Hardware Systems Engineer

Microsoft is a highly innovative company that collaborates across disciplines to produce cutting edge technology that changes our world.  The Azure Cloud Hardware and Infrastructure Engineering (CHIE) team is seeking a highly motivated senior hardware systems engineer to work in a team of other hardware and software developers to create systems and modules to be deployed in Microsoft’s Azure Cloud.  Microsoft provides ample opportunities for developers to have an impact on products that touch the lives of millions of users daily, in a cutting-edge public cloud environment.   

As a Systems Engineering team member, you will develop System Validation plans for Azures leading HW solutions by incorporating advanced technologies, datacenter use cases and by working across different engineering functions.  Responsibilities will include architecting and developing efficient test and debug frameworks for cutting edge technologies, building test and debug automation, partnering with leading technology providers to define test and debug strategies, driving unified and efficient test, validation and debug methodologies across product segments.  This is an opportunity to leverage and grow your existing hardware design/validation experience and provide innovative E2E hardware solutions to Microsoft Cloud. 

Come join this exciting and growing team through our monumental evolution of cloud hardware at Azure and Microsoft!   

Responsibilities

• Plan, design and execute System validation plans, test frameworks for state-of-the-art HW solutions based on CPU/GPU applications to confirm design meets cloud grade quality.  
• Drive continuous improvement to achieve unified and standard testing, validation and debug methodology – adopt automation, AI Capabilities to drive efficiency and enhance test coverage. 
• Work with OEMs/ODMs and other system engineers to run system validation, SKU qualification, scale testing, and system debugging.
• Hands on validation and debug work with test engineers in the laboratory.
• Identify, triage and resolve server subsystem faults; drive end-to-end root cause with cross team partners and implement fixes. 
• Work with stakeholders on process improvement, data quality improvement, and cross-boundary triaging.
• Develop automation and tooling for server validation in collaboration with other teams. 
• Develop application/system software, libraries, and drivers to interface with the firmware/ hardware devices.  
• Handle a DevOps role with occasional on-call responsibilities for resolving customer issues in production. 

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:  

• Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field OR Bachelors Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field AND 2+ years technical engineering experience OR equivalent experience.
• 2+ years of relevant experience in server systems/platforms development and validation for enterprise or cloud market segments. 
• 2+ years of hands-on experience in server hardware validation architecture, developing test infrastructure, writing test cases, automation and executing tests.  
• 2+ years of experience in programing languages such as Python/PowerShell or similar for automation development or integration.  

Other Qualifications:

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.

Preferred Qualifications:  

• Experience developing system‑level benchmarking or validation tools using C/C++ on PC or server platforms.
• Proven knowledge of Windows and Linux internals, including threading, scheduling, synchronization, and atomic operations.
• Proven understanding of hardware, firmware, and OS interactions, including CPU/GPU architectures and platform design trade‑offs.
• Hands‑on experience debugging complex system‑level issues across hardware, firmware, drivers, OS, and thermal behavior.
• Proficiency with hardware validation and debug tools (e.g., logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, PCIe analyzers).
• Familiarity with platform technologies such as PCIe, memory subsystems, networking, and power management.
• Experience with performance benchmarking and data analysis, including industry benchmarks (e.g., SPEC, Linpack, AI/ML workloads) and system‑level insights.

Hardware Engineering IC3 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $100,600 - $199,000 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 $131,400 - $215,400 per year.