Senior Associate – System & Application Admin

About Al Etihad Payments

Al Etihad Payments is the UAE’s appointed retail payments organization, responsible for building and running modern infrastructure, standards, and solutions that serve the national economy. It operates as a subsidiary of the Central Bank of the UAE and is backed by the UAE Government. The company works closely with licensed financial institutions and payment service providers to support innovation and deliver smooth, reliable financial services across the UAE.

Its mission aligns with the country’s move toward a cashless economy, wider digital transformation, and the Central Bank of the UAE’s ambition to rank among the world’s leading central banks.

Culture

The organization describes itself as collaborative, diverse, and enthusiastic, with a team-first mindset. Employees are encouraged to support each other, contribute meaningfully to the business, and build strong relationships across the payments ecosystem.

Role Overview

The Senior Associate – System & Application Admin will handle administration, maintenance, and support for the company’s core system and application landscape. The role centers on M365 E5 services, Azure cloud infrastructure, and the Proxmox hypervisor environment, with a strong emphasis on uptime, security, troubleshooting, and operational improvement.

Key Duties

• Run and support the full Microsoft 365 E5 stack, including Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Microsoft Teams, Intune, Defender for Endpoint/Identity/Cloud Apps, and Azure AD.
• Oversee Azure resources such as virtual machines, virtual networks, storage accounts, Azure AD, Azure Monitor, and Azure Backup.
• Install, set up, maintain, and troubleshoot Proxmox hypervisor systems and virtual machines.
• Manage user identities, access permissions, and group policy administration across M365 and Azure AD.
• Track system health, perform regular checks, and ensure patches and updates are applied proactively.
• Design and maintain backup and disaster recovery controls for critical systems and data.
• Investigate and fix system and application incidents, support end users, and escalate more complex issues when needed.
• Prepare and keep clear documentation for configurations, operating procedures, and troubleshooting steps.
• Work with other IT groups to ensure systems and applications integrate smoothly and remain well supported.
• Take part in security reviews and carry out corrective actions for identified vulnerabilities.

Qualifications and Experience

A bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related discipline is required. A Microsoft certification such as Azure Administrator Associate or M365 Administrator Expert is strongly preferred. Candidates should bring at least 5 years of progressive experience in system administration, application support, or a comparable IT position.

Technical Requirements

The ideal candidate should have hands-on experience administering Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Microsoft Teams, and Intune, along with working knowledge of Microsoft Defender tools for endpoint, identity, and cloud apps. Strong familiarity with Azure AD, Azure VMs, VNETs, storage, Azure Monitor, and Azure Backup is expected. Experience with Proxmox installation, configuration, VM administration, storage, and networking is important. The role also calls for solid Windows Server administration skills covering AD, DNS, and DHCP, plus a good understanding of TCP/IP. Linux knowledge and command-line comfort are an advantage. Basic PowerShell scripting for automation is also useful.

Technical Competence Levels

The following competence levels were listed: Basic = B, Proficient = P, Advanced = A. Cloud Computing & Infrastructure Management is Proficient, IT Service Management (ITSM) is Basic, Database Management is Basic, Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery (BC/DR) is Basic, and Quality Assurance & Testing is Proficient.

What the Company Offers

• A modern workplace with a degree of flexibility.
• A dynamic and driven colleague group.
• A competitive compensation package with an annual bonus and additional benefits such as child education allowance and annual flight tickets, where eligible.
• Comprehensive health insurance coverage.