Principal Data Scientist

Overview

Microsoft Cloud Operations and Innovation (CO+I) is the team behind the cloud. The Fill-Up Colo organization is responsible for maximizing the use of available colocation capacity while maintaining deployment readiness and disciplined governance across Microsoft's global datacenter portfolio.

We are seeking a Principal Data Scientist to define and lead the analytics strategy, executive reporting, governance, and AI innovation required to achieve the organization's FY27 goal of packing 480 MW of capacity. This role will own OKR and program reporting products, including the 480 MW and deployed-power heatmaps, MW Fill Rate, Colo Tracker, and locked-reservation alerting. The successful candidate will establish trusted metrics, connect fragmented planning and execution signals, identify systemic opportunities, and provide decision intelligence for senior leadership.

This role has global scope and requires cross-organizational leadership across capacity planning, engineering, deployment, finance, operations, and product teams. It is a full-time Microsoft employee position because it requires authoritative metric ownership, sustained strategic accountability, access to business-critical context, and deep institutional and datacenter domain expertise that cannot be effectively provided by vendor resources.

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

• Define the analytics vision, operating model, and multi-year roadmap for Fill-Up Colo OKR and program reporting.
• Own the authoritative measurement framework for the FY27 480 MW goal, including metric definitions, targets, attribution, forecasts, and executive narratives.
• Lead development and governance of 480 MW and deployed-power heatmaps, MW Fill Rate, Colo Tracker, and locked-reservation alerting.
• Establish data contracts, lineage, quality controls, reconciliation standards, and decision rights across capacity, power, network, reservation, deployment, and financial data.
• Identify portfolio-level risks and opportunities, quantify business impact, and drive decisions with senior leadership and partner organizations.
• Design predictive, prescriptive, and AI-assisted solutions that improve capacity placement, reservation management, anomaly detection, forecasting, and operational responsiveness.
• Set technical standards for scalable data products, semantic models, experimentation, performance, reliability, and responsible AI.
• Lead complex cross-functional initiatives where requirements, ownership, and source-system definitions are ambiguous or evolving.
• Communicate strategy, progress, tradeoffs, and recommendations through concise executive reporting and business reviews.
• Provide technical direction and mentorship to data scientists, analysts, and engineers, raising the organization's analytical maturity.
• Embody our Culture and Values.

Required Qualifications

Doctorate in Data Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Econometrics, Economics, Operations Research, Computer Science, or related field AND 3+ years data-science experience (e.g., managing structured and unstructured data, applying statistical techniques and reporting results)

OR Master's Degree in Data Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Econometrics, Economics, Operations Research, Computer Science, or related field AND 5+ years data-science experience (e.g., managing structured and unstructured data, applying statistical techniques and reporting results)

OR Bachelor's Degree in Data Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Econometrics, Economics, Operations Research, Computer Science, or related field AND 7+ years data science experience (e.g., managing structured and unstructured data, applying statistical techniques and reporting results)

OR equivalent experience.

3+ years people-management experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in data science, computer science, statistics, engineering, operations research, or a related field AND 10+ years of data science, analytics, data engineering, or related experience, OR equivalent experience.
• Master's degree or doctorate in data science, computer science, statistics, engineering, operations research, or a related field.
• 7+ years of experience with SQL and analytical programming using Python, R, or a comparable language.
• 5+ years of experience leading complex, cross-functional data or analytics programs from strategy through production adoption.
• Experience owning executive metrics, OKRs, governance, forecasting, or decision-support systems for large-scale operational programs.
• Experience influencing senior leaders and establishing alignment across organizations with competing priorities and ambiguous ownership.
• Deep experience in datacenter capacity planning, network and power infrastructure, hardware deployment, colocation operations, or cloud infrastructure.
• Experience with Microsoft analytics technologies such as Azure Data Explorer/Kusto, Power BI, Fabric, Azure Databricks, or Azure Machine Learning.
• Experience designing predictive, prescriptive, optimization, anomaly-detection, or generative AI solutions for operational decision-making.
• Demonstrated success establishing enterprise metric governance, data contracts, lineage, and trusted executive reporting.
• Demonstrated record of technical leadership, organizational influence, mentoring, and translating strategy into measurable business outcomes.

Other Requirements

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.

#COICareers

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Data Science M5 - 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.

Insights from previous hires

Top skills: Computer Science, C++, Architecture, Algorithms, Agile Methodologies, Science, NET Framework, Design, Datasets, Databases

Common previous titles: Technician, Principal Data Scientist, Lead Data Scientist, Capacity Planning Lead, Software Engineer II, Senior Researcher, Senior Business Planner, Software Engineer, Senior Research Engineer, Senior Data Scientist