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Active Directory Sme Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Functions as a niche technical subject matter expert (SME) in Active Directory with a high technological skill level. Ability to troubleshoot data and application access issues and adjust Active ...

Responsibilities : • Support Active Directory and email environment including the O365, ADFS infrastructure. • The O365 SME will be supporting the environment by applying best practice, perform ...

Datadog SME Location: Frisco, TX JD: * Candidate should be a SME for Datadog application. * Candidate should be hands on large scale Datadog implementation. * Candidate should be to review current ...

SharePoint Web Developer, SME Job Category: Information Technology Time Type: Full time Minimum ... BI, Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Graph API, SQL databases, and other enterprise systems.

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Active Directory Sme information

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How much do active directory sme jobs pay per hour?

As of Sep 4, 2026, the average hourly pay for active directory sme in the United States is $46.58, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $33.41 and $54.33 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is an Active Directory SME?

An Active Directory SME (Subject Matter Expert) is an IT professional with specialized knowledge and extensive experience in Microsoft Active Directory services. They are responsible for designing, implementing, managing, and troubleshooting Active Directory environments, ensuring secure and efficient directory services within organizations. Active Directory SMEs often handle tasks like user and group management, domain controller maintenance, Group Policy administration, and directory migrations. They also advise on best practices and help resolve complex issues related to identity and access management.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an Active Directory SME?

To thrive as an Active Directory SME, you need deep expertise in Active Directory architecture, domain management, authentication protocols, and a relevant degree such as in IT or Computer Science. Familiarity with tools like PowerShell, Azure AD, Group Policy, and certifications such as Microsoft Certified: Identity and Access Administrator Associate are typically required. Strong problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, and effective communication are crucial soft skills for success in this role. These skills are important because they ensure secure, efficient, and reliable directory services management within complex enterprise environments.

What are some common challenges faced by an Active Directory SME when managing large-scale enterprise environments?

Active Directory SMEs often encounter challenges such as maintaining security while enabling user productivity, managing complex group policies, and ensuring seamless integration with cloud services. In large-scale enterprises, coordinating changes across multiple domains and sites can be particularly complex, requiring careful planning to avoid disruptions. Effective collaboration with IT security, application teams, and network administrators is essential to address compatibility issues and meet compliance requirements.

What is the difference between Active Directory Sme vs Network Administrator?

AspectActive Directory SmeNetwork Administrator
CertificationsMicrosoft Certified: Windows Server, Active Directory certificationsCompTIA Network+, Cisco CCNA, Microsoft certifications
Work EnvironmentFocus on Active Directory, identity management, and domain servicesManage overall network infrastructure, including routers, switches, and servers
Employer & Industry UsageIT departments in enterprises, organizations relying on Windows environmentsBroadly used across industries for network management and support

The Active Directory SME specializes in managing and securing Active Directory environments, focusing on identity and access management within Windows networks. In contrast, a Network Administrator oversees the entire network infrastructure, including hardware, connectivity, and security. While both roles require networking knowledge and certifications, the SME is more specialized in directory services, whereas the Administrator has a broader scope of network management.

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What job categories do people searching Active Directory Sme jobs look for?

The top searched job categories for Active Directory Sme jobs are:

Infographic showing various Active Directory Sme job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 80% Full Time, 13% Part Time, and 6% Contract. Highlights an 94% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 4% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $96,891 per year, or $46.6 per hour.

Identity and Directory Management Services (IDMS) Subject Matter Expert (SME)

Systems Engineering Solutions Corporation

Suitland, MD • On-site

$56.75 - $74.25/hr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Posted 9 days ago


Job description

Program Description: Customer requires enterprise architecture, assessment, modernization, integration, and project management support for IT Enterprise and large-scale programs.

The initiative will evaluate whether current enterprise services can securely and reliably support large-scale development, testing, performance, scalability, failover, and production operations. The work includes assessments of enterprise technology capabilities, including the ServiceNow platform, enterprise network architecture, Microsoft Intune mobility environment, and the integration of enterprise applications with external vendor mobile devices and supporting systems.

Position Description: The Identity and Directory Management Services (IDMS) Subject Matter Expert (SME) will provide technical and functional expertise for assessing, designing, configuring, integrating, securing, and supporting enterprise identity and directory services. The SME will evaluate identity lifecycle processes, directory architecture, authentication and federation services, access controls, automation, integrations, monitoring, and operational practices.

