Windows, Azure, Virtualization Engineer

Location: Suitland, MD – Local candidates preferred; hybrid/on-site as needed. Primary location: REMOTE
Schedule: Supports East Coast business hours, 6:00 AM–3:00 PM ET
Salary: Starting at $122,000

Windows, Azure, Virtualization Engineer is responsible for designing, implementing, securing, and maintaining enterprise Windows infrastructure, cloud environments, and virtualization platforms. This role requires hands-on experience with Windows Server administration, Microsoft cloud technologies, virtual machines (VMs), and Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM).

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in modernizing and securing Windows environments, managing Group Policy Objects (GPOs) through advanced change control and governance processes, and supporting cloud-based and hybrid infrastructure. Responsibilities include infrastructure optimization, automation, system migrations, security hardening, and troubleshooting complex technical issues across on-premises, virtualized, and cloud environments.

This position requires a hands-on technical professional who can work independently, collaborate with cross-functional IT teams, and provide technical guidance to junior team members. Local candidates must be available to work on-site as needed, typically two days per week.

Design, implement, administer, and maintain enterprise Windows Server environments, including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and file services.

Administer and manage Group Policy Objects (GPOs), including policy creation, configuration, testing, troubleshooting, and optimization.

Implement and manage Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM), including controlled change management, version control, approval workflows, auditing, and rollback of Group Policy changes.

Troubleshoot complex Active Directory, Group Policy, authentication, and Windows configuration issues across enterprise environments.

Manage Windows operating system deployments, patching, upgrades, configuration standards, and lifecycle maintenance.

Administer Microsoft Intune, Microsoft Configuration Manager (SCCM/MECM), Windows Autopilot, and Microsoft Entra  applicable to the environment.

Develop and maintain Power Shell scripts to automate infrastructure administration, configuration, reporting, and operational tasks.

Design, configure, administer, and optimize virtualized infrastructure, including VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V, and cloud-hosted virtual machines.

Support Microsoft Azure infrastructure services, including virtual machines, networking, storage, identity integration, monitoring, and security.

Manage VM provisioning, configuration, performance monitoring, capacity planning, patching, and lifecycle management.

Support hybrid infrastructure integrating on-premises Windows environments with Microsoft Azure and other cloud services.

Troubleshoot VM performance, resource allocation, availability, connectivity, and operating system issues.

Participate in cloud migration, infrastructure modernization, and workload optimization initiatives.

Implement and maintain backup, recovery, disaster recovery, and business continuity solutions for virtualized and cloud environments.

Identify opportunities to improve scalability, reliability, security, and operational efficiency through cloud and virtualization technologies.

Implement and maintain Windows security controls, including AGPM/GPO security configurations, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender for Servers, Bit Locker, and Windows Firewall.

Apply security baselines, hardening standards, least-privilege access, multifactor authentication, and identity management controls.

Monitor vulnerabilities, security events, and configuration compliance; coordinate remediation and corrective actions.

Maintain secure configuration and change management practices for Windows servers, endpoints, virtual machines, and cloud resources.

Support security assessments, audits, compliance reviews, and incident response activities in coordination with cybersecurity teams.

Ensure infrastructure configurations align with organizational security policies and applicable compliance requirements.

Troubleshoot and resolve complex Windows, cloud, virtualization, and infrastructure issues.

Lead or support infrastructure migrations, upgrades,…