Head of Identity & Access Management in London

Head of Identity & Access Management

We are seeking an experienced Head of Identity and Access to lead the strategy, architecture, engineering and operational management of dentsu's global identity services.

This role combines strategic leadership with strong technical authority, ensuring our identity platforms are secure, resilient, scalable and aligned with business and security requirements across a complex global environment spanning nine Okta tenants.

The successful candidate will bring deep expertise across Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID and Okta, alongside strong knowledge of identity security, Microsoft PKI, authentication, access management and identity lifecycle automation.

They will provide architectural direction and technical leadership across these platforms, ensuring consistent standards, effective integration and a scalable approach to identity and access management globally.

The role will lead global teams responsible for directory services, identity security, access management and Joiner, Mover and Leaver (JML) processes across EMEA, AMER and APAC.

It will work closely with Security, Enterprise Architecture, Microsoft 365 and wider technology teams to establish architecture and engineering standards, drive service improvements and deliver the identity roadmap.

This is a leadership role requiring sufficient technical depth to challenge designs, guide complex troubleshooting and make informed architectural decisions within a large, complex, global enterprise environment.

The role operates across a matrix organisation, working closely with global teams, regional technology functions and local stakeholders to ensure alignment, consistency and effective delivery across the business.

Job Description: Head of Identity & Access Management

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Head of Identity & Access Management to lead the strategy, architecture, engineering, and operational management of dentsu's global identity services.

This role combines strategic leadership with strong technical authority, ensuring our identity platforms are secure, resilient, scalable, and aligned with business and security requirements across a complex global environment spanning multiple regions and identity platforms.

The successful candidate will bring deep expertise across Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Entra ID, and Okta, alongside strong knowledge of identity security, Microsoft PKI, authentication, access management, and identity lifecycle automation.

They will provide architectural direction and technical leadership, ensuring consistent standards, effective integration, and a scalable approach to Identity and Access Management (IAM) globally.

The role leads global teams responsible for directory services, identity security, access management, and Joiner, Mover and Leaver (JML) processes across EMEA, AMER, and APAC.

Working closely with Security, Enterprise Architecture, Microsoft 365, and wider Technology teams, the successful candidate will establish engineering standards, drive service improvements, and deliver the global identity roadmap.

This is a leadership role requiring sufficient technical depth to challenge designs, guide complex troubleshooting, and make informed architectural decisions within a large, complex, global enterprise environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategy, Architecture & Engineering
• Define and deliver the global Identity & Access Management strategy, architecture, and service roadmap.
• Act as the technical authority for identity platforms, ensuring solutions meet enterprise architecture, security, and operational requirements.
• Establish engineering standards and design principles aligned with Zero Trust, least privilege, and identity security best practices.
• Lead the modernisation, optimisation, and consolidation of directory and identity services, including hybrid identity environments and M&A integration activities.
• Oversee the design and implementation of identity security controls, authentication policies, certificate services, and privileged access management capabilities.
• Ensure all solutions and changes are appropriately designed, tested, documented, approved, and auditable before production deployment.
• Global Service Ownership & Operations
• Own the availability, security, resilience, performance, and operational effectiveness of global identity services.
• Ensure services operate within agreed service levels and ITIL-aligned service management processes.
• Provide leadership during major incidents, technical escalations, and identity-related security events.
• Drive root cause analysis, problem management, risk remediation, and service improvement initiatives.
• Establish effective monitoring, alerting, audit controls, documentation, and recovery procedures.
• Ensure appropriate support models, operational ownership, and knowledge transfer are in place across all services.
• Identity Lifecycle & Automation
• Lead the evolution of global Joiner, Mover and Leaver (JML) processes, ensuring identity creation, modification, and removal activities are secure, timely, and compliant.
• Drive automation across provisioning, deprovisioning, access management, and administrative activities.
• Establish robust controls around automation, including security, testing, monitoring, and change management.
• Oversee integration between identity platforms, HR systems, applications, and supporting technology services.
• Reduce operational risk and manual effort through standardisation, self-service, automation, and knowledge sharing.
• Security & Risk Management
• Partner with Information Security teams to strengthen identity protection, privileged access, Conditional Access, MFA, application access controls.
• Ensure identity platforms are secured against vulnerabilities, excessive permissions, and configuration weaknesses.
• Oversee enterprise certificate services and authentication dependencies.
• Maintain appropriate controls for workforce identities, external users, application identities, and service principals.
• Support audits, compliance activities, investigations, and remediation programmes.
• Ensure identity-related changes and integrations are assessed for security, privacy, and operational risk.
• People & Stakeholder Leadership
• Lead, develop, and coach a global team of identity managers, architects, and engineers.
• Promote collaboration, shared ownership, and consistent engineering standards across the regions.
• Develop succession plans and reduce key-person dependency through knowledge transfer and cross-training.
• Manage priorities, resources, delivery commitments, and operational capacity.
• Build strong relationships with Security, Enterprise Architecture, Microsoft 365, End User Computing, Regional Leadership, and wider Technology stakeholders.
• Communicate technical risks, service performance, investment requirements, and delivery progress to senior leaders and stakeholders.
• Financial Management & Continuous Improvement
• Contribute to budget planning, supplier management, licensing optimisation, and investment prioritisation for Identity & Access Management services.
• Maintain a prioritised roadmap and service improvement backlog aligned with business and security objectives.
• Evaluate new technologies and capabilities based on business value, security, supportability, and total cost of ownership.
• Drive continuous improvement in service quality, automation, user experience, and operational efficiency.
• Key Objectives