The SME will support the planning and integration of enterprise applications, SaaS platforms, external service providers, cloud services, APIs, and partner systems to ensure identity, authentication, authorization, provisioning, governance, auditing, monitoring, and lifecycle management requirements are incorporated into solution designs and implementation plans. The SME will support the governance and lifecycle management of identities, credentials, entitlements, privileged accounts, service accounts, application identities, certificates, secrets, tokens, and access rights across enterprise systems, cloud services, SaaS platforms, and external provider integrations.

The IDMS SME will collaborate with cybersecurity, infrastructure, cloud, application, service management, and operations teams to resolve complex identity issues, strengthen Zero Trust alignment, improve governance and automation, and support reliable access across enterprise environments.

Responsibilities

  • Assess and optimize enterprise identity and directory architectures, configurations, operating procedures, governance, and security controls.
  • Administer and troubleshoot Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, directory synchronization, domain services, Group Policy, DNS dependencies, and hybrid identity services.
  • Design and support identity lifecycle processes for provisioning, modification, access review, account disablement, deprovisioning, and non-human or service accounts.
  • Implement and maintain authentication and federation capabilities, including single sign-on, multi-factor authentication, Conditional Access, SAML, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, LDAP, and related protocols.
  • Configure role-based and attribute-based access controls, delegated administration, privileged access, least-privilege policies, and separation-of-duties controls.
  • Integrate identity services with enterprise applications, cloud environments, endpoint platforms, APIs, security tools, and IT service management solutions.
  • Automate identity administration, synchronization, reporting, and remediation using scripting, workflows, infrastructure-as-code, and supported platform tools.
  • Monitor identity service health, authentication events, access anomalies, audit logs, capacity, performance, availability, and security posture.
  • Identify architecture gaps, vulnerabilities, technical debt, scalability risks, and manual processes, then develop prioritized remediation recommendations.
  • Document architectures, configurations, procedures, findings, and technical decisions, and support workshops, testing, incident resolution, and knowledge transfer.
  • Assess and support onboarding of enterprise applications, SaaS providers, cloud services, vendor-hosted solutions, partner systems, APIs, and externally managed platforms to ensure identity integration, federation, access governance, provisioning, authentication, authorization, auditability, monitoring, and operational support requirements are properly defined and implemented.
  • Collaborate with enterprise architects, application teams, vendors, cybersecurity personnel, service management teams, and project teams to review solution designs and ensure identity services are incorporated into system architectures, implementation roadmaps, operational procedures, and support models.
  • Evaluate application authentication models, federation requirements, identity dependencies, entitlement structures, access control requirements, API security requirements, and lifecycle management requirements for new and existing enterprise solutions.
  • Design, implement, and improve identity, credential, and access lifecycle management processes governing onboarding, role changes, access modifications, periodic recertification, privileged access, credential rotation, and deprovisioning activities.
  • Manage identity governance requirements associated with user identities, service accounts, application identities, API credentials, machine identities, certificates, tokens, secrets, and privileged accounts throughout their lifecycle.
  • Establish controls and governance processes for credential issuance, usage, storage, rotation, expiration, revocation, recovery, auditing, and retirement across enterprise environments.
  • Evaluate identity and credential management requirements for enterprise applications, SaaS providers, vendor-hosted solutions, cloud platforms, APIs, external partners, and integrated systems.

Requirements

  • At least 12 years of relevant experience in identity and access management, directory services, cybersecurity, systems engineering, or related technical disciplines.
  • Bachelor's degree in information technology, computer science, engineering, cybersecurity, or a related field.
  • Demonstrated experience designing, administering, assessing, or modernizing enterprise identity and directory management environments.
  • Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID, domain services, forests and trusts, Group Policy, directory synchronization, and hybrid identity.
  • Experience with identity lifecycle management, automated provisioning and deprovisioning, access requests, access reviews, account certification, and entitlement management.
  • Strong knowledge of single sign-on, federation, multi-factor authentication, Conditional Access, passwordless authentication, and identity provider integrations.
  • Hands-on knowledge of SAML 2.0, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, LDAP/LDAPS, Kerberos, SCIM, certificates, and related identity protocols.
  • Experience implementing role-based access control, attribute-based access control, least privilege, delegated administration, and separation of duties.
  • Experience with privileged access management, service accounts, application identities, API credentials, secrets, and non-human identity governance.
  • Knowledge of Zero Trust identity principles, authentication risk, identity monitoring, audit logging, vulnerability management, and incident response.
  • Experience integrating identity services with enterprise applications, cloud platforms, Microsoft 365, endpoint management, security tools, and service management platforms.
  • Experience using PowerShell or comparable scripting tools to automate identity administration, reporting, synchronization, and remediation.
  • Ability to troubleshoot complex authentication, authorization, federation, replication, synchronization, and access issues across hybrid environments.
  • Ability to conduct technical assessments, document current-state architectures, identify gaps and risks, and develop actionable future-state recommendations.
  • Strong technical documentation and communication skills for technical teams, business stakeholders, and leadership.
  • Experience integrating identity platforms with enterprise applications, SaaS providers, external vendor solutions, partner systems, APIs, cloud services, and hybrid environments.
  • Experience evaluating application onboarding requirements, federation architectures, identity dependencies, authentication models, authorization models, and access governance requirements across enterprise environments.
  • Experience working with application owners, solution architects, cybersecurity teams, external vendors, and operational support teams to implement identity and access management capabilities within complex enterprise ecosystems.
  • Experience with identity, credential, and access lifecycle management processes, including onboarding, offboarding, role changes, access certification, entitlement management, credential governance, and privileged access controls.
  • Experience managing service accounts, application identities, API credentials, machine identities, certificates, secrets, tokens, and non-human identity governance processes.
  • Experience implementing controls for credential issuance, storage, vaulting, rotation, expiration, revocation, monitoring, and auditability.

Preferred Skills

  • Microsoft certification related to identity and access administration, Azure, security, or enterprise architecture.
  • Experience with identity governance and administration platforms such as Okta, SailPoint, Microsoft Entra ID Governance, or comparable technologies.
  • Experience with privileged access management platforms such as CyberArk or comparable technologies.
  • Knowledge of Active Directory Certificate Services, public key infrastructure, smart card or certificate-based authentication, and certificate lifecycle management.
  • Experience with Active Directory modernization, forest or domain migration, Group Policy optimization, directory recovery, and disaster recovery planning.
  • Experience deploying identity configurations through Terraform, CI/CD pipelines, or other infrastructure-as-code and automation practices.
  • Familiarity with cloud identity architectures across Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft 365, and hybrid environments.
  • Experience integrating identity platforms with ServiceNow, SIEM, monitoring, endpoint management, or security operations solutions.
  • Familiarity with Zero Trust architecture, cybersecurity control frameworks, security benchmarks, privacy requirements, and audit support.

       Experience supporting large, distributed, highly available, or regulated enterprise identity environments.

  • Experience supporting enterprise application onboarding, SaaS integration, vendor integration, B2B federation, external identity providers, business partner access, and cross-organizational identity trust relationships.
  • Experience with enterprise credential management, secrets management, certificate lifecycle management, public key infrastructure (PKI), privileged access management (PAM), and machine identity governance platforms.

Soft Skills

  • Analytical thinking: Identifies root causes, control weaknesses, dependencies, and risks across complex identity environments.
  • Problem-solving: Develops practical solutions that balance security, usability, reliability, maintainability, and operational needs.
  • Communication: Explains identity concepts, technical issues, risks, and recommendations clearly to varied audiences.
  • Collaboration: Works effectively across cybersecurity, infrastructure, cloud, application, service management, and operations teams.
  • Attention to detail: Maintains accuracy across access policies, directory configurations, identity data, testing, and documentation.
  • Adaptability: Responds effectively to changing technologies, security threats, business requirements, and operational priorities.
  • Ownership: Proactively drives identity issues, assessment findings, and remediation actions through resolution.
  • Documentation discipline: Produces clear, accurate, and reusable architecture, configuration, procedure, and knowledge-transfer materials.

Benefits

SES provides a competitive salary and the following benefits:

  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • AD&D
  • STD
  • LTD
  • Company paid Life Insurance
  • 401k with employer contribution
  • Paid Time Off
  • Pet Insurance