Principal Software Engineering Manager - Halo Studios

Halo Studios is shaping the future of the blockbuster Halo series with Unreal Engine. As part of Xbox Game Studios, the Halo franchise spans games, novels, comics, licensed collectibles, apparel, andmore-unitedbya vision of heroism, mystery, and wonder. With multiple projects underway, join our team as we forge the next generation of experiences in our award-winning sci-fi universe.

We are seeking a Principal Engineering Manager to lead the AI Workflow Innovation team. This leader will define and execute strategies that modernize creative and operational processes, empower teams through smarter tools, andprovidearchitectural guidance to our CI/CD build and automation systems.

The Workflow Innovation team focuses on making development faster, more connected, and more efficient-streamlining pipelines, reducing repetitive tasks, and enabling creators to focus on what they do best: building incredible games.

Scope & Focus Areas:

Creative Workflow Optimization: Introduce and responsibly operationalize tools that accelerate art, animation, narrative, and design workflows-helping creators deliver high-quality content whilemaintainingfull creative control.

Studio Workflow Intelligence: Develop systems and automation that simplify daily operations, connect dispersed data, and allow teams to interact with information naturally through chat, search, and voice.

CI/CD and Workflow Architecture: Partner with build and automation teams toestablishscalable architectures, improve job orchestration, and enhance diagnostics for betterdevelopmentvelocity and reliability.

Data Integration & Platform Foundations: Build andmaintaininternal platforms that unify data across tools and systems (e.g., Jira, Confluence, SharePoint) into a secure,queryableenvironment.

Governance & Responsible Adoption: Collaborate with Infrastructure, Security, and Operations to ensure new technologies are integrated responsibly and aligned with studio policies.

• Define and drive the vision for workflow innovation that accelerates creative and operational processes.
• Provide architectural leadership and partner with CI/CD and automation teams to align initiatives with scalable, performant systems.
• Develop andmaintainplatforms and automation that unify data, enhance collaboration, and reduce repetitive effort.
• Design and deliver tools and frameworks that augment content creation and studio operations.
• Partner with cross-disciplineleaders to embednew technologiesresponsibly within studio systems and workflows.
• Mentor and grow a small engineering team focused on integration, automation, and data-driven decision-making.
• Evaluate, pilot, and operationalize emerging technologies for creative and operational use cases.
• Establish technical standards and best practices for scalability, maintainability, and ethical use.
• CollaboratewithMicrosoft Gaming teams to ensure alignment and shared learning.

Software Engineering 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.

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.