Data Center Technician

Microsoft’s Cloud Operations & Innovation (CO+I) is the engine that powers our cloud services. As a Data Center Technician (DCT) on the U.S. Government Airgap team, you will perform a key role in delivering the core infrastructure and foundational technologies for Microsoft’s dedicated online services supporting the U.S. Government.

While our U.S. Government dedicated datacenter operations team has a sharp focus on serving our U.S. Government customers and helping them achieve federal missions, together, all of Microsoft’s Cloud Operations & Innovation (CO+I) infrastructure is comprised of a large global portfolio of more than 100 datacenters and 1 million servers. Our foundation is built upon and managed by a team of subject matter experts working to support services for more than 1 billion customers and 20 million businesses in over 90 countries worldwide.

With environmental sustainability and optimization at the forefront of our datacenter design and operations, we continue to grow and evolve as we meet the ever-changing business demands that hold Microsoft as a world-class Cloud provider.

Be at the forefront of the action in CO+I as part of our global datacenter operations team.

Required Qualifications:

• High school diploma, GED, or equivalent and basic knowledge of computer hardware and components AND 1+ year(s) experience supporting IT equipment or related technology
  • OR equivalent experience.
• Ability to work 12 hours shifts, including shift assignments during non-standard business hours that may include evening, nighttime, weekends, and/or holidays.

Other Requirements:

Security Clearance Requirements: Candidates must be able 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: 

• The successful candidate must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret Security Clearance.  Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. Failure to maintain or obtain the appropriate clearance and/or customerscreening requirements may result in employment action up to and including termination.
• Clearance Verification: This position requires successful verification of the stated security clearance to meet federal government customer requirements. You will be asked to provide clearance verification information prior to an offer of employment. 
• Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.   
• Citizenship & Citizenship Verification: This position requires verification of U.S. citizenship due to citizenship-based legal restrictions. Specifically, this position supports United States federal, state, and/or local United States government agency customer and is subject to certain citizenship-based restrictions where required or permitted by applicable law. To meet this legal requirement, citizenship will be verified via a valid passport, or other approved documents, or verified US government Clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• Applicable certifications: CompTIA (A+, Server+, Network+), Basic Structure Cabling (BSC).
• Able to communicate effectively with multiple stakeholders.
• Desire to learn, grow, and develop new technical skills

Data Center Technicians ATR-C - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $26.92 - $47.60 per hour. 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 $37.98 - $52.79 per hour.

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

Microsoft will accept applications for the role until October 3, 2025.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances.  We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request via the Accommodation request form.

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.

Data Center Operations

• Demonstrates an applied understanding of standard processes and procedures for preparing, installing, performing diagnostics, troubleshooting, replacing, and/or decommissioning equipment
• Proactively shares relevant information to enable efficient workflow and mitigate the impact that changes to their area of work will have on others.
• Complies with Data Center Services (DCS) business unit and service-level policies, procedures, and deadlines.
• Completes assigned tickets efficiently and in alignment with expectations for Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) per task type while meeting or exceeding established Service Level Agreements (SLAs), with minimal guidance from other technicians.

Service Delivery

• Prepares, stages, sets up, and performs startups and shutdowns (e.g., racks, hard drives, switches) according to specific instructions provided via checklists, guides, standard protocols, and emails; assists and provides guidance to other technicians to complete challenging or complex tasks.
• Performs post-execution quality checks and verifies that grounding, staging, labeling, and cabling are set up properly according to safety protocols, deployment standards, and planned Network Design Tasks (NDTs), 
• Performs diagnostics and troubleshooting following standard procedures, quickly identifies the cause(s) of issues, and replaces faulty components with minimal customer and business disruption.
• Provides guidance to technicians troubleshooting issues.
• Decommissions hardware for simple changes and refreshes (e.g., memory upgrades, OS rebuilds) following standard procedures with minimal guidance.
• Follows procedures to communicate, report, and escalate incidents to appropriate Microsoft data center operations management units, Technician Leads, and engineering specialists.

Managing Services

• Develops an understanding of cross-functional processes to support partnerships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Completes required training aligned to the role and workload; observes more experienced technicians to gain hands-on experience and relevant on-the-job training.

Data Center Work Environment

• Participates in daily safety briefings, completes required safety training, complies with safety procedures (e.g., equipment use, lifting, electrical hazards, ladder/rolling stair use).
• Complies with security and data management procedures and policies and completes required security training and alerts others to security concerns and/or incidents.
• Contributes to a positive and effective team environment by sharing information with others, contributing to regular team meetings, asking questions, and staying apprised of the status of others' work.

Ownership

• Has pride and a sense of accountability for the service quality, completeness, and resulting user experience; displays accountability and ownership of the data center facilities.
• Learns the client’s business and maintains a strong client focus to understand the impact of their work when completing tickets and assigned tasks.

Other

• Embody our culture and values