Software Engineer - Azure Cloud Native & Management

Overview

As a Software Engineer in the Cloud Native and Management organization, you'll help build the core systems that make Azure work at global scale. Our teams design and operate the foundational services that allow millions of customers to deploy, manage, and scale applications reliably across cloud, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments.

You'll develop software, tools, and platforms supporting services such as Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Resource Manager (ARM), Azure Resource Graph (ARG), Azure Arc, Azure Container Registry (ACR), Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets, Azure Linux, and PowerShell. Your work will focus on creating extensible and maintainable backend systems that simplify complex distributed infrastructure and make cloud computing more accessible and scalable. Examples include:

ARM & ARG: foundational layers that define and query every Azure resource.
AKS, ACR, VM Scale Sets: the backbone of how applications are deployed, containerized, and scaled.
Azure Arc: extending Azure control to hybrid and multi cloud environments.
Azure Linux: building a tuned operating system for cloud workloads.

In this role, you'll collaborate with stakeholders to determine feature requirements, incorporate feedback from multiple channels, and translate user needs into high-quality solutions. You'll work closely with engineers to design testing strategies, ensure solution quality, and apply debugging tools, logs, and telemetry to proactively identify and resolve issues.

This opportunity will expose you to large-scale cloud computing, distributed systems, and container and infrastructure management, while helping you learn best practices for scaling, performance, reliability, and operational excellence. You'll contribute to services that are foundational to Azure, ensuring a high standard of security, privacy, safety, and accessibility as you grow your engineering skills.

Learn more about the technologies you'll work on:

• Azure Container Registry
• Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
• Azure Arc
• Introduction to the Azure Linux Container Host for AKS
• Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets
• Azure Resource Manager
• Azure Resource Graph

Responsibilities

• Learns to break down work items into actionable tasks in collaboration with stakeholders, provides estimates, and escalates risks or delays as needed. Supports feature deployments across cloud-native and management services while following best practices for safe and reliable releases.
• Collaborates with cross-functional partners to define feature requirements and translate customer and operational feedback into design improvements. Establishes feedback loops using metrics to drive continuous improvement in highly scalable cloud management services.
• Learns and applies coding standards and engineering best practices through code reviews, developing maintainable and extensible backend code with guidance. Uses debugging tools, logs, and telemetry to proactively identify and resolve issues in distributed systems.
• Supports the identification and documentation of dependencies for product features, gaining exposure to service interactions and backend architectures. Contributes to architectural discussions and assists with technical validation, including testing hypotheses and integrating automation into test plans.
• Participates in quality assurance efforts by augmenting test cases and supporting test automation, while developing an understanding of how security, compliance, and reliability considerations influence system architecture and design decisions.
• Contributes to data analysis and feedback integration to inform engineering decisions. Participates in live service operations and acts as a Designated Responsible Individual (DRI) to help monitor, troubleshoot, and restore service functionality within defined SLA timeframes.
• Develops and applies best practices for building reliable and scalable systems. Learns about global and local regulatory requirements, customer scaling needs, and cross-team coordination required to operate services at Azure's global scale.
• Ensures solutions meet Microsoft standards forsecurity, privacy, safety, and accessibility. Leverages developer tools for code creation, debugging, and automation, and proactively seeks opportunities to improve availability, reliability, efficiency, and performance across large-scale cloud infrastructure.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, or related technical discipline with proven experience coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Go, Rust, 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.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field with proven experience coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Go, Rust, or Python,
  • OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 2+ 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 Bash and/or PowerShell.
• Experience, including coursework, in cloud, distributed systems, Kubernetes, AI, LLM, data protection, networking, Linux, Windows, and security.
• Experience with Ansible, CI/CD, and DevOps pipelines.

Software Engineering IC2 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $84,200 - $165,200 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 $109,000 - $180,400 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:


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.