Microsoft

Microsoft

Posted via Microsoft Careers

Principal Software Engineer

Posted Aug 12, 2026

Role at a glance

Salary
$142.8K – $274.8K/yr
Location
Redmond, Washington, United States
Work arrangement
On-site
Employment
Full-time
Experience
6+ years technical engineering experience with coding
Education
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field

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Role Summary

AI-generated

The Microsoft Substrate Data Plane team builds foundational, highly available, low-latency distributed services for Microsoft 365, including Exchange, Teams, Copilot, search, retrieval, indexing, and data processing workloads. The Principal Software Engineer will lead the architecture, development, and operation of intelligent data services and agent-enabled platforms supporting large-scale Microsoft 365 experiences.

What You'll Do

  • Design, build, and operate large-scale, highly available cloud services that power Microsoft 365 experiences.
  • Drive architecture, development, and delivery of distributed systems focused on scalability, reliability, performance, security, and...
  • Develop platform capabilities for agent orchestration, tool execution, data access, grounding, and workflow automation.
  • Partner with product teams, service owners, and platform engineers to deliver intelligent, end-to-end experiences across Microsoft 365.
  • Leverage telemetry, automation, and AI-assisted diagnostics to improve service health and accelerate incident mitigation.
  • Lead complex technical initiatives across teams, influence long-term platform strategy, and mentor engineers.

Generated from the employer's posting. Verify important details before applying.

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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++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR equivalent experience.

Required

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field
  • 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding
  • C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python

Preferred

  • Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field
  • 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding
  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 12+ years technical engineering experience with coding
  • Experience with modern AI-driven software development practices, tools, and feedback loops

Original job description

Content provided by the employer

Overview

The Microsoft Substrate Data Plane team powers the foundational services that enable Microsoft 365 experiences at planetary scale. Our platform processes and serves billions of signals, messages, documents, and interactions across Exchange, Teams, Copilot, and emerging AI-powered experiences. We build highly available, low-latency, massively distributed services that form the backbone of Microsoft's productivity cloud. 

We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer to help shape the next generation of intelligent data services and agent-enabled platforms. In this role, you will lead the architecture, development, and operation of large-scale distributed systems that support Copilot, AI agents, search, retrieval, indexing, and data processing workloads across Microsoft 365.

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
  • Design, build, and operate large-scale, highly available cloud services that power Microsoft 365 experiences for billions of requests and millions of users worldwide. 

  • Drive architecture, development, and delivery of distributed systems focused on scalability, reliability, performance, security, and operational excellence. 

  • Develop platform capabilities that enable AI-powered experiences, including agent orchestration, tool execution, data access, grounding, and workflow automation. 

  • Partner with product teams, service owners, and platform engineers to deliver intelligent, end-to-end experiences across Microsoft 365. 

  • Leverage telemetry, automation, and AI-assisted diagnostics to improve service health, accelerate incident mitigation, and enhance engineering productivity. 

  • Lead complex technical initiatives across teams, influence long-term platform strategy, and drive engineering best practices. 

  • Mentor engineers and foster a culture of innovation, ownership, and continuous improvement. 

Embody our culture and values   



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++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.
 
 
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++, 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 modern AI-driven software development practices, tools, and feedback loops, leveraging AI to accelerate engineering velocity, enhance developer productivity, and improve software quality.


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.

Microsoft

About the company

Microsoft

Large Enterprise

Microsoft is a global technology leader that empowers individuals and organizations to achieve more through innovative software, services, and devices. Founded in 1975, the company is best known for its flagship products like the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office suite. In addition to personal computing, Microsoft is a leader in cloud computing with its Azure platform, providing a range of solutions for businesses to enhance productivity and efficiency. With a strong commitment to sustainability and accessibility, Microsoft continues to drive technological advancements that shape the future of work and learning.