Principal Software Engineer - Systems Architect at Microsoft Corporation United States

Hong Kong Study Skills Research Institute; United States; On-site; USD 139,900 - 274,800; Full time

Job summary

Hong Kong Study Skills Research Institute is seeking a Principal Software Engineer - Systems Architect to join the CISO Security Engineering team. This role requires a strong background in software engineering and architecture to address technical security challenges affecting Microsoft’s products.

The ideal candidate should possess a Bachelor’s degree and over 6 years of experience in software development, particularly in languages such as C, C++, C#, Java, and Python. The position includes leading architectural discussions and mentoring engineering teams.

Qualifications

• 6 years of technical engineering experience with coding in various programming languages.
• Experience operating in a complex, matrixed organization.
• Ability to define success metrics and strategic direction.

Responsibilities

• Lead security design and architecture for Microsoft products.
• Develop scalable and reliable code for essential security functions.
• Mentor junior and senior engineers in design and testing processes.

Skills

C

C++

C#

Java

JavaScript

Python

Technical Engineering

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related technical field

Master’s Degree in Computer Science or related field

Job description

Principal Software Engineer - Systems Architect

Microsoft Security invites a technically proficient Principal Software Engineer - Systems Architect to join the CISO Security Engineering team. The role involves applying software engineering and architecture skills to solve technical security challenges that impact Microsoft’s products and customers.

Responsibilities

• Lead security design and architecture: analyze challenges in the security business domain, develop durable solutions, and own the technical approach to create and improve architecture.
• Guide cross‑functional teams through architectural discussions and decision‑making for solution components, including design, compliance and cost considerations.
• Develop and present architecture and design proposals, lead the testing and validation of hypotheses and proposed solutions.
• Author well‑designed, scalable, reliable code, including libraries for essential security functions and proof‑of‑concept code.
• Collaborate with partner teams and product teams to understand product and platform architecture and develop thoughtful security improvements.
• Lead the creation of design documentation and user stories, determine appropriate technologies and their interactions, facilitate and contribute to design discussions.
• Mentor junior and senior engineers throughout the design and testing process.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and at least 6 years of technical engineering experience with coding in languages including C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
• 4+ years of experience operating and influencing teams in a complex, matrixed organization.
• Experience bringing clarity to ambiguity by defining success metrics, aligning stakeholders, and authoring strategic direction documents that drive cross‑functional execution.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in Computer Science or related field and at least 8 years of technical engineering experience with the same languages, or a Bachelor’s Degree and at least 10 years of technical engineering experience.
• Experience building scaled cloud services.

Compensation

Software Engineering IC5 – Pay range varies by location: U.S. $139,900 – $274,800 per year, San Francisco Bay Area and New York City – $188,000 – $304,200 per year.

Equal Employment Opportunity

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.