Principal Software Engineer

The Policy and Configuration team builds the shared deployment and policy capabilities that help Microsoft Security services ship safely across Azure, regions, and sovereign clouds. As a Principal Software Engineer, you will set technical direction for this control plane, partner across Microsoft Security and Azure, and turn complex deployment requirements into secure, self-service developer experiences. Your work will reduce dependence on proprietary tools while creating reusable platform patterns that can scale from Defender to Microsoft.
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.

We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer to define the next generation of deployment configuration and policy for Microsoft Security. This role works across Microsoft Security, Azure, and partner platforms to make secure deployment self-service, reliable, and eventually invisible to service teams. The engineer will shape Azure-native security offerings, influence platform roadmaps, and replace legacy deployment patterns with a smaller, safer control plane. 

• Define the architecture and migration path from proprietary tools to standard .NET Aspire and Azure platform capabilities. Make the path work for Defender and Microsoft Security today, all of Microsoft over time.

• Turn deployment, compliance, and security requirements into typed APIs, analyzers, and build gates. Move data residency, rollout, and configuration failures from deployment time to authoring time.

• Improve the service-team experience through clear diagnostics, safe upgrade paths, and self-service workflows. Use support demand and adoption data to remove recurring friction.

• Build production-quality control-plane capabilities with clear ownership, strong test strategy, secure defaults, and zero-touch deployment where possible.

• Drive technical agreements with .NET, Azure, CISO, and service team partners. Resolve dependency boundaries and make end-to-end security, compliance, and operational readiness real before release.

• Lead design reviews, incident learning, and reusable engineering practices across teams. Grow shared capability in modern cloud development and AI-assisted engineering.
Embody our culture and values   

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. 
Qualifications - 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.

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.

• 3+ years of experience building cloud-native applications or platform services on Azure, using C# and modern .NET. • Experience designing policy-as-code, infrastructure-as-code, developer tooling, or deployment systems used by multiple engineering teams. • Experience leading technical partnerships across two or more teams, such as Azure, .NET, security, compliance, or service engineering.

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.