Help build the cloud infrastructure that powers the next generation of artificial intelligence. You will join the Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) team, building and operating managed Kubernetes services that help customers run cloud-native applications at scale. You will partner across engineering teams to make these services more secure, reliable, and efficient for demanding workloads.
As a Principal Software Engineer on the AKS team, you will lead the architecture and delivery of cloud infrastructure capabilities that support artificial intelligence workloads. You will guide complex technical decisions across teams, translate customer needs into engineering plans, and remain hands-on in implementation, testing, deployment, and live-site improvements. This opportunity will allow you to deepen your expertise in large-scale distributed systems, expand your cross-team technical leadership, and advance your cloud reliability and security skills.
Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.
Responsibilities
- Partner with customers and engineering teams to define requirements for Azure Kubernetes Service capabilities supporting artificial intelligence workloads, and translate complex scenarios into coordinated engineering plans.
- Own and lead architecture for complex distributed-system components, evaluate trade-offs across security, reliability, scalability, performance, and cost, and align cross-team dependencies and design decisions.
- Lead by example through hands-on development of extensible, maintainable, well-tested, secure, and performant software, and improve the responsible use of artificial intelligence tools across the software development lifecycle.
- Define test strategies across components, mentor engineers in automated and security testing, and improve end-to-end validation to prevent regressions and raise solution quality.
- Lead automation of deployment and operational processes, establish safe rollout and rollback practices, and improve engineering tools and workflows across teams.
- Strengthen service observability and operational readiness, participate in on-call operations, lead investigation of complex production issues, and drive systemic improvements from incident learnings.
- Review complex designs and code, mentor engineers across teams, and advance shared engineering practices while upholding security, privacy, and compliance standards.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C++, C#, Go, or Java
- OR equivalent experience.
Other Requirements:
- Ability 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:
- Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C++, C#, Go, or Java
- OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 12+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C++, C#, Go, or Java
- OR equivalent experience.
- 3+ years of experience developing or operating production Kubernetes-based services.
- 2+ years of experience leading delivery of a production cloud service or infrastructure feature across multiple engineering teams.
Software Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 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 $188,000 - $304,200 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 or a related technical field, or equivalent experience
- 6+ years of technical engineering experience with coding in C++, C#, Go, Java, or similar languages, or equivalent experience
- Ability to pass the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire or transfer and every two years thereafter
- Master's degree in Computer Science or a related technical field and 8+ years of technical engineering experience, or bachelor's degree and 12+ years of experience, or equivalent experience
- 3+ years of experience developing or operating production Kubernetes-based services
- 2+ years of experience leading delivery of a production cloud service or infrastructure feature across multiple engineering teams
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
Microsoft Insights
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.