Deliver a secure, resilient, and well-governed global identity service.

Strengthen the architecture, security, and operational maturity of Active Directory, Entra ID, Okta, and Microsoft PKI environments.

Improve identity lifecycle controls and increase automation across global JML processes.

Reduce operational risk, technical debt, and reliance on individual specialists.

Establish consistent engineering standards, documentation, and service ownership.

Develop a high-performing global team with clear accountability and sustainable support arrangements.

Deliver the identity roadmap in line with enterprise architecture, security, and business priorities.

• Candidate Profile
• Knowledge & Technical Expertise
• Expert-level experience with Okta, Microsoft Active Directory, and Microsoft Entra ID within large enterprise environments.
• Strong understanding of hybrid identity, directory synchronisation, authentication, Group Policy, DNS, replication, and domain architecture.
• Experience managing Microsoft PKI and enterprise certificate services, including certificate lifecycle management and troubleshooting.
• Deep understanding of identity security, including Conditional Access, MFA, Privileged Identity Management (PIM), Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), and Zero Trust principles.
• Strong knowledge of SSO, federation, and identity protocols including SAML, OAuth, Open ID Connect, and SCIM.
• Experience with identity lifecycle management, JML automation, and enterprise provisioning.
• Strong Power Shell and Microsoft Graph expertise, with the ability to assess the quality, scalability, and security of automation solutions.
• Understanding of Microsoft Defender and Purview capabilities relevant to identity security and information protection.
• Leadership & Experience
• Proven experience leading Identity & Access Management functions within a large, complex, and preferably global organisation.
• Demonstrable technical leadership across directory services, identity architecture, security, and operational service delivery.
• Experience managing global teams and developing technical specialists.
• Track record of delivering complex identity transformation, security, and automation programmes.
• Experience managing major incidents, service escalations, risk remediation, and ITIL-aligned service management processes.
• Ability to balance operational stability with strategic transformation initiatives.
• Strong stakeholder management skills across Security, Architecture, Infrastructure, and business functions.
• Experience working within enterprise governance, change control, and production readiness frameworks.

Qualifications

• Degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent professional experience.
• Significant experience operating within a global enterprise environment with multiple Active Directory domains and multiple Okta tenants.
• Microsoft Identity and/or Security certifications preferred.
• Architecture, security, or IT service management certifications are advantageous.
• Familiarity with compliance and audit frameworks such as ISO 27001, JSOX, SOC, and related regulatory requirements.
• Personal Attributes
• Strong technical judgement and decision-making capability.
• Accountable leader with a focus on service quality, security, and outcomes.