Principal Software Engineer

Overview

As AI reshapes how software is built and defended, Microsoft Security is standing up a new Engineering Excellence organization that will define what world-class security engineering looks like in the agentic AI era. Engineering teams that lead in the AI era are organized around outcomes, built on shared platforms any team can draw from, and augmented by agents that are part of the daily workflow. Governance runs at the speed of development. This organization will build that foundation for Microsoft Security, and in doing so, help define what engineering excellence looks like at AI scale. Our mission, is to build and scale core product-making systems that transform developer and builder productivity and enable AI-assisted workflows across Microsoft Security.

We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer.

The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in developer platforms and large-scale engineering infrastructure, with ability and passion to drive AI engineering workflows and outcomes rather than isolated experiments. They should understand the SOTA on agent-based systems, human-in-the-loop design. They should be comfortable to operate across complex codebases, tooling ecosystems, and infrastructure layers.

Candidates for this role should hold a very high bar for engineering excellence. The right person will not simply build tools but create systems that change how product making gets done at scale. They should demonstrate strong judgment, technical depth, bias for action, drive for quality, reliability, and velocity. Excellence here means choosing people who can turn ambiguous productivity problems into reusable capabilities, measure their impact, and create feedback loops that continuously improve the engineering system.

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

In this role, you will drive step-function improvements in developer productivity by designing and scaling AI-first engineering systems, shared platforms, and secure, compliant workflows that are broadly adopted across Microsoft Security.

You will modernize fragmented tooling into a cohesive foundation, establish reusable standards for build, validation, observability, experimentation, and cost-aware design, and influence teams across the organization through systems that improve daily engineering practice rather than policy alone.

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.

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 background and Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

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:
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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.