Sr. Software Engineer--M365 Directory team
Confirmed on the employer's own hiring board on Oct 17, 2026. First seen by Alion on Oct 15, 2026. Microsoft scores B on the Alion truth index.
Do you want to help modernize one of the foundational platforms behind Microsoft 365? The Directory team is undertaking a multi-year transformation to build the next generation of Microsoft 365 directory infrastructure.
Directory Modernization is redesigning directory storage, APIs, synchronization, caching, and traffic-management systems to eliminate legacy Active Directory dependencies and enable a secure, scalable, reliable, and cloud-native architecture. This work involves transitioning business-critical data and traffic to modern systems without disrupting existing services or customers. It presents challenging engineering problems across distributed data systems, service architecture, data consistency, high availability, performance, security, and large-scale migration.
We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer to own the design and delivery of key capabilities within Directory Modernization. In this role, you will solve complex and ambiguous technical problems, design extensible distributed systems, and collaborate with engineers and partner teams across Microsoft. You will have the opportunity to influence technical direction, improve engineering and operational excellence, mentor other engineers, and deliver foundational capabilities used by Microsoft 365 services.
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
Partner with appropriate stakeholders to understand customer and service requirements, clarify ambiguous scenarios, and define technical requirements and success criteria for Directory Modernization.
Own the architecture, design, implementation, and delivery of one or more complex directory subsystems, such as modern directory storage, service APIs, synchronization and data-migration pipelines, caching, or traffic-management capabilities.
Design and implement secure, scalable, reliable, and maintainable distributed systems. Develop automated testing, telemetry, data-validation, deployment, migration, and rollback mechanisms that enable existing data and traffic to transition safely to the modernized platform.
Identify technical dependencies and drive alignment across engineering and partner teams. Contribute to project plans, interface contracts, design reviews, release plans, and long-term technical direction.
Serve as a Designated Responsible Individual for owned components, including monitoring service health, participating in on-call rotations, mitigating live-site incidents, completing root-cause analyses, and delivering durable improvements to availability, performance, security, and operational efficiency.
Lead by example through high-quality engineering practices, code and design reviews, technical documentation, and data-driven decision-making. Mentor other engineers and share knowledge that improves the capability and effectiveness of the broader team.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 4+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR equivalent experience.
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:
- Master'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 Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
- OR equivalent experience.
- Demonstrated ability to effectively use AI-assisted tools and techniques to investigate complex technical problems, evaluate potential solutions, and accelerate implementation while maintaining high standards for correctness, security, and engineering quality.
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.