Principal Software Architect, Platform Engineering

Microsoft
Redmond, United States of America
3 days ago

Role details

Contract type
Permanent contract
Employment type
Full-time (> 32 hours)
Working hours
Regular working hours
Languages
English
Experience level
Senior
Compensation
$ 296K

Job location

Redmond, United States of America

Tech stack

Clean Code Principles
Reference Implementation
C
Java
JavaScript
Artificial Intelligence
Azure
Microsoft Online Services
C Sharp (Programming Language)
C++
Cloud Computing
Continuous Integration
Distributed Systems
Python
Generative AI
Information Technology
Microservices

Job description

  • Work with product teams to find the highest-leverage places to modernize onto the platform, and shape the future-state architecture together.
  • Prototype and build. Write the proof-of-concept, the reference implementation, and the code that de-risks the hard calls.
  • Pair with product teams and forward-deployed architects on their toughest problems, contributing designs and maintainable code others build on.
  • Own how systems compose on the platform - the cross-cutting dependencies, sequencing, and interfaces - and keep it coherent in the code, not just the design docs.
  • Own outcomes as a DRI: take on-call for what you help ship, mentor the engineers you work with, and hold reliability, observability, and performance as systems move.
  • Feed what you learn on the hardest problems back into the platform, so the golden paths get better and the next team has it easier.
  • Bring agents into the work where they earn it: the migration and integration they can own, and the guardrails for the parts they can't.

What we're looking for

  • A builder-architect, software engineer at the core. You've re-architected large, complex systems and shipped the code to prove it, not just drawn the target state.
  • AI-native. You've shipped production software with generative AI and agents, and you know where to point them so they carry the work that used to eat engineers' time.
  • The judgment to take on a high-stakes modernization with a team and sequence it safely, built on deep distributed-systems, microservices, and cloud fundamentals (Azure a plus).
  • You do your best work embedded with a team, close to the code and close to the people who know the domain.
  • The credibility to shape architectural direction across teams as an individual contributor, earned through what you design and ship.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience coding in languages such as C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python - 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.

Additional or preferred qualifcations

  • Master'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++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 15+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR equivalent experience.
  • Hands-on experience using generative AI and agents to build production software.
  • Experience building and operating complex systems, platforms, or cloud infrastructure at scale, including hands-on re-architectures or migrations.
  • Depth in distributed systems, microservices, and cloud infrastructure, including CI/CD (Azure a plus).

Come build the platform that makes every engineer ship faster - and help define what a developer platform even is in the age of agents.

About the company

Microsoft is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. We develop, license, and support a wide range of software products, services, and devices that help individuals and businesses realize their full potential.

Our flagship products include the Microsoft 365 productivity cloud, Windows operating system, Azure cloud platform, and Dynamics 365 business applications. We are also a leader in areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, developer tools, and gaming through Xbox and Game Pass.

With operations in more than 190 countries and over 220,000 employees worldwide, Microsoft is committed to responsible innovation, inclusive economic growth, and sustainability. We work closely with governments, industries, and communities to ensure that technology serves the public good and helps address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

As we celebrate our 50th anniversary in 2025, we continue to look forward—investing in AI, cloud, and quantum computing to shape the future of work, education, and society at large scale.

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