Principal Hardware Engineer

Microsoft • San Diego, CA

2d • $142,800 - $304,200

About The Position

Microsoft Silicon, Cloud Hardware, and Infrastructure Engineering (SCHIE) is the team behind Microsoft’s expanding Cloud Infrastructure and responsible for powering Microsoft’s “Intelligent Cloud” mission. SCHIE delivers the core infrastructure and foundational technologies for Microsoft's over 200 online businesses including Bing, MSN, Office 365, Xbox Live, Teams, OneDrive, and the Microsoft Azure platform globally with our server and data center infrastructure, security and compliance, operations, globalization, and manageability solutions. Our focus is on smart growth, high efficiency, and delivering a trusted experience to customers and partners worldwide and we are looking for passionate engineers to help achieve that mission. The Azure Memory & Storage (AMS) Commodity Quality and Validation Engineering (CQVE) team is responsible for ensuring storage device quality, reliability, and compliance before deployment at Azure scale. We are seeking a highly motivated HDD Lead Engineer to drive the Certified Device List (CDL) qualification program for hard disk drives (HDDs). This role will lead HDD qualification strategy, develop and enhance validation test suites, translate industry and Microsoft requirements into test procedures, partner closely with HDD suppliers, and drive continuous quality improvements based on fleet learnings. The successful candidate will play a key role in delivering high-quality HDD solutions that meet Azure's reliability, performance, security, and compatibility requirements while helping prevent validation escapes and fleet-impacting issues. We are looking for a Principal Hardware Engineer to join our team!

Requirements

• Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field AND 7+ years technical engineering experience OR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience OR equivalent experience
• 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.

Nice To Haves

• 8+ years of experience working with enterprise storage technologies, including HDDs, SSDs, SAS, SATA, or NVMe devices, with demonstrated expertise in storage architecture, performance, reliability, and failure analysis.
• 5+ years of experience leading development of validation strategies, qualification programs, test methodologies, or automated test frameworks for hardware products.
• Proven experience leading cross-functional technical initiatives and influencing product quality, validation requirements, or engineering roadmaps across suppliers, partners, and internal engineering organizations.
• Master's Degree or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical field.
• Deep expertise in HDD technologies, including HAMR, SMR, PMR, SAS/SATA protocols, storage reliability, firmware behavior, and large-capacity enterprise storage systems.
• Experience defining device qualification strategies, certification programs, or validation standards for hyperscale cloud, datacenter, or enterprise storage deployments.
• Experience collaborating directly with storage device suppliers to influence product design, validation methodologies, debugging efforts, and quality improvement initiatives.
• Proficiency in test automation, software development, and data analysis using Python, C#, PowerShell, or similar languages.
• Experience with industry standards and specifications, including OCP, NVMe, SPC, SCSI, ATA, TCG, and related storage technologies.
• Proven track record of driving complex technical decisions, influencing engineering direction across organizations, and delivering large-scale quality or reliability improvements.
• Experience leveraging AI, automation, or advanced analytics to improve engineering productivity, qualification efficiency, or failure analysis workflows.

Responsibilities

• Translate Microsoft, OCP, security, reliability, and platform requirements into comprehensive HDD validation strategies, test plans, and qualification procedures.
• Design, develop, and maintain automated HDD CDL test suites covering functionality, performance, reliability, power, security, interoperability, and fleet-specific validation scenarios
• Analyze fleet learnings, field incidents, and validation escapes to identify coverage gaps and drive continuous enhancement of HDD qualification methodologies and test content.
• Partner closely with HDD suppliers to review qualification results, debug failures, assess corrective actions, and ensure compliance with Microsoft quality and certification requirements
• Lead technical discussions with cross-functional teams including platform engineering, storage architecture, reliability engineering, and datacenter operations to align qualification requirements with Azure deployment needs.
• Perform deep technical analysis of HDD failures using protocol traces, logs, telemetry, and diagnostic data to identify root causes and drive issue resolution with suppliers
• Drive qualification readiness for next-generation HDD technologies and ensure new devices meet Azure requirements for reliability, performance, compatibility, security, and serviceability
• Influence industry specifications, Microsoft validation standards, and supplier test methodologies by identifying opportunities to improve qualification coverage and overall device quality.
• Mentor engineers and provide technical leadership in storage validation, test development, qualification practices, and HDD technology advancements.

Benefits

• The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $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.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal