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Microsoft UK • London, United Kingdom

Principal Software Engineer

Employment type:  Full time
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Job Description

Overview

Do you enjoy solving problems, writing software, and working with customers? Do you wake up hoping to find time to learn a bit more about how to containerize compute workloads? Work with high scale data? Or build end-to-end engineering deployment systems? How can you use emerging AI technologies to accelerate developers and solve new challenges? Do you want to join a team where learning about new technology is part of our work every day?

The Industry Solutions Engineering (ISE) team is a global engineering organization that has operated Microsoft’s Forward Deployed Engineering function for over a decade, working directly with customers to co-engineer solutions to their toughest business challenges. We don’t build things and hand them over. We embed with customers, engineer side-by-side, and create real business value together.

We operate in small, multidisciplinary teams, enabling tight feedback loops and rapid iteration. Together, we build AI-powered, cloud-based solutions that deliver measurable business outcomes. Our work is powered by Hypervelocity Engineering (HVE), a methodology of applying AI across the full lifecycle to build and ship secure, production-ready solutions from day one, accelerating time to value without sacrificing quality, control, or trust.

We collaborate with Microsoft product teams, partners, and open-source communities to create reusable, high-impact solution patterns that contribute to the broader Microsoft platform.

We are hiring a Principal Software Engineer with deep experience and expertise in designing and delivering solutions using modern software engineering practices and cloud technologies. We’re looking for someone who thrives in working with a variety of technologies, not just Microsoft technology, and enjoys engaging directly with customers on their toughest technical challenges. You will be solving exciting business problems, contributing to open source, and collaborating with Microsoft's most important customers. The role is a senior individual contributor role on Microsoft technical leadership career path. It combines deep technical skills with the ability to provide leadership at the seniormost levels within Microsoft and at our customers. You will work directly with Dominik Wee, CVP Forward-Deployed Engineering.

Our team prides itself on embracing a growth mindset, inspiring excellence, and encouraging everyone to share their unique viewpoints and be their authentic selves. Join us and help create life-changing innovations that impact billions around the world!

At Microsoft, we are seeking people who have a passion for the positive impact technology can have on communities and for making a difference in the world. Within ISE, you will find a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, personal and cultural experiences which are vital to our success with our customers. It’s an informal and flexible work environment and you’ll be welcome to work in the way that best enables you to get your job done.

We invest in your health, wellness, and financial future by offering a competitive package including a wide range of benefits built around your personal needs and those close to you.

Responsibilities

Engineering excellence

Demonstrate engineering excellence by staying current on the latest software engineering practices, helping the team embrace new technologies with rigor and consistency, and actively exchanging ideas with leading practitioners across ISE, Microsoft, and the broader industry to raise the bar on how we build and deliver.

Customer technical leadership

Provide customer technical leadership by engaging directly in lighthouse customer engagements, developing a strong understanding of customer business needs, and helping customers adopt the latest Microsoft technologies across the full stack to deliver meaningful business outcomes.

Product roadmap feedback

Provide product roadmap feedback by identifying recurring patterns across customer engagements, building trusted relationships with Microsoft product group leaders, and helping advance the product roadmap through clear, evidence-based insights from the field.

Hands-on technical leadership

Apply hands-on technical skills to advance the capabilities of both our own teams and our customers’ teams, and demonstrate the art of the possible through practical problem solving, prototyping, and direct engineering engagement.

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications (RQs/MQs)

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, or related technical discipline and technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python

  • OR equivalent experience.

Additional or Preferred Qualifications (PQs)

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science

  • OR related technical field and technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python

  • OR Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 15+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python

  • OR equivalent experience.

  • Enjoy travel and are comfortable with travel up to 25%

Our team prides itself on embracing a growth mindset, inspiring excellence, and encouraging everyone to share their unique viewpoints and be their authentic selves. Join us and help create life-changing innovations that impact billions around the world!

At Microsoft, we are seeking people who have a passion for the positive impact technology can have on communities and for making a difference in the world. Within ISE, you will find a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, personal and cultural experiences which are vital to our success with our customers. It’s an informal and flexible work environment and you’ll be welcome to work in the way that best enables you to get your job done.

We invest in your health, wellness, and financial future by offering a competitive package including a wide range of benefits built around your personal needs and those close to you.

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 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.

#ISEngineering

#WSS

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.

Company benefits

Wellbeing allowance
Health insurance
Dental coverage
Gym membership
Mental health platform access
Buy or sell annual leave
Shared parental leave
Charity donation scheme
Employee assistance programme
Employee discounts
Volunteer days – 3 days a year
Fertility treatment leave
Open to compressed hours
Open to job sharing
Fertility benefits
Enhanced sick pay
Enhanced sick days
Compassionate leave
Travel insurance
20 days annual leave + bank holidays
Enhanced maternity leave – 26 weeks paid
Enhanced paternity leave – 6 weeks paid
Adoption leave – 24 weeks paid
Childcare credits
Carer’s leave – 4 weeks paid
Cycle to work scheme
Faith rooms
Annual bonus
Annual pay rises
Company car
Hackathons
Open to part-time employees
Pregnancy loss leave
Life insurance
Equity packages
Financial coaching
Relocation packages
Sabbaticals
Enhanced pension match/contribution
Family health insurance
Learning license
In house training
Personal development days
Pregnancy support

Working at Microsoft UK

Company employees:

Globally: 228,000

Gender diversity (m:f):

67:33

Hiring in countries

United Kingdom

Office Locations

Awards & Accreditations

3rd - Most Family Friendly Company

3rd - Most Family Friendly Company

Flexa awards 2026
Most Family Friendly Company

Top 10 - Most Family Friendly Company

Flexa awards 2025
Best Career Progression

Best Career Progression

Flexa awards 2025
Most flexible companies

Most flexible companies

Flexa100 2024

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