Principal Engineer, Front-End Computer-Aided Design Software

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

• 2 more locations

Date posted

Oct 10, 2025

Job number

1890935

Work site

3 days / week in-office

Travel

0-25%

Role type

Individual Contributor

Profession

Hardware Engineering

Discipline

Silicon Engineering

Employment type

Full-Time

The Microsoft Silicon Engineering and Solutions Team is seeking a software engineer to serve as a technical leader within the central software team. This team develops state-of-the-art converged solutions, software tools, and automation to support silicon design areas, including RTL(Register Transfer Level) and VIP(Verification Intellectual Property) design, design verification, validation, DFT(Register Transfer Level), emulation, PD(Register Transfer Level) handoff, and IP(Intellectual Property) integration.

We are looking for a Principal Engineer, Front-End Computer-Aided Design Software to join our team

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

Required Qualifications:

• Doctorