Principal Software Engineer

Overview

The Windows + Devices Fundamentals team improves the reliability, performance, responsiveness, battery life, memory efficiency, and overall health of Windows devices. We build and operate the services, telemetry systems, and data pipelines that transform signals from labs and the installed base into trustworthy metrics, actionable diagnostics, and measurable engineering improvements.

We are seeking a Principal Software Engineer to define the technical direction for critical Windows Fundamentals data and service capabilities. You will shape architecture across backend services, telemetry platforms, data pipelines, metrics, and diagnostic workflows; solve the portfolio's most complex technical problems; and influence engineering investments that improve Windows health at scale.

This role is ideal for a deeply technical engineering leader who combines distributed-systems and data-platform expertise with solid product judgment, hands-on problem solving, and the ability to align and inspire engineers across organizational boundaries.

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

• Define the technical strategy and architecture for Windows Fundamentals backend services, telemetry systems, data pipelines, metrics, cohort frameworks, and diagnostic capabilities.
• Lead the design of scalable systems for telemetry ingestion, transformation, orchestration, storage, health monitoring, analytics, diagnostics, and automated engineering workflows.
• Set technical standards for service reliability, security, compliance, privacy, observability, data quality, schema evolution, deployment safety, incident response, and operational excellence.
• Lead the most complex cross-system investigations involving large-scale telemetry, statistical analysis, systems debugging, service behavior, and Windows product-health signals.
• Create architectural simplifications, automation, and AI-assisted capabilities that detect issues earlier, reduce operational toil, and increase engineering leverage across Windows.
• Use data, customer insights, and business priorities to frame ambiguous problems, evaluate portfolio tradeoffs, manage technical risk, and drive measurable outcomes.
• Serve as a technical authority and hands-on contributor; mentor senior engineers, lead design reviews, build alignment across teams, and influence Windows engineering, data science, security, silicon, OEM, and service partners.

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 10+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
  • OR equivalent experience.

• Extensive experience architecting and delivering backend services, distributed systems, data pipelines, telemetry platforms, large-scale analytics, or engineering infrastructure.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, multi-team technical initiatives and delivering highly reliable production systems or platforms at scale.
• Deep technical judgment in service architecture, systems design, data engineering, security, reliability, debugging, and engineering tradeoffs.
• Solid programming and hands-on problem-solving skills, with the ability to move between architecture, implementation, investigation, and operational response.
• Ability to set technical strategy, navigate ambiguity, prioritize investments using data, and influence decisions across organizational boundaries without direct authority.
• Deep experience with cloud services, distributed systems, data engineering, telemetry platforms, developer infrastructure, or business-critical production operations.
• Solid knowledge of Windows Fundamentals, Windows internals, reliability engineering, performance analysis, power efficiency, or system-level diagnostics.
• Experience designing secure and compliant services with solid observability, deployment controls, data-quality practices, live-site response, and operational accountability.
• Experience defining organizational metrics, cohorts, baselines, and measurement strategies using large-scale telemetry, experimentation, statistical analysis, or Azure data platforms.
• Track record of influencing architecture and product strategy, applying automation or AI to engineering workflows, mentoring senior engineers, and collaborating with executive and senior technical stakeholders.

The team works with technologies including:

• C, C++, C#, Python, PowerShell, SQL/KQL, scripting, and automation tools.
• WinDbg, Windows Performance Analyzer, ETW, and diagnostic and trace-processing systems.
• Kusto, Azure services and data platforms, distributed systems, orchestration, storage, deployment, and monitoring systems.
• Power BI, statistics, experimentation, anomaly detection, and large-scale telemetry analysis.
• Machine learning, AI-assisted analysis, and automated diagnostic and remediation workflows.

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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. 

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

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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.