kerberos hardening, vulnerability remediation, and AD health checks.
• Experience with on-premises and cloud identity providers, such as Okta and Azure.
• Knowledge of SFTP, SCP, NTP, SSH, HTTPS, client and server technologies, MS Office, Visio, VMware or other virtualization technologies, and Rubrik or similar backup technologies.

Nice To Haves

• Industry certifications such as Microsoft Certified: Identity and Access Administrator Expert or Infoblox Core Professional/Expert.
• Expertise in hybrid cloud identity, including Azure AD/Entra ID Connect, Okta, and ManageEngine Identity solutions.
• Strong understanding of network security architectures, including TLS 1.3, Kerberos, and 802.1X authentication.

Responsibilities

• Design, optimize, and govern a highly available, on-premises Active Directory infrastructure.
• Assist in enforcing administrative tiering models and least-privilege access frameworks to defend against advanced threats.
• Create, organize, and enforce complex Group Policy Objects to maintain global security baselines and regulatory compliance.
• Lead domain mergers, directory consolidations, and hybrid integrations with cloud identity solutions.
• Oversee the lifecycle, trust models, and design of the Microsoft Enterprise PKI environment, including offline Root CAs and subordinate Issuing CAs.
• Establish and review Certificate Policy and Certification Practice Statements, automated enrollment protocols, and CRL/OCSP validation paths.
• Formulate, test, and execute backup and disaster recovery strategies for cryptographic infrastructure.
• Oversee architectural design, patching, upgrade cycles, and capacity planning for the global Infoblox Grid (NIOS).
• Configure and troubleshoot global DNS views, DNSSEC, multi-vendor zone transfers, and high-availability DHCP failover setups.
• Improve network, host, and application deployment efficiency using Infoblox API integrations, automated IPAM allocations, and infrastructure-as-code deployment pipelines.
• Work with cross-functional teams through infrastructure transformations, outages, and architectural shifts.
• Perform complex incident management across multiple teams.
• Collaborate with networking engineers to troubleshoot complex endpoint and server networking issues.
• Support capacity planning and vendor management, including procurement and licensing.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed