The Role
Design and deliver secure, compliant Azure and hybrid cloud infrastructure and AI-ready platforms for federal customers. Lead architecture, proofs of concept, governance, identity, networking, resiliency, and operational controls. Advise customers, enable partners, mentor peers, and drive cloud adoption while ensuring compliance with federal security requirements.
Summary Generated by Built In
Overview
Responsibilities
Qualifications
Join Microsoft Federal—where mission, trust, and cutting-edge innovation converge.
Microsoft Federal partners with U.S. government agencies and mission owners across defense, intelligence, and civilian sectors to deliver secure, resilient, and intelligent solutions that advance national priorities. We are seeking a Cloud & AI Infrastructure Cloud Solution Architect (CSA) to help customers modernize infrastructure, enable AI-ready platforms, and operate securely in highly regulated federal environments.
In this role, you will act as a trusted technical advisor, leading the design and deployment of secure, scalable, and compliant cloud and hybrid infrastructure solutions. You will work closely with customers, sales teams, partners, and engineering to accelerate cloud adoption, enable AI at scale, and drive measurable mission outcomes.
Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset, a theme of inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. Growth mindset encourages each of us to lean in and learn what matters most to our customers, to create the foundational knowledge that enables us to make customer-first decisions in everything we do. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us achieve our mission.
Responsibilities
Business Impact
- Deliver solutions aligned with Microsoft methodologies and operational excellence standards, including accurate pipeline management, documentation, and time tracking
- Identify, escalate, and help mitigate technical and business risks that could impede solution delivery or value realization
- Contribute to identifying and accelerating blockers to cloud adoption, consumption, and usage using approved tools and processes
- Identify opportunities for Azure infrastructure, hybrid, security, and AI consumption growth aligned to customer mission outcomes and Microsoft value propositions
- Actively engage customers to challenge assumptions, propose alternative architectures, and recommend optimized solutions that improve security, resiliency, cost, and performance
Solution Delivery & Technical Execution
- Design and guide implementation of:
- Azure Landing Zones, hybrid and multi-cloud architectures
- Secure infrastructure platforms supporting AI/ML, data, and mission workloads
- Governance, identity, networking, resiliency, and operational controls aligned with federal requirements
- Ensure solutions follow well-architected, secure-by-design, and compliance-ready patterns that enable long-term operational success
- Support value-based deliverables such as architecture design sessions, proofs of concept, and technical validation engagements
- Contribute feedback to internal delivery and engineering teams to improve offerings, patterns, and reusable assets
Customer Centricity
- Learn customer missions, technical constraints, and conditions for success in federal environments
- Translate customer challenges into Azure infrastructure and AI-enabled solutions aligned to Microsoft’s Cloud & AI platform strategy
- Build trusted relationships with technical and business decision-makers, helping bridge infrastructure, security, compliance, and mission requirements
- Act as the voice of the customer, providing feedback and insights to Microsoft engineering, product, and internal communities
Partner Collaboration
- Collaborate with Microsoft partners to enable joint solutions, technical readiness, and successful customer implementations
- Support partners in removing technical blockers and accelerating delivery and consumption
- Provide technical enablement and guidance to align partner offerings with Microsoft Federal infrastructure and AI priorities
Technical Leadership & Readiness
- Maintain deep technical depth across Azure infrastructure, hybrid cloud, security, and AI-enabling platforms, with breadth across CSU initiatives such as security, resiliency, and AI
- Mentor peers and contribute to virtual teams, communities of practice, and internal readiness initiatives
- Contribute to intellectual property, reusable architectures, and patterns that scale across federal customers
- Represent Microsoft through internal and external technical engagements, sharing best practices and lessons learned where appropriate
Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business, Liberal Arts, or related field OR equivalent experience.
2+ years experience in cloud/infrastructure technologies, information technology (IT) consulting/support, systems administration, network operations, software development/support, technology solutions, practice development, architecture, and/or consulting OR equivalent experience.
Other Requirements
Security Clearance Requirements:
Candidates must be able to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role.
These requirements include, but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:
•The successful candidate must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret Clearance with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) based on a Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) with Polygraph.
Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required pre-offer and post-hire for this role.
Failure to maintain or obtain the appropriate U.S. Government clearance and/or customer screening requirements may result in employment action up to and including termination.
• Clearance Verification:
This position requires successful verification of the stated security clearance to meet federal government customer requirements.
You will be asked to provide clearance verification information prior to an offer of employment.
• Microsoft Cloud Background Check:
This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.
• Citizenship & Citizenship Verification:
This position requires verification of U.S. citizenship due to citizenship-based legal restrictions.
Specifically, this position supports United States federal, state, and/or local United States government agency customer and is subject to certain citizenship-based restrictions where required or permitted by applicable law.
To meet this legal requirement, citizenship will be verified via a valid passport, or other approved documents, or verified US government Clearance
Preferred Qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business, or related field AND 2+ years of experience in one or more of the following areas:
- Cloud and infrastructure architecture
- Systems engineering or administration
- Network or platform operations
- Technical consulting or solution delivery
2+ years experience working in a customer-facing role (e.g., internal and/or external).
2+ years experience working on technical projects.
Technical Certification in Cloud (e.g., Azure, Amazon Web Services, Google, security certifications).
Cloud Solution Architecture IC3 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $86,100 - $169,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $113,300 - $187,400 per year.
Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, IT, Engineering, Business, Liberal Arts, or equivalent experience.
- 2+ years experience in cloud/infrastructure technologies, IT consulting/support, systems administration, network operations, software development/support, technology solutions, practice development, architecture, and/or consulting (or equivalent experience).
- Active U.S. Government Top Secret clearance with SCI based on a Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI) with Polygraph.
- U.S. citizenship and ability to verify citizenship (passport or approved documents).
- Ability to meet Microsoft Cloud background check and other Microsoft/customer government security screening pre-offer and periodically post-hire.
- Maintain ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements pre-offer and post-hire.
- Technical certification in cloud platforms (e.g., Azure, AWS, GCP) or security certifications.
- 2+ years experience in customer-facing technical roles (internal or external).
- 2+ years experience working on technical projects (architecture, delivery, or implementation).
- Experience in cloud and infrastructure architecture, systems engineering or administration, network or platform operations, or technical consulting/solution delivery.
Microsoft Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Microsoft and has not been reviewed or approved by Microsoft.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is presented as broadly competitive overall, with clear role/level/location variation and an emphasis on using posted ranges and band information for apples-to-apples comparisons.
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Retirement Support — Retirement benefits are described as a standout, highlighted by a strong 401(k) match structure and immediate vesting, plus additional plan features for tax-advantaged saving.
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Parental & Family Support — Family-oriented benefits are portrayed as a meaningful strength, with substantial paid parental leave and added supports like back-up care and adoption/surrogacy assistance.
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The Company
What We Do
At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our mission is grounded in both the world in which we live and the future we strive to create. Today, we live in a mobile-first, cloud-first world, and the transformation we are driving across our businesses is designed to enable Microsoft and our customers to thrive in this world.
