Description

Overview

Drive Innovation. Lead Transformation. Empower Impact.
Are you passionate about shaping the future through cutting-edge technology and leading complex, high-impact projects? At Microsoft, we're looking for a visionary Principal Project Manager to lead our most ambitious transformation projects and deliver measurable impact across our German business and global practice.

About Microsoft Industry Solutions Delivery

Microsoft Industry Solutions Delivery is a global team of over 6,000 professionals - including strategic sellers, industry and security experts, elite engineers, data scientists, architects, consultants, and delivery specialists. Together with our partners, we help Microsoft's most strategic customers solve their toughest challenges through tailored, industry-specific solutions.

What You'll Do

As a Principal Project Manager, you will:

• Lead large-scale, complex software development and technology transformation projects, ensuring alignment with business objectives and stakeholder expectations.
• Inspire and guide cross-functional teams from vision through execution, fostering collaboration and accountability.
• Achieve measurable business outcomes that strengthen our internal practice and drive impact in the German market.
• Demonstrate strategic leadership and operational excellence.

What We Work On

Our team supports customers in their digital transformation journeys, including:

• Building digital twins for real-time operational insights.
• Developing AI-powered personal assistants.
• Modernizing legacy application estates with AI-driven solutions.

Our Culture

At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. We live this mission through a culture grounded in:

• Growth mindset - We learn and adapt to empower others.
• Innovation - We push boundaries to create meaningful change.
• Collaboration - We work together to achieve shared goals.
• Inclusion - We foster a workplace where everyone can thrive.

Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is cantered on embracing a growth mindset, a theme of inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. Growth mindset encourages each of us to lean in and learn what matters most to our customers, to create the foundational knowledge that enables us to make customer-first decisions in everything we do. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world.

Responsibilities

Project Leadership & Strategic Execution

• Direct the successful delivery of complex global projects, integrating diverse technologies and partner ecosystems.
• Support strategic decision-making and project oversight.
• Champion customer-centric delivery by guiding stakeholders through complexity and advocating for business outcomes as the Voice of the Customer.

Governance, Risk & Change Management

• Establish and lead project-level governance structures, including Change & Risk Boards, ensuring robust change control and impact analysis across all workstreams.
• Analyze project interfaces and critical dependencies, recommending actions to Boards to mitigate risks and resolve issues.
• Proactively monitor project progress, initiate corrective actions, and address gaps or escalations through structured interventions.

Stakeholder Engagement & Communication

• Cultivate trusted relationships with senior executives, aligning delivery with strategic goals and managing expectations effectively.
• Serve as a liaison between Microsoft Area Account teams, partners, and senior leadership to ensure effective communication and resolution of concerns.
• Prepare and deliver regular project reports, providing transparency and insight into progress, risks, and opportunities.

Operational Excellence & Financial Stewardship

• Oversee Microsoft resource allocation, financial governance, and planning across the project lifecycle.
• Manage master schedules and ensure alignment across all delivery streams.
• Implement project management processes through the PMO and Boards, ensuring consistency and accountability.

Knowledge Sharing & Continuous Improvement

• Drive cloud adoption and business value by fostering a unified "One Microsoft" experience across delivery teams.
• Share insights, lessons learned, and customer experiences with internal and external communities to fuel continuous improvement.
• Promote the reuse of intellectual property (IP), contribute new assets, and enforce knowledge-sharing practices across teams.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications (RQs):

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field orequivalent practical experience in complex project management.
• Proven experience delivering consulting services to external clients, preferably in enterprise or transformation contexts.
• Fluency in both German (minimum C1) and English, written and spoken.

Preferred Qualifications (PRs):

• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification (strongly preferred).
• Agile certifications such as Scrum Master, PMI-ACP, or PSM I.
• Strong financial management skills, including budgeting, forecasting, and cost control.
• Experience leading in matrixed or global delivery environments, particularly across virtual teams.
• Experience with cloud service offerings, ideally Microsoft Azure or comparable platforms.
• Experience with Microsoft Solution Areas "AI Business Solutions", "Cloud & AI Platforms" & "Security"

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.