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Microsoft UK • London, United Kingdom

Senior Optical Network Development Engineer

Employment type:  Full time

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top 3 scores:
83%

Location flexibility

81%

Hours flexibility

79%

Autonomy

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Job Description

At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, with Azure serving as the physical platform that underpins this mission. Azure Fiber is a critical component of Azure, dedicated to the design, buildout, and operations of the Global Optical Network. This network is the lifeline of connectivity, enabling seamless interaction with Azure and services like Teams, Xbox, Office, Bing, and OpenAI’s ChatGPT across the globe. With a focus on Hollow Core Fiber (HCF) and cable, Azure Fiber is preparing for exponential growth driven by continued Cloud success and new Artificial Intelligence (AI) demands, ensuring that every Microsoft customer can rely on our infrastructure for high-quality, secure, and reliable connectivity to all Microsoft services.


As an Senior Optical Network Developer, you will be responsible for deploying and operating optical networking solutions using both existing and new optical fiber technologies, including Hollow Core Fiber (HCF). Your role will involve collaborating with a wider team to develop a global operations strategy, creating automation platforms and hands on operating the network day to day. You will work alongside some of the brightest engineers to ensure a highly available network that meets the capacity demands driven by AI advancements.

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. In alignment with our Microsoft values, we are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment for all employees to positively impact our culture every day.

Responsibilities

  • Network Automation: Develop software solutions to automate operational runbooks and explore innovative approaches to reduce manual effort through AI and software solutions.
  • Incident Management: Be part of the Optical operational on-call rotation following the "follow the sun" model to maintain high network availability, swiftly addressing and resolving incidents as they arise.
  • Root Cause Analysis: Conduct in-depth investigations into issues, develop action plans, and implement changes to prevent future occurrences.
  • Next Gen Fiber Infrastructure: Contribute to the development of next-generation fiber infrastructure using Hollow Core Fiber (HCF) at scale.
  • Telemetry, Data Analysis, and Success Metrics: Monitor AI-optimized optical network telemetry and use data analytics to identify issues and improve products and services. Develop tools for automatic problem resolution and continuous network improvement. Establish and track metrics to continuously improve network availability and performance.
  • Design and Engineer Solutions: Develop and implement scalable network solutions to meet the growing demands of our infrastructure.
  • Continuous Improvement and Trend Adaptation: Keep up with optical networking and AI advancements. Incorporate new knowledge and technologies to enhance the performance and reliability of AI-optimized optical networks.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

  • Relevant technical experience in network Infrastructure, development, and automation
    • OR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related field AND relevant technical experience in Software or Network Engineering and Automation
    • OR Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field AND relevant technical experience in Software or Network Engineering and Automation
    • OR Doctorate Degree in Electrical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field

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.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Automation experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, Python, C#, JavaScript, SQL or RUST
  • 5+ years of technical experience with a focus on optical transceiver design, validation, and testing utilizing coherent, direct-detection, and WDM technologies
  • Experience problem-solving skills and a willingness to learn and adapt to new technologies
  • Experience communicating and the ability to work effectively in a team-oriented environment
  • A customer-first mentality, with a focus on delivering high-quality service

#azurecorejobs

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.

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
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
Enhanced paternity leave
Adoption leave
Childcare credits
Carer’s leave
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

We asked employees of Microsoft UK what it's like to work there, and this is what they told us.

Location flexibility
83%
Employees are very happy with their working location freedom
Hours flexibility
81%
Employees are very happy with the flexibility in the hours they work
Benefits
67%
Employees are largely happy with the benefits their company offers
Work-life balance
63%
Employees feel that they can switch off quite easily from work
Role modelling
74%
Employees feel that most people work flexibly
Autonomy
79%
Employees feel that they can mostly manage how they get their own work done

Working at Microsoft UK

Company employees

Globally: 228,000

Gender diversity (male:female)

67:33

Currently Hiring Countries

Netherlands

United Kingdom

Office Locations

Awards & Achievements

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Most flexible companies

Flexa100 2024