Job Description

Overview

Are you a strategic, unconventional thinker who thrives in complex, ambiguous, fast-paced environments and is energized by delivering large-scale regional programs? If so, this role may be for you.

The India Development Center (IDC) Executive Office is seeking a leader for a key role spanning business strategy, operations, and employee experience. IDC is an engineering organization that advances Microsoft’s mission by delivering trusted products, services, and devices that people and organizations value across work, home, and school.

The IDC Executive Office operates with the highest standards of confidentiality, integrity, inclusion, and trust. Success in this role requires a collaborative people leader who can coordinate across diverse stakeholders, think strategically, act independently, adapt quickly, and step in to resolve complex business issues.

This Director, Business Program Management will shape the team’s long-term strategy and oversee day-to-day operations. The role will manage IDC Executive Office business program managers responsible for employee experience initiatives - including culture, inclusion, and management excellence - and business operations across four sites within the global Worldwide Engineering Site Community. This is a unique opportunity to strengthen Microsoft’s engineering and research success in India while creating an exceptional employee experience.

Reporting directly to the India Development Center Chief of Staff, the Business Program Management Lead will collaborate with local site engineering teams and partners across Human Resources, Recruiting, Finance, Communications, Corporate Affairs, Legal, and other functions to deliver programs that:

• Positively impacts our engineering and research employee experience.
• Encourages the sharing of best practices across the Engineering and Customer and Partner Solutions organizations across the Microsoft IDC locations.
• Engages the region’s ecosystems of STEM students, universities, and tech communities as well as customers and partners.

The ideal candidate is self-motivated, approaches daily challenges with professionalism and a solid service mindset, and is deeply committed to creating a vibrant and inclusive workplace for everyone.

People Leadership

As a manager at Microsoft, you deliver success through empowerment and accountability, by modelling, coaching, and caring:

• Model our culture and values and practice Microsoft's leadership principles in every interaction.
• Coach the team by defining clear objectives and outcomes, enabling success across organizational boundaries, and helping the team adapt and learn.
• Care for your people by attracting and retaining great talent, understanding each person's capabilities and aspirations, and investing in their growth.

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

• Support the Engineering Site Leader/ Chief of Staff in maintaining a rhythm of the business (RoB) that drives execution of core business priorities and encourages best practice sharing among development centers.
• Support and participate in strategic initiatives or cross-group projects contributing to the overall strategy. Create and implement accurate plans. Develop success metrics and communication approach for these initiatives and projects.
• Partner with corporate communications and local teams to deliver on an internal communication (meetings, presentations, milestones, etc.) and external communication (university engagement, customer, partner, PR, etc.) strategy that reinforces Microsoft’s values, brand, and presence in India.
• Partner with leaders, HR, Microsoft Garage, and Culture & Inclusion stakeholders to shape and influence a positive, inclusive, and innovative culture at our development centers.
• Deliver on programs in support of strategic initiatives or cross-group projects contributing to the overall strategy for engaging communities and ecosystems in the region. Track and communicate progress against success metrics.
• Collaborate with relevant teams to deliver programming that shapes a positive, inclusive, and innovative culture at our engineering and research centers.
• Maintain relationships with peers outside the team to ensure cross-group solid collaboration.
• Partner with the Finance team and business managers at each of the engineering and research centers to support financial planning and budgeting. Participate in expense reporting, budget tracking, and reconciliation activities for the team as needed.
• Plan and execute meetings, events, offsites, and partnerships both inside Microsoft and external with partners.
• Continuously look for ways to simplify and drive process improvements and efficiencies.
• Exercise sound judgment, tact, diplomacy, integrity, confidentiality, and professionalism in communicating information and working with all levels of employees.

Job Accountabilities

• Strategic Program Management: Design, implement, and evolve large-scale programs that translate vision and high-level goals into executable plans. Coordinate multiple workstreams in dynamic, ambiguous environments, use data to inform decisions, and define measures of success.
• Process Design and Management: Demonstrated experience designing, automating, and reengineering global workflows, with a record of solving complex problems in demanding environments. Success in this role requires solid business acumen and advanced analytical skills.
• Communication: Communicate clearly and effectively in writing and verbally across all levels of the organization to lead global programs, build understanding, and secure support. Develop compelling executive-level presentations, including storyboards, and present confidently to CVP-level audiences. Apply creative thinking to navigate ambiguity, raise awareness, and increase engagement.
• Executive Stakeholder Engagement: Engage senior leaders, including CVP- and EVP-level sponsors; distill complex information into concise briefs; and present recommendations confidently. Demonstrate a solid record of stakeholder management, navigating a matrixed organization, and balancing the needs of engineering, Human Resources, Finance, and other groups. The ability to represent the community professionally at every level are essential.
• Cross-Team Collaboration: Build trust across teams, demonstrate solid emotional intelligence, and influence outcomes without formal authority. Partner effectively with site leaders and program managers, inspire a shared vision, and drive alignment across organizational boundaries. Experience chairing committees or communities of practice is preferred.

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Business, Operations, Finance, or related field AND 8+ years experience in program management, process management, or process improvement.
• OR equivalent experience.
• 6+ years management (e.g., people, project, process, vendor, change) experience.

Additional or preferred qualifications

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.

Preferred Qualifications:

• 10+ years of experience in program management, process management, or process improvement, including leading large, cross-divisional programs and teams from strategy formulation through implementation, with a demonstrated record of measurable success.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, Operations, Finance or related field or equivalent combination of education, training, and experience. (Master’s degree preferred).
• A passion for Microsoft’s mission and creating a vibrant, inclusive work environment for engineers worldwide will help energize their work
• Requires considerable problem-solving skills and advanced knowledge of business program management and operational processes.
• Excellent management skills. Experience leading and managing global virtual teams and programs.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills – flexibility, proactiveness, teamwork, and ability to effectively communicate with all levels and work in a fast-paced environment is a must.
• Bias for Action and Results - takes ownership and drives projects forward independently – a “go-getter” who can identify what needs to be done and rally others to execute. They will need to handle ambiguity and be solution-oriented, especially when coordinating across geographies and business groups.
• High capacity for multitasking, context switching, able to manage multiple, high-stakes projects simultaneously under deadline constraints.
• If-directed and self-confident with great initiative and sense of ownership. Ability to persuade, lead, and motivate others is a must.

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.