Service Management Specialist

Specialist, Service Management

Description: This role aligns to industry level titles such as Systems Engineer or Systems Administrator 

Location: US, Remote 

Position Summary

Pearson Virtual Schools (PVS), is hiring a Specialist, Service Management, who will join our School IT Services team to support and continuously improve large-scale K–12 Connections Academy school IT environments with a strong emphasis on Google Workspace for Education and Device Management, alongside Microsoft Cloud and Identity Services. This is a hands-on advanced-level role responsible for designing, implementing, administering, and supporting services across multiple environments, including but not limited to, Google Workspace, Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Endpoint Manager and on-premises Active Directory.   

Work Model: Remote (approximately 95% work from home) with occasional in-person support (approximately 5%) for events, school/customer visits, or office-based needs

Why This Role Matters

You will help operate and evolve a hybrid Google + Microsoft education ecosystem supporting a large user and device footprint (65,000+ devices, 100,000+ users across 40+ schools and growing). Your work will directly improve platform stability, security posture, and overall end-user experience for school staff and students.

Key Responsibilities

Google Workspace for Education

• Administer and support Google Workspace for Education services, including all core apps, additional Google services and 3^rd party apps, associated policies, and account management.

• Troubleshoot complex Google Workspace issues end-to-end and serve as an escalation point.

• Maintain and monitor services connected to and/or supporting Google Workspace (e.g., GCDS, BetterCloud, Bark for Schools where applicable)

• Develop and maintain configuration documentation for Google Workspace environment. Assist in the creation of training guides and review communications for support teams and schools.

• Review and act on necessary alerts. Stay up to date with Google’s best practices for security and make suggestions to improve the environment as needed.

• Be a member of the Google community in order to stay knowledgeable of new features and changes that would impact our Google Workspace environments or add value to our schools.

Microsoft Cloud 

• Administer and support Azure services, including identity and access management in Microsoft Entra ID.

• Build, maintain, and improve Azure infrastructure (e.g., Virtual Machines, Virtual Networks) with reliability, performance, and cost awareness.

• Implement and maintain security best practices aligned to policy, including access controls and secure configuration standards.

• Contribute to modernization initiatives, including server upgrades, patching, and monitoring.

• Maintain and monitor services connected to and/or supporting Microsoft Cloud (e.g., Entra Connect)

• Monitor platform health, troubleshoot service incidents, and drive root-cause remediation.

Endpoint Management 

• Maintain Google Workspace ChromeOS environment for device deployment, configuration, compliance and policy.

• Administer Microsoft Endpoint Manager for Windows device deployment, configuration, compliance, and lifecycle management.

• Manage, monitor and troubleshoot user devices which include Windows OS, ChromeOS and ChromeOS Flex environments.

• Develop and maintain configuration baselines, deployment profiles, and operational runbooks for consistent device management at scale.

• Implement and maintain software packages and configurations across large-scale multi-device environments via Intune or ChromeOS Management.

On-Premises Active Directory

• Administer and troubleshoot on-premises Active Directory (Users & Computers, Group Policy, Sites and Services, Domains and Trusts).

• Support, monitor and maintain domain controllers, including all Active Directory services, replication integrity, patching, backup/recovery, and security compliance.

• Maintain core services as applicable, including DNS/DHCP, file/print, web services, and other Windows workloads.

• Support hybrid connectivity, tools (e.g., ADManager Plus, ADSelfService Plus) and operational processes spanning on-premises and cloud environments.

Operations, Support & Collaboration

• Oversee daily IT operational activities, including monitoring ticket queues, documented workflows and system alerts.  

• Prioritize workloads based on impact and urgency, and driving timely response, escalation, and resolution of incidents and requests.

• Deliver consistent and timely updates to stakeholders regarding requests and/or issues ensuring awareness of status and progress, including any impact to our SLAs.

• Serve as an escalation point for support teams; prioritize and drive resolution of complex tickets and incidents across multiple platforms.

• Create and maintain documentation, standards, and knowledgebase articles; mentor service desk staff and peers.

• Communicate clearly, concisely, and appropriately within a wide range of audiences.

Required Qualifications

• Proven hands-on experience in at least two of the following areas: Google Workspace for Education, Microsoft Cloud (Azure/Entra ID), Microsoft Endpoint Manager, On-Premises Active Directory, or IT Operations and Support.

• Demonstrated ability to administer, support, and troubleshoot enterprise IT systems across multiple domains, including identity, cloud services, endpoint management, and directory services.

• Experience operating within a production environment, supporting day-to-day operations, incident resolution, and cross-functional collaboration to maintain system availability and performance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated hands-on experience administering Google Workspace for Education and ChromeOS device management in a production environment.

• Strong experience with Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Entra ID (identity, access, and tenant administration).

• Experience with Microsoft Endpoint Manager for Windows device deployment and management.

• Experience administering on-premises Active Directory, including users, groups, security and troubleshooting authentication/permissions issues.

• Working knowledge of Windows workstation and server administration (Windows 10/11; Server 2016/2019/2022).

• Ability to troubleshoot across identity, endpoints, networking fundamentals (e.g., DNS/DHCP), and cloud services using structured problem-solving.

• Strong communication and customer service skills; ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, remote-first environment.

• Experience with Microsoft SQL (administration and troubleshooting).

• Scripting/automation skills (e.g., PowerShell, Azure CLI) and a track record of improving reliability through automation.

• Broader Azure architecture exposure (e.g., networking, management groups, firewalls, VDI, governance).

• Relevant certifications (e.g., Microsoft, Google, CompTIA) are a plus.

Experience and Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or equivalent work experience

• Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in IT systems administration/engineering or equivalent in a large enterprise environment

• Ability to work from home in a secure, distraction-free workspace and reliable broadband internet.

• Able to work on call, evenings and/or weekends when necessary

• Available 24x7 during critical outages of supported systems

• Ability to work independently and proceed with objectives without supervision.

• Excellent attention to detail

• High degree of flexibility