Overview

Microsoft Digital (MSD) builds and manages the critical products and services that Microsoft runs on. We boldly pursue big ideas that power transformational advances at Microsoft and for our customers, while helping Microsoft teams work smarter, faster, and more securely every day. Microsoft Digital employees have deep technical and business expertise, customer insights, and a clear point of view that comes from first-hand, large-scale experience with Microsoft and industry solutions. We are engineers, technology leaders and experts, digital transformation change agents, and customer advocates.

As a Principal TPM Manager, you will lead a team and a portfolio of cross-functional programs that modernize and optimize Microsoft’s Software Asset Management (SAM) lifecycle—making it simple, intuitive, cost-effective, and compliant—while introducing new capabilities (including automation and AI-driven workflows) that improve the experience and productivity of users and administrators. You will drive end-to-end operational strategy and execution across services and components, define the service offering and roadmap, establish success criteria and performance metrics, and influence senior stakeholders and external partners to deliver integrated solutions, manage risk, and achieve measurable business and customer outcomes.

The ideal candidate possesses software asset management experience in a large global organization, deep enterprise software licensing knowledge, and a proven track record in audit, compliance, and team leadership. We are looking for candidates that demonstrate strong business acumen, thought leadership, critical thinking, and negotiation skills with a track record of strong customer advocacy along with effective negotiating, influencing, and leadership skills mixed with creativity and deep subject matter expertise will be essential to achieve strategic alignment of goals across this broad range of stakeholders.

This position is based at the Redmond campus with 3 days per week work in the office and 2 days per week work from home. Relocation assistance is available.

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

Analysis of Customer and Business Needs

Leads cross-division discovery to define problem statements, form hypotheses, and validate solutions for complex customer and business needs across multiple products and functional areas. Uses customer/stakeholder engagement, research, telemetry, and AI-driven insights to identify patterns and root causes, determine impact, and influence prioritization. Drives alignment with Microsoft strategy, clarifies dependencies, and leads process/system improvements and change management to accelerate delivery.

Guides teams to identify opportunities and gaps, share best practices, and assess competitor/industry trends and regulatory requirements to improve business value and customer outcomes.

People Management

Delivers success through empowerment and accountability by modeling Microsoft’s values, coaching teams to clear outcomes, and caring for people through inclusive leadership, growth and development, and talent retention.

Product/Service/Solution Development

Orchestrates large cross-functional programs and integrated solutions with internal teams and external partners, driving alignment on scope, tradeoffs, dependencies, and execution.

Defines release and adoption plans, aligned to OKRs/KPIs, and partners with stakeholders to track progress, resolve issues, and adjust plans as needed.

Drives roadmap prioritization across functional areas, clarifies value propositions and resource needs, and ensures AI-enabled features meet quality, security, privacy, and responsible AI standards.

Holds teams accountable by driving compliance with all privacy, security, accessibility, quality, responsibility, safety, and other legal and business requirements and standards.

Leads end-to-end planning and schedule management using automation/AI where appropriate, proactively managing dependencies, risks, and course corrections to deliver connected user scenarios.

Applies industry expertise to validate scenarios and performance targets against business goals, and drives continuous quality improvements.

In addition to these core responsibilities, you will also:

• Drive continuous improvement and partner with Security, Procurement, Finance, and Legal to enable AI-driven transformation of the software asset management program.
• Define and govern processes for license acquisition, deployment, usage, optimization, entitlement compliance, and renewals.
• Manage suppliers and contracts, including renewals, negotiations, and compliance audits.
• Identify and mitigate compliance and security risks through gap analysis and remediation plans.
• Embed automation across tools, processes, and compliance checks/reporting.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development
  • OR equivalent experience.
• 4+ years people management experience.
• 3+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.

Technical Program Management M5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $139,900 - $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.

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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.