Overview

We’re building Windows into the best place in the world for developers to build, run, and ship applications—now enhanced by AI and agent-driven workflows.

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will shape the end-to-end developer experience on Windows—from platform capabilities and frameworks to tools, workflows, and AI-powered experiences. You will identify friction across real-world developer journeys and lead system-level improvements that make developers more productive, faster, and more successful on Windows.

This is a large scoped, individual contributor role with broad influence across Windows, developer platforms, frameworks, and AI tooling.

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

• Developer Platform Strategy: Define and drive the technical vision for Windows as a world-class developer platform, ensuring the OS, SDK, and toolchain deliver seamless, modern, and performant development workflows.
• AI-Powered Developer Experiences: Lead the design and implementation of AI-infused developer tools and experiences — including intelligent code assistance, automated diagnostics, smart build/test pipelines, and context-aware productivity features — that set Windows apart as the premier platform for software development.
• End-to-End Developer Journey: Own and improve the developer experience holistically — from environment setup and inner-loop development, through debugging, testing, and deployment — removing friction and delighting developers at every step.
• Cross-Team Technical Leadership: Partner with teams across Microsoft to align platform investments, unify developer surfaces, and deliver cohesive experiences that span the Microsoft developer ecosystem.
• Architecture & Engineering Excellence: Drive architectural decisions for large-scale platform components, establish engineering best practices, and raise the quality bar across the team through code reviews, design reviews, and mentorship.
• Community & Ecosystem Engagement: Represent the team externally at conferences, in open-source communities, and with key developer partners. Incorporate developer feedback into platform strategy and advocate for the needs of the developer community.
• Technical Mentorship: Mentor and grow senior engineers across the organization. Foster a culture of innovation, experimentation, and continuous learning within the team.

Qualifications Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
• OR equivalent experience.

Preferred Qualification:

• 10+ years of software engineering experience with deep systems or platform expertise.
• Proven track record of delivering large-scale platform or developer-facing investments.
• Strong experience in C++, C#, or comparable systems languages.
• Experience building developer tools, SDKs, or improving developer workflows.
• Experience with Windows Subsystem for Linux.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-team technical initiatives and influence direction.
• Experience with developer platforms (e.g., Windows, Linux, cloud dev environments).
• Hands-on experience with AI/ML or AI-assisted development workflows.
• Familiarity with Windows developer tools and frameworks (or cross-platform tooling).
• Experience improving performance, reliability, or diagnosability at system level.
• Passion for developer productivity and ecosystem health.

#W+DJOBS

Software Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $139,900 - $274,800 per year. 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 $188,000 - $304,200 per year.

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

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.