Senior Lease Administration Lead

Microsoft•Redmond, WA

About The Position

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. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us achieve our mission. Every company is looking to change how they use digital technology to fundamentally reimagine how they empower their employees, engage customers, optimize their operations and change the very core of their products and services. Microsoft is positioned to become the strategic digital transformation platform and partner of choice. Microsoft will reinvent productivity to empower every person and every organization on the planet to do more and achieve more. Microsoft is an active acquirer and has executed well over 100 acquisitions in the past 10 years, including Github, LinkedIn, Skype, Mojang (Minecraft) and most recently, Nuance. Are you interested in being part of a highly motivated global portfolio team supporting a Data Center Portfolio in one of the world’s largest technology companies in the World? Our work underpins Microsoft Cloud Operations & Innovation team growth and expansion into new markets and diverse customer requirements. Role Overview We are looking for a Senior Lease Administration Lead for delivering expert Lease Administration support across Microsoft’s global data center portfolio. The position ensures contractual compliance, financial accuracy, and risk mitigation across complex, mission‑critical lease agreements while partnering closely with Portfolio Management, Finance, Legal, Engineering, and external Lessors to support scalable global operations. The Senior Lease Administration Lead owns day‑to‑day execution of lease administration activities, including but not limited to interpretation and application of lease terms, management of critical dates and obligations, validation of financial and operational requirements, and stewardship of lease data used to inform portfolio decisions. Acting as a key participant in business rhythms, this role provides subject‑matter expertise, proactive issue identification, process and program development, and solution‑oriented recommendations to support operational continuity and portfolio growth. In addition to execution, this role drives continuous improvement initiatives, identifying opportunities to standardize processes, reducing manual effort, and improve data quality across the lease administration lifecycle. The role actively explores and applies automation, AI, and advanced analytics capabilities to enhance efficiency, improve compliance monitoring, and enable data‑driven insights for stakeholders. This includes partnering with cross‑functional teams to modernize tools, workflows, and reporting that support lease governance at scale. This position operates as a trusted advisor and escalation point for complex lease matters, supports outsourced delivery partners through clear requirements and quality oversight, and collaborates across internal and external stakeholders to ensure Microsoft meets its contractual, regulatory, and operational obligations across a rapidly evolving global data center portfolio.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Real Estate, Project Management, or related field, AND 5+ years relevant experience OR 7+ years 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.
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 customer 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.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Real Estate, Project Management, or related field AND 7+ years portfolio management, real estate, or office management experience OR 10+ years equivalent experience.
8+ years of experience in Lease Administration, Data Center Real Estate Professional
Experience and competence ERP & Real Estate Management software platforms
Experience and competence in data manipulation and analytics using Excel and PowerBI
Experience and competence in presenting data-driven storytelling in PowerPoint
Ability to work in a high stress, fast paced environment prone to change management
Ability to work independently while maintaining all deadlines and critical date obligations while showing work
An ability to communicate clearly and effectively and build trust with colleagues
Contract management or lease administration background.
Contract Interpretation, Contract Analyst

Responsibilities

Review, administer, and govern lease‑related documentation, ensuring accurate abstraction, validation, and maintenance of critical lease data within Global Portfolio Management systems.
Own the tracking and management of all leases, amendments, contracts, and associated documentation across the portfolio, maintaining a complete and auditable system of record.
Develop, implement, and continuously improve standardized procedures, controls, and systems that streamline Global Portfolio Management and lease administration operations at scale.
Operate as a Subject Matter Expert on lease administration tools, processes, and governance models to drive consistency, standardization, and operational rigor across the organization.
Provide programmatic leadership and input on lease compliance, risk management, and control effectiveness across strategic partnerships and the full contract base.
Enable innovative, data‑driven solutions by applying deep lease administration expertise, process optimization, and tooling to deliver business priorities and operational efficiencies.
Establish and execute a results‑oriented, analytics‑driven approach to strategic asset and lease management, identifying opportunities for automation, efficiency gains, and continuous improvement.
Project manage cross‑functional initiatives with clearly defined, time‑bound deliverables, ensuring alignment, accountability, and measurable outcomes.
Influence without authority by removing barriers, driving clarity, and creating pathways to progress through assertive, growth‑minded ownership and stakeholder partnership.
Collaborate with Legal, Finance, Operations, and external partners to support lease administration requirements and ensure alignment with Global Portfolio Management objectives.
Create and deliver internal analytics, dashboards, and executive‑ready presentations that support lease administration operations, performance reviews, and leadership decision‑making.
Support oversight of vendor‑provided lease administration services, including performance monitoring, issue resolution, and alignment to contractual and operational expectations for CO+I.
Conduct periodic business reviews with internal and external stakeholders to assess satisfaction, identify gaps, and drive continuous improvement across lease administration programs.