Principal Engineer - Azure Storage

Are you excited by the challenge of building highly scalable distributed storage systems that preserve exabytes of data for decades? The Azure Archive Storage team builds Microsoft's cloud-scale archival storage solution, delivering secure, cost-effective, and energy-conscious long-term storage for customers around the world. This opportunity will allow you to deepen your expertise in large-scale distributed storage, grow your technical leadership across Azure Storage, and shape the future of affordable, durable, long-term cloud storage.

As a Principal Software Engineer in Azure Archive Storage, you will drive the architecture, design, and delivery of core service capabilities that enable next-generation archival storage hardware and hyperscale storage scenarios. You will partner across engineering teams to define technical direction, solve complex distributed systems problems, mentor engineers, and deliver high-quality services that operate reliably at global scale. You will work on a deeply technical service that optimizes the interaction between software and unconventional storage systems, pushing the boundaries of durability, availability, scalability, concurrency, and storage economics.

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 stakeholders to define user requirements and technical strategy for Azure Archive Storage scenarios spanning durability, scalability, performance, and cost efficiency
• Lead architecture, dependency identification, design reviews, and feature implementation for Azure Archive Storage services and next-generation archival storage platforms
• Drive innovation in large-scale distributed storage systems, developing solutions that improve data durability, service availability, operational efficiency, and long-term storage economics
• Provide technical leadership and influence product direction through deep expertise in cloud-scale storage, distributed systems, and archival storage technologies
• Leverage cross-functional partnerships to align engineering investments, coordinate project and release plans, and deliver platform capabilities across teams and organizations
• Serve as a Designated Responsible Individual (DRI) for critical service components, driving operational excellence, mentoring engineers, and leading response to service degradation, downtime, and service interruptions
• Champion engineering best practices and continuous improvement by advancing observability, reliability, performance, and scalability, while sharing knowledge and raising the engineering bar across the organization, 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.

• 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++, 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, * 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++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
• 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++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
• OR equivalent experience

• Experience with:

• Designing, building, and operating large-scale distributed services in cloud environments
• Driving technical architecture and delivering complex software systems across multiple teams and stakeholders
• Developing storage systems, data platforms, or highly available backend services
• Improving service reliability, observability, performance, and operational excellence at scale
• Storage media technologies, storage hardware, or Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) technologies
• Problem-solving, diagnostics, and debugging skills for business-critical production services
• Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, or other hyperscale cloud platforms

• Ability to influence technical direction, build alignment, and drive execution across engineering organizations
• Demonstrated ownership of end-to-end service lifecycle, including design, implementation, deployment, and operations
• Proven track record of mentoring engineers and promoting engineering excellence through design reviews, code quality, and best practices

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.