Technology Consulting Principal Consultant

Microsoft's core mission is to enable everyone and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Industry Solutions (IS) is a global team of over 16,000 strategic sellers, industry experts, elite engineers, architects and consultants, who collaborate with delivery experts to bring Microsoft's vision of empowerment - and state-of-the-art technology - to life for the world's most influential customers. We are at the forefront of innovation, working closely with customers to create value throughout their digital transformation journey. Our team values growth mindset, excellence, and diversity of perspectives and identities. 

This role provides the opportunity to apply your skills in significant projects, whether guiding decisions, assessing outcomes, collaborating with the team, or playing a critical role, all aimed at delivering outstanding value to our customers. The ideal candidate will have the ability to blend technical skills, creativity, and a strong customer focus to deliver exceptional solutions, helping customers fully utilize our technologies and solutions. Consulting Delivery professionals bring deep subject matter and solution expertise to architectural teams, customers, and partners. They use their extensive technical and business knowledge to accelerate the adoption of Microsoft services by aligning strategies, architectures, and operations with customer and partner objectives. 

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, and we’re dedicated to this mission across every aspect of our company. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. Join us and help shape the future of the world.   

Responsibilities

Innovation  

• Collaborate closely with other teams at Microsoft to create offerings and best practices that align with the future direction of cloud native application development and app modernization.  

• Foster a culture of innovation by encouraging exploration of new ideas and technologies. 

• Lead the development and implementation of innovative solutions that align with the organization's strategic goals. 

• Identify and incubate new business opportunities through technology-driven initiatives and partnerships. 

Thought Leadership 

• Spearhead discussions and share insights on emerging technologies and trends within internal Microsoft forums and industry events. 

• Represent the organization at key industry conferences, panels, and webinars to establish thought leadership and influence. 

• Collaborate with other thought leaders to drive the technology agenda and contribute to whitepapers, blogs, and publications. 

Technical Delivery   

• Collaborate with the customer CIOs, other C-level executives, to align customer vision with solutions. Leads meetings to identify business needs and create a vision.  

• Apply technical experience and industry-specific knowledge to develop solutions.  

• Manage and provide guidance to 2-3 complex escalations, analyzes situations, and coordinate appropriate resources to resolve issues by following delivery best practices.   

• Review quality assurance, identify and mitigate technical risk and build contingency plans. 

Capability Building & Technical Intensity 

• Identify necessary certifications and create readiness plans for the organization.  

• Provide mentorship to team members and serve as a technical advisor to stakeholders, offering thought leadership and articulating the value of solutions. 

• Continuously learn and enhance capabilities by adopting new technologies or services in response to business needs and industry trends. Pursue relevant certifications and accreditations.  

• Lead or actively participate in relevant technical communities and conduct training sessions to promote technologies or offerings as they become available.  

Presales Support 

• Engage with Architects during pre-sales to communicate value propositions for key Microsoft products and services. 

• Collaborate during pre-sales with internal stakeholders to shape deals and influence solution architecture and estimates.  

• Contribute to Solution Review Meetings (SRM) and Technical Quality Assurance (TQA) process. 

Areas of Expertise   

• .NET Tools and Technologies – experience of leveraging the same and designing, implementing, and deploying Business Mission Critical applications.  

• Expertise in leading and delivering digital transformation projects.  

• Exceptional coding abilities and experience with architectural patterns for large, high-scale applications on cloud platforms with a focus on performance and resiliency.  

• Extensive experience in implementing, operating, customizing, tuning and troubleshooting large-scale Cloud solutions.    

• Full-stack developer with experience at many layers of the tech stack (native, web, service, UX, model, data) and good proficiency in one or more of C#, JavaScript, Typescript, AngularJS/ReactJS, HTML5, CSS/SCSS.  

• Proven experience in creating a reusable framework for application development addressing cross-cutting concerns.  

• Excellence in software engineering practices, coding and solid foundation in data structures, algorithms with strong testing, debugging and analytical skills.   

• Hands-on experience with multi-threaded/parallel programming, Application design patterns, and anti-patterns, such as MVC, CQRS and/or SAGA    

• Hands on experience with Application monitoring and end to end telemetry in the cloud.  

• Proficient with one or more Cloud Databases such as Azure SQL, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MariaDB    

• Hands-on experience in implementing micro-services architecture using technologies such as Kubernetes, Service Fabric, Cloud Foundry, Azure Functions   

• Defining CI/CD pipelines to automate test and release across different application environments using concepts such as Blue/Green and Canary deployments and related technologies.   

• Expertise in security controls such as encryption, AuthN/AuthZ.   

• Expertise in Zero-Trust framework, Secure by Default design, Identity and Access Management (IAM), cloud security architecture, compliance standards, threat modeling, DevSecOps, continuous security improvement.  

• Knowledge of the least privilege access, assume breach, micro-segmentation, continuous monitoring and validation, strong authentication, endpoint security, automated security testing (SAST and DAST), secure CI/CD practices. 

• Expertise with Tools such as Azure Sentinel, Splunk, Microsoft Threat Modeling Tool, Microsoft Defender for Cloud. 

• Experience in Open-source technologies and frameworks are an added plus.    

• Prior experience in Cloud migration, Java, AWS or Google cloud is a definite plus.  

• Industry knowledge in one or more of the following industries: automotive, energy, travel and transportation, financial services, government, health, manufacturing, media & communications, or retail/supply chain.    

Nice to have Skills   

• Multi-cloud experience a plus - AWS, Google Cloud Platform 

 Other  

• Embody our culture and values  

Qualifications

Need to have a deep technical background with 20+ years of technology-related experience, along with 10+ years of Microsoft Azure (Experience on AWS or GCP will be an added advantage). 

• You must have a degree in Computer Science Engineering or equivalent work experience. Higher relevant education preferred.  

• Highly proficient & solid Customer facing Project experience involving solution design, project envisioning, planning, development, and deployment of complex solutions with minimum of 10 plus years.  

• Must have a proven record of delivering technical solutions.  

• Must have completed one or more of the following certifications:  

• Azure Developer Associate  

• Azure Solution Architect Expert 

• Azure AI Engineer Associate 

Interpersonal Skills  

• Confidence in engaging with senior organizational leaders to present, defend, or clarify concerns related to ongoing projects, programs, or solutions. 

• Proficiency in planning, organizing, and managing tasks and resources to achieve specific objectives. 

• An ability to articulate and convey value both within the company and to external stakeholders by sharing relevant stories and historical examples. 

• Capability to adapt behavior to suit different people and situations while recognizing, understanding, and appreciating diverse perspectives. 

• A confident decision-maker with an investigative and curious mindset. 

• Flexibility to navigate and manage effectively in a fast-paced, ambiguous consulting environment. 

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 a 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.