The Principal Applied AI Engineering Manager will lead a high-performing AI engineering pod within the Azure Engineering Operations team. This role focuses on building and shipping production agentic AI services that enhance customer support for Azure. The manager will be responsible for engineering execution, setting technical direction, and ensuring the reliability of AI agents. This position directly impacts millions of Azure customers by driving measurable improvements in service quality and efficiency.

• Bachelor's Degree AND 6+ years experience in low-code application development, engineering product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development OR equivalent experience.
• Proficiency in Python and C# with hands-on experience building production AI/ML systems.
• Experience with LLM-based systems, including prompt engineering, RAG architectures, or agent frameworks.
• Experience with cloud platforms (Azure) and cloud-native service development (microservices, containers, CI/CD).
• 3+ years people management and/or informal/indirect team leadership experience.

• Build and lead the AI engineering pod by hiring, coaching, and developing a team of Applied AI Engineers.
• Own engineering execution for agentic AI services, driving the end-to-end lifecycle from spec to deployment.
• Set technical direction and engineering standards, defining architecture patterns and code quality bars.
• Ensure deployed AI agents meet quality, performance, and safety standards, driving incident response and continuous improvement.
• Establish evaluation frameworks to validate agent correctness and safety before and after production deployment.
• Partner with product and platform engineering teams to influence product roadmaps and translate customer support patterns into engineering priorities.
• Own KPIs related to case volume reduction, automation accuracy, and customer satisfaction impact.
• Embed responsible AI practices and compliance into all agent systems architecturally.
• Mentor engineers on applied AI engineering craft and build career growth paths across AI engineering competencies.

• Employees at Microsoft are often offered comprehensive, “world-class” benefits—including health and mental-wellness programs, competitive pay with bonuses and stock awards, and retirement/savings options. Time-off and flexibility are common, with generous vacation and holidays, parental and caregiver leave, and flexible work schedules, alongside learning support, employee resource groups, product discounts, and matching-gifts/volunteering programs. Specific benefits can vary by region.