Senior Microsoft Security Specialist at Boardroom Appointments

• An exciting 6-month contract opportunity is available for an experienced Senior Microsoft Security Specialist to join a leading technology environment.
• We are looking for a senior security professional with extensive hands-on experience across the Microsoft security ecosystem, including Microsoft 365, Azure, Microsoft Defender, Sentinel, Entra ID, Intune and hybrid infrastructure environments.
• The successful candidate will act as a senior technical authority, driving security posture improvements, cyber resilience, governance and technical security initiatives while serving as a high-level escalation point for complex Microsoft security matters.

Key Responsibilities

• Own and manage the organisation's overall Microsoft security posture.
• Lead the design, implementation, optimisation and governance of the Microsoft E5 Security stack.
• Establish security standards, baselines, policies and operational procedures for Microsoft platforms.
• Develop strategic roadmaps to improve Microsoft security capability maturity.
• Lead the administration and optimisation of the Microsoft Defender ecosystem, including Defender for Endpoint, Office 365, Identity, Cloud Apps, Cloud and XDR.
• Implement advanced threat protection controls and drive proactive threat hunting and detection improvements.
• Own and manage the Microsoft Sentinel platform, including detection rules, analytics, workbooks, automation playbooks and threat-hunting capabilities.
• Integrate Microsoft and third-party security data sources into Sentinel and improve security monitoring maturity.
• Manage and secure Microsoft 365 services including Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive, Teams and Power Platform.
• Implement and maintain DLP, Information Protection, Sensitivity Labels, Retention Policies and Insider Risk Management controls.
• Lead administration and security of Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD).
• Design and implement Conditional Access, PIM, Identity Protection, MFA, Passwordless Authentication, SSO and RBAC.
• Conduct access reviews and privileged account governance while implementing Zero Trust security principles.
• Design and implement security controls across Azure environments.
• Manage Azure security governance, including Azure Policy, Landing Zones, subscription governance and resource governance.
• Secure cloud workloads, networking, storage and platform services.
• Own the organisation's Microsoft Intune and SCCM/MECM co-management environment.
• Manage endpoint security policies, MDM, MAM, device compliance and configuration management.
• Lead endpoint patch management and vulnerability remediation activities.
• Drive continuous improvement of Microsoft Secure Score and overall cyber maturity.
• Conduct security assessments, reviews, gap analyses, control effectiveness assessments and vulnerability reviews.
• Develop and execute remediation plans for identified security weaknesses.
• Act as an L3/L4 escalation point for critical and complex security incidents.
• Lead technical investigations involving Microsoft 365, Azure, identity, endpoint compromises, insider threats and advanced persistent threats.
• Coordinate containment, eradication, forensic investigation and recovery activities during major cyber incidents.
• Produce root cause analyses and post-incident recommendations.
• Review and approve security designs for projects impacting Microsoft cloud and hybrid platforms.
• Provide security sign-off for platform-related changes and initiatives.
• Maintain architecture decision records and security control documentation.
• Provide technical leadership, coaching and mentorship to junior security specialists and operational teams.
• Promote security best practices and a security-first culture across technology teams.

What We Are Looking For
The ideal candidate will have:

• A Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Engineering or a related field.
• Relevant Microsoft security certifications.
• Minimum 8–10 years of IT infrastructure and security experience.
• Minimum 5 years of hands-on Microsoft Security experience.
• Proven experience managing Microsoft E5 Security environments within large enterprise organisations.
• Extensive experience with Microsoft Sentinel and Microsoft Defender technologies.
• Strong experience securing hybrid cloud environments.
• Hands-on experience with Intune and SCCM/MECM co-management environments.
• Experience leading major incident response and forensic investigations.
• Proven experience developing security standards, governance frameworks and operating models.
• Experience mentoring technical teams and operating as a senior escalation point.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication and presentation skills.

Technical Skills

• Microsoft Defender XDR
• Defender for Endpoint
• Defender for Office 365
• Defender for Identity
• Defender for Cloud Apps
• Defender for Cloud
• Microsoft Sentinel
• Microsoft Purview
• Microsoft Secure Score
• Microsoft Entra ID
• Conditional Access
• MFA and SSO
• Privileged Identity Management (PIM)
• Identity Protection
• RBAC
• Microsoft Intune
• SCCM / MECM
• Windows Autopilot
• Patch Management
• Application Packaging and Deployment
• Azure Security
• Azure Policy
• Azure Landing Zones
• Cloud Governance and Compliance
• Cloud Workload Protection
• Security Architecture
• Incident Response
• Threat Hunting
• SIEM and SOAR
• Vulnerability Management
• Security Monitoring
• Digital Forensics

Preferred Certifications

• Microsoft Certified: Cybersecurity Architect Expert (SC-100)
• Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst Associate (SC-200)
• Microsoft Certified: Identity and Access Administrator Associate (SC-300)
• Microsoft Certified: Information Protection Administrator Associate (SC-400)
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate (AZ-500)
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104)
• CISSP
• CISM
• CCSP
• CompTIA Security+

Key Competencies

• Strategic security leadership
• Advanced problem-solving
• Security architecture and design
• Incident management
• Risk assessment
• Stakeholder management
• Decision-making
• Communication and presentation
• Coaching and mentorship
• Governance and compliance management
• Continuous improvement
• Strong analytical skills

Success Measures

• Success in this role will be measured through:
• Improvement of Microsoft Secure Score.
• Reduction in security vulnerabilities and exposure risks.
• Improved Microsoft Sentinel detection and incident response capabilities.
• Successful implementation of Microsoft security roadmap initiatives.
• Improved endpoint compliance and patch management effectiveness.
• Effective incident response and resolution outcomes.
• Increased adoption of security governance standards.
• Overall improvement in the organisation's Microsoft cloud security maturity.

Contract Details

• This is a 6-month hybrid contract position based in Johannesburg, with an opportunity to work across a dynamic enterprise technology and cybersecurity environment.