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# Principal Software Engineer (AI / Agentic Developer Productivity)

- **Company:** Microsoft
- **Location:** Redmond, WA, United States
- **Experience:** Expert
- **Salary:** $142,800.0 - $274,800.0
- **Contract:** Permanent contract
- **Skills:** C (Programming Language), Java (Programming Language), JavaScript (Programming Language), Artificial Intelligence, Systems Engineering, Microsoft Online Services, C Sharp (Programming Language), C++ (Programming Language), Command-Line Interface, Code Generation, Code Review, Continuous Integration, Cursor, Software Debugging, Programming Tools, Python (Programming Language), Pair Programming, Microsoft Copilot, Software Engineering, GitHub Copilot, LangChain, Large Language Models, Claude Code, Multi-Agent Systems, Prompt Engineering, Llamaindex, Generative AI, Agentic-AI, Information Technology, AutoGen, Build Tools, Invoking Functions, OpenAI Codex, Semantic Kernel, GPT, Human in the Loop
- **Published:** October 15, 2026
- **Apply:** https://www.dice.com/job-detail/87a5c1d7-446f-4632-90ec-ff5451b288a1

## About the Role

* 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., * Prior experience building with Agent SDKs, large language models (LLMs), prompt engineering, or AI orchestration frameworks (e.g., LangChain, Semantic Kernel, AutoGen, LlamaIndex, or similar).

 * Familiarity with agentic AI development patterns - multi-step reasoning, tool/function calling, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and human-in-the-loop workflows.
 * Proven experience as a Software Engineer delivering large-scale, production-quality systems.
 * Solid software engineering fundamentals: system design, algorithms, testing, debugging, and code review.
 * Demonstrated ability to lead technical direction and mentor peers in a collaborative team environment.
 * Comfort working in ambiguous, fast-moving problem spaces where best practices are still being established.
 * Hands-on experience with AI-powered developer tooling and coding assistants, such as:
 * GitHub Copilot and Copilot Workspace - AI pair programming, CLI, and task-oriented development
 * Claude Code - agentic CLI for autonomous software engineering tasks
 * OpenAI Codex / ChatGPT - LLM-based code generation and explanation
 * Cursor - AI-native code editor with inline generation and multi-file edits
 * Prior experience using agentic plugins, agents, skills, hooks, etc.
 * Experience dogfooding, evaluating, and forming opinions on emerging AI developer tools, and translating those insights into team-wide best practices.
 * Background in developer tooling, build systems, CI/CD pipelines, or engineering systems at scale.

#CAP #CAPHiring

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.

## Description

* Own and deliver complete features across the development lifecycle, including design, architecture, implementation, testability, debugging, shipping, and servicing.
 * Use AI in your daily coding and advocate to the team and customers an evolving state-of-the-art of how best to do this.
 * Demonstrate resiliency to experiment and try multiple AI approaches that may not work - because no one has tried them before.
 * Provide mentorship and coaching to engineers in, and beyond, your team.
 * Write and review clean, well-thought-out code with an emphasis on quality, performance, simplicity, durability, scalability, and maintainability.
 * Contribute positively to a culture where everyone can bring their full and authentic self and where we do our best work as a result.