Cloud Solution Architect

Job Description

Works with colleagues and learns to gather technology and customer/partner insights. Works with internal teams and begins building relationships with customer/partner technical specialists under the guidance and supervision of others. Contributes to customer/partner satisfaction by providing a positive customer/partner experience. Actively listens and respectfully challenges customers/partners when going in the wrong direction, escalating appropriately, under guidance. With supervision, identifies issues and advises customers/partners to operate and optimize performance in accordance with Microsoft best practices. Works with the customer to support resolution of technical blockers and accelerate consumption and solution implementation for selected scenarios. Learns about the offerings, practices, products, services, solutions, and value propositions of Microsoft's Cloud and Support businesses, and shares learnings and may support guidance with others. Learns Microsoft solutions and demonstrates an understanding of Microsoft's value to customers/partners. Leverages development opportunities. Provides input to virtual team members when asked, using a basic knowledge of Microsoft architectures and products. Learns to identify and communicate areas in intellectual property (IP) that need refreshing or have gaps.

Responsibilities

Customer Centricity

• Collaborates with internal teams and begins building relationships with customer/partner technical specialists under the guidance and supervision of others. Seeks input from others to contribute to proposals for AI-driven solutions (including suggesting relevant AI partners) based on specific technical products or customer project needs. Demonstrates basic AI concepts and validates those AI design solutions' capabilities through collaborative design sessions with the customer/partner. Learns to work with internal teams and actively seeks ways to support short-term/transactional AI engagements, understanding how these efforts contribute to customer success plans and deliver AI-driven customer outcomes. Supports customer/partner skilling needs and recognized AI capability gaps (e.g., AI tools, data readiness) by participating in discussions on AI delivery with other internal and external stakeholders, facilitating knowledge transfer, and contributing to customer/partner readiness for AI adoption.
  
  
• Actively listens and respectfully challenges customers/partners when they are heading in the wrong direction regarding AI strategies, escalating appropriately under guidance.
  
  
• Observes colleagues and learns to gather technology and customer/partner insights (e.g., feedback around AI preferences, data environments, business needs) and align them with AI-based solutions. Acts as the voice of the customer (VOC)/partner by learning to identify and share feedback on AI capabilities, blockers, and insights that relate to the customer/partner with internal teams.
  
  
• Contributes to customer/partner satisfaction by providing a positive customer/partner experience, demonstrating an understanding of customer/partner success conditions in AI projects. Supports the collection of customer feedback data specific to AI solutions. Establishes recovery actions or proactively offers solutions to improve the customer/partner AI experience.

Business Impact

• Collaborates with the customer to resolve technical blockers and accelerate AI solution implementation for selected scenarios (e.g., by applying AI capabilities such as machine learning models or data-driven solutions). May identify and escalate non-technical issues to the appropriate party for resolution. Utilizes foundational AI knowledge within architectures or other Microsoft AI solutions to meet business and IT requirements, helping to overcome technical constraints.
  
  
• Learns Microsoft AI solutions and demonstrates an understanding of how Microsoft's AI capabilities deliver value to customers/partners.
  
  
• With supervision, identifies issues and advises customers/partners on how to operate and optimize AI solution performance in alignment with Microsoft AI best practices. Escalates issues to senior team members or managers, as needed. Applies methodology and governance, as directed, to minimize both business and technical risks, ensuring adherence to AI quality assurance standards. Contributes to the design and/or delivery of AI-based solutions with excellence.Utilizes standard tools as directed to align with opportunity and milestone execution, maintaining pipeline hygiene standards.
  
  
• Gains knowledge of Microsoft's Cloud AI offerings, practices, products, services, and value propositions, and shares insights with others (e.g., peer groups, customers, partners) as appropriate. Leverages existing AI architecture approaches or reference architectures to support the delivery of AI-based solutions in line with Microsoft's Customer Promise. Supports opportunities to expand or accelerate cloud AI consumption. Assesses customer/partner AI needs and gathers information to help others identify growth opportunities. Participates in discussions around AI solution clarity, design, resiliency reviews, and technical optimization (including with partner technical stakeholders), leading to production deployment and increased AI solution usage, consumption, and value outcomes.

Technical Leadership

• Provides input to virtual team members when asked, using a basic knowledge of Microsoft AI architectures, products, and services.
  
  
• Learns to identify and communicate areas in AI-related intellectual property (IP) that need refreshing or where gaps exist. Contributes to AI IP development with guidance and supervision.
  
  
• Leverages development opportunities (e.g., mentorships, role-based resources, AI-focused trainings, internal events such as Ready, Build, Ignite) to learn new AI technologies or services.

Qualifications

Required/minimum qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business, or related field OR equivalent experience.
• Familiarity with AI frameworks, tools, and platforms, such as machine learning models, natural language processing, or computer vision, with a focus on integrating these technologies into cloud-based solutions.

Additional or preferred qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business, or related field AND 2+ years experience in cloud/infrastructure technologies, information technology (IT) consulting/support, systems administration, network operations, software development/support, technology solutions, practice development, architecture, and/or consulting OR equivalent experience.
• Technical Certification in Cloud (e.g., Azure, Amazon Web Services, Google, security certifications).

You must be legally authorised to work in the UK for this position (Legally authorised = Has citizenship or has been granted a valid visa or work permit).

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. Consistent with applicable law, 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 and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.