We are looking to hire a Solution Architect to join Microsoft Federal.

The Microsoft Federal organization was established to address the unique mission, legal/regulatory requirements, and procurement rules and processes of the United States Government (USG). Microsoft Federal is committed to ensuring its resources – including appropriately qualified, experienced, and certified personnel (with necessary security clearances or otherwise) are available as needed to meet USG evolving needs. To that end, Microsoft embraces, as a mission-critical philosophy, flexibility in the recruiting, hiring, and workforce assignment of Microsoft Federal personnel. Microsoft Federal personnel can expect to serve in various roles in the Microsoft Federal organization during the course of their career to meet evolving USG needs, regardless of segment – Civilian, Defense, or intelligence community.

Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset, a theme of inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. Growth mindset encourages each of us to lean in and learn what matters most to our customers, to create the foundational knowledge that enables us to make customer-first decisions in everything we do. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us achieve our mission.

Responsibilities

The Solution Architect role will help drive technical validation of customer intent and ensure solutions meet the requirements of the mission sets. This includes spearheading efforts for provisioning landing zones (Virtual Enclaves) as well as crafting technical architecture and cost estimates. The Solution Architect will support the Special Mission Design team which partners with customers to shape a common understanding of their mission needs through technical assessments (“discovery”), leading design sessions, and developing solution Courses of Action tailored for Special Access Program/Special Access Required requirements for meeting the customer’s business case and solving the identified needs.

Specific role duties include:

• Validation requirements through technical assessments• Lead design sessions and develop solution Courses of Action• Draft and deliver technical architectures and cost estimates• Hyperscale and hybrid Networking architecture design support

Understanding Customer/Partner Technical Environment

• Gathers customer/partner insights from a broad range of stakeholders as well as the primary business sponsor to shape and form both the definition and ongoing execution of projects. Identifies and evaluates industry trends (e.g., customer industry verticals, information technology [IT] industry, security applications and tools.). Provides guidance and adapts business models, plans, and solutions based on insights.

• Works with customer/partner stakeholders (e.g., Enterprise Architects, Security Team, Development Team, Operations Team) and business sponsor to socialize both the business solution and the project approach to determine if changes are needed to the business solution. Where the cost of change is accepted by the customer, shares this feedback with the project team and the broader account team to make the necessary adjustments using mechanisms such as updating the solution approach and projected costs in presales and change requests in delivery. Contributes to Microsoft-centric operations and cadences to align with customer feedback.

• Uses evidence-based approach to represent the customer/partner as a customer advocate and shares insights with Product Engineering teams and the business with a view to improving Microsoft technologies, products, services, and offerings such that they can better meet customer/partner needs across a territory.

Architecture Design and Deployment

• Leverages a structured approach to Architecture Projects using prevailing methodologies (e.g., Waterfall, Agile, Iterative) that make use of existing reference architecture and established architectural styles and design patterns. Proposes and helps develop new solutions to scale across multiple customers/partners. Builds and maintains an architecture description document, an architecture decisions log, and a requirements/constraints traceability matrix to ensure the rationale for the business solution's architecture is known and understood.

• Defines and documents the Architecture through an architecture description document, an architecture decisions log, and a requirements/constraints traceability matrix to communicate the value proposition of the business solution along with the project approach. Leads complex, cost-based, and technology-based discussions to explain the Architecture in terms of its build, deployment, and ongoing operational use to determine customer appetite for the business solution. Uses a business-value approach that values return on investment (ROI) and customer costs-savings over technical ease of execution.

• Collaborates with the Project Manager to jointly drive project/technical governance of the design, build, and deployment into use of proof of concepts (POCs) and pilots, using enterprise architecture processes and ensuring quality control through peer review. Works with customers to understand and demonstrate business value (e.g., release of revenue, cost savings) that the business solution realize.

• Works with the business sponsor and customer/partner stakeholders (e.g., Business users, Enterprise Architects, Security Team, Operations Team) to gather and ratify requirements and constraints. Manages and resolves complex ambiguity in the requirements and constraints and documents assumptions and implications where it cannot be resolved. Maintains the requirements/constraints traceability matrix to prove that solution components have a rationale/justification for inclusion in the architecture of the business solution.

• Works in close collaboration with the Project Manager and internal stakeholders to identify, categorize, and communicate business and technical risks. Defines risk mitigation activities that are foundational to the project plan. Defines risk contingency plans for invocation should the risk occur.

• Deep understanding of defense-in-depth designs in Azure.

• Deep understanding in Log Collection technologies, such as Log Analytics.

• Deep experience in Infrastructure as Code being deployed to cloud environments, including being able generate new IaC from scratch to meet customer requirements.

• Have knowledge in being able to architect, design, and implement mission critical solutions on the Azure Cloud.

• Have knowledge of how to integrate on-premise systems with Azure Cloud Services, this includes Microsoft and on-premise network solutions.

• Have an understanding of Microsoft Azure PaaS Services, to be able to assist customers in a modernization journey.

• Have an understanding of isolating data and customer workloads in Azure to ensure granular access to specific data sets.

• Have the ability to assess customer requirements and desires and to translate them to technical solutions in Azure.

Practice Development

• Generates new and/or improvements to existing intellectual property. Connects gaps and patterns across business and technology areas to drive changes. Identifies which ideas should be culled, with consideration for scale across customers. Drives the re-use of intellectual property and recommends best practices in both pre-sales and delivery. Participates and contributes to internal/external communities.

Trusted Advisor

• Develops a network of internal/external relationships with senior-level decision makers to build influence in addressing problems/blockers and facilitating additional views on the matter of interest. Acts as an advisor to external stakeholders. Provides direction to facilitate relationships between others. Stays up-to-date on Microsoft’s technologies, products, and services in order to communicate Microsoft's mission, strategy, and capabilities. When appropriate, develops a strategic relationship with key stakeholders within the customer portfolio, often as part of a steering committee, to ensure service delivery is on track and major issues are being anticipated, identified, and managed.

• Uses evidence-based arguments that articulate complex concepts in a simple manner to respectfully challenge Microsoft and customers/partners when a decision or course of action will not produce optimal results. Leverages strategic expertise to encourage alternative approaches where applicable. Serves as the "technical conscience" to challenge the status quo and unrealistic expectations. Proactively resolves conflicts and seeks resolution to balance the overall outcome. Drives consensus where possible and leads decisions to resolve conflict when needed.

• Leads the adoption of Microsoft solutions technologies based on understanding of competitor solutions and how customer business value can be driven through Microsoft's offerings. Differentiates Microsoft's solutions in customer/partner conversations to influence the industry-wide direction for specific architecture(s).

Thought Leadership

• Leads virtual teams around technologies and customer/partner challenges by sharing ideas, insight, and strategic, technical input with technical teams, internal communities across the field, and the larger virtual team across Microsoft using knowledge of Microsoft architectures and their context in the competitive landscape.

• Participates in external architect community events (e.g., conferences, seminars, technical meetups, Webcasts, blogs, hackathons) and shares learnings with internal team. Acts a mentor to less experienced colleagues by educating them on technical and non-technical concepts and sharing best practices. Demonstrates deep industry knowledge and drives recognition for Microsoft solutions through presentations and engagements with external audiences.

Other

• Embody our culture and values

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or related field AND 8+ years experience in technology solutions, practice development, architecture, consulting, and/or technology domain (e.g., Security)

• OR Master's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or related field AND 6+ years experience in technology solutions, practice development, architecture, consulting, and/or technology domain (e.g., Security)

• OR equivalent experience.

• 2+ years managing multiple projects or portfolios.

• 1+ year(s) experience leading blended, multidisciplinary teams.

Other Requirements

The successful candidate must have an active U.S. Government Top Secret/SCI Security Clearance.   Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. Failure to maintain or obtain the appropriate clearance and/or customer screening requirements may result in employment action up to and including termination.

Clearance Verification: This position requires successful verification of the stated security clearance to meet federal government customer requirements. You will be asked to provide clearance verification information prior to an offer of employment.

Cloud Screening:

Candidates must be able to successfully complete and pass a Microsoft Cloud background screening. Required Cloud Screenings will be administered on a recurring bi-annual basis.

Citizenship & Citizenship Verification: This position requires verification of U.S citizenship due to citizenship-based legal restrictions. Specifically, this position supports United States federal, state, and/or local United States government agency customers and is subject to certain citizenship-based restrictions where required or permitted by applicable law. To meet this legal requirement, citizenship will be verified via a valid passport, or other approved documents, or verified US government clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with the full software development lifecycle.

• Experience assessing the security of Azure cloud services.

• Experience providing information security guidance to the organization throughout the system lifecycle.

• Experience providing recommendations in technical standards, security standards, and operational assurance.

• Security + certification

• Microsoft Certified Azure Administrator AZ-104

Solution Architecture IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $115,500 - $205,000 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 $148,000 - $222,000 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

Microsoft will accept applications and processes offers for these roles on an ongoing basis.

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 (https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/accessibility.html) .