M365 Communication Systems Engineer

Position summary:

We are seeking a highly skilled and self-driven Microsoft 365 Communication Systems Engineer to join our Corporate Platform Engineering team. This role emphasizes Exchange administration (on-prem and cloud), Microsoft Teams management, and M365 governance, with strong knowledge of Purview retention policies and Defender for Cloud. The ideal candidate will be a well-rounded M365/Entra/Azure engineer who can troubleshoot complex issues, drive adoption of integrated SaaS solutions (e.g., Jira, ServiceNow in Teams), and maintain a secure, compliant environment.

Key Responsibilities

Exchange Administration

• Manage and maintain Exchange Online and on-prem Exchange environments, including mail flow, hybrid configurations, and security hardening.
• Implement and maintain Exchange Online Protection (EOP) and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 policies, including anti-spam, anti-phishing, Safe Links, and Safe Attachments.
• Troubleshoot mail delivery, transport rules, and compliance issues.
• Manage mail routing, transport rules, connectors, accepted domains, DKIM, DMARC, SPF, and hybrid mail flow configurations.
• Administer shared mailboxes, resource mailboxes, distribution groups, Microsoft 365 Groups, and mail-enabled security groups.
• Perform advanced troubleshooting of mail flow, hybrid connectivity, directory synchronization, transport services, message trace analysis, and client connectivity issues.

Microsoft Teams Management

• Configure and maintain Teams governance, policies, lifecycle management, external access, guest access, and collaboration settings.
• Drive adoption of Teams integrations with SaaS platforms like Jira and ServiceNow.
• Support Teams Phone, Auto Attendants, and Call Queues where applicable.
• Support Teams Rooms and meeting experience enhancements.

Compliance & Security

• Partner with Information Security teams to support Microsoft Purview retention, compliance, and information governance initiatives across Exchange Online, Teams, and SharePoint Online.
• Provide technical guidance, troubleshooting, and platform expertise related to retention policies, compliance configurations, data lifecycle management, and Microsoft 365 workloads.
• Participate in security reviews, audits, and remediation efforts supporting regulatory and
• Job Title: M365 Engineer (Communications) Department: Operations & Technology Reports to: Director, Corporate Platform Engineering FLSA Status: Exempt Classification: Contract to hire
• industry standards.
• Collaborate with cybersecurity teams on Microsoft 365 security initiatives, providing expertise on Exchange Online, Teams, Entra ID, and related collaboration technologies.
• Assist with Entra ID administration as needed, including enterprise application integration, SaaS application authentication, Single Sign-On (SSO), and Conditional Access policy support.

Core Infrastructure Skills

• Perform basic engineering tasks: Active Directory, Group Policy, schema updates, and certificate renewals.
• Utilize monitoring tools for proactive issue detection and resolution.
• Automate tasks using PowerShell for M365 and Azure environments.

Operational Requirements

• Execute after-hours changes as needed under strict Change Management processes.
• Document configurations, troubleshooting steps, and knowledge transfer materials.
• Collaborate across teams to efficiently identify issues, resolve problems, and continuously improve platform stability and user experience.

Qualifications

• Deep expertise in Exchange Online and on-prem Exchange administration.
• Experience troubleshooting mail flow, hybrid Exchange environments, transport services, connectors, and message delivery issues.
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Teams governance, lifecycle management, and SaaS integrations (e.g., Jira, ServiceNow).
• Experience supporting and troubleshooting Microsoft Purview compliance, retention, and information governance solutions.
• Familiarity with Exchange Online Protection (EOP), Microsoft Defender for Office 365, and email security best practices.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Entra ID, Single Sign-On (SSO), Conditional Access, and hybrid identity solutions including Microsoft Entra Connect.
• Proficiency in PowerShell scripting for automation and troubleshooting.
• Solid understanding of Active Directory, Group Policy, DNS, certificate management, and hybrid identity architectures.
• Experience with network and server administration fundamentals.
• Knowledge of general disaster recovery validation methods and willingness to assist in testing efforts.
• Comfortable working within a strict, heavily vetted Change Management process.
• Ability to support security, audit, and risk control requirements within a regulated environment, with familiarity in common industry security frameworks.
• Strong documentation skills for platform configurations and user instructions.
• Excellent troubleshooting skills and ability to take ownership of tasks from start to finish.
• Exceptional communication and problem-solving skills; able to clearly articulate initiatives and solutions.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail.
• Self-driven, proactive, and capable of adapting quickly to changing business and technology requirements.

Work Conditions & Expectations

• Hybrid Schedule: Hybrid Schedule: 3 days onsite (Charlotte NC preferred, occasional asks to report to Winston-Salem NC as needed); remaining days remote.
• Operational Flexibility: Ability to perform after-hours changes and participate in on-call rotations when required.
• Dynamic Environment: Work involves frequent troubleshooting, collaboration across teams, and adapting to evolving technologies.
• Security & Compliance: Must adhere to strict Change Management processes and participate in security reviews as needed.
• Standard Office Setup: Role primarily uses standard IT equipment (laptops, conferencing tools, monitoring systems) with occasional interaction with server rooms or networking hardware.