Staff Engineer, Identity & Access Management; IAM

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Staff Engineer, Identity & Access Management (IAM) based in the United States. This is a senior technical leadership role focused on strengthening identity and access management across products, platforms, infrastructure, and corporate applications. You'll define and evolve an enterprise IAM strategy while helping advance a broader zero-trust security architecture.

The role combines hands-on technical expertise with strategic influence, requiring close collaboration across security, IT, engineering, and business teams. You'll architect modern identity governance, authentication, authorization, and privileged access solutions across cloud and hybrid environments. You'll also help establish measurable controls, improve security maturity, and ensure IAM capabilities meet demanding regulatory requirements. This is an opportunity to own large-scale IAM initiatives from strategy through implementation while shaping secure, scalable technology practices across a growing organization.

• Assess the existing IAM environment and develop a comprehensive strategy spanning products, platforms, cloud and on-premises infrastructure, and corporate applications.
• Lead IAM initiatives as a core component of a broader zero-trust security strategy, aligning identity controls with organizational security objectives.
• Architect and design cloud-based identity governance, access management, authentication, authorization, and directory solutions.
• Implement and evolve RBAC and ABAC-based workflows supporting employee onboarding, access provisioning, changes, reviews, and ongoing identity lifecycle management.
• Partner with engineering and IT teams to ensure applications and products implement appropriately scoped privileges and risk-based access controls.
• Serve as a senior technical and strategic advisor to security, IT, engineering, and other cross-functional stakeholders, embedding IAM principles into broader security architecture.
• Establish KPIs, KCIs, and KRIs that provide meaningful visibility into IAM control effectiveness, operational health, and security risk.
• Design and implement IAM solutions that support regulatory and compliance requirements, including SOX, GxP, and other applicable standards.
• Lead large-scale IAM programs from strategy and architecture through implementation, deployment, optimization, and continuous improvement.
• Evaluate emerging identity technologies and continuously improve IAM capabilities, processes, and security controls.
• Translate business requirements and use cases into technology-agnostic IAM solutions, acting as a business systems analyst and trusted technical advisor.
• Influence cross-functional teams through strong technical leadership, clear communication, and a pragmatic approach to security, risk, and business priorities.

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Security, or a related technical field.
• 7+ years of experience in Identity & Access Management and related information security disciplines, with substantial experience in dedicated IAM roles.
• Proven success leading enterprise-scale IAM programs from strategy and architecture through production implementation, particularly in cloud-first and hybrid environments.
• Deep expertise with enterprise identity administration and governance platforms, with experience serving as an accountable owner of production identity or governance solutions.
• Expert knowledge of adaptive authentication and modern identity protocols and standards, including OAuth, OpenID Connect, and SAML.
• Extensive experience with enterprise directory and identity platforms such as Active Directory, Okta, Microsoft Entra /Azure AD, Duo, or equivalent technologies.
• Strong experience with privileged access management platforms such as Cyber Ark, Delinea, or comparable solutions.
• Understanding of identity governance for both human and non-human identities, including service accounts, workload identities, CI/CD credentials, and other machine identities.
• Proficiency in at least one programming language, such as Java, C++, or Python, as applied to IAM products and integrations.
• Working knowledge of UNIX/Linux, macOS, and Windows operating systems, as well as database management systems.
• Strong understanding of security principles, risk management, zero-trust architecture, and regulatory requirements.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder…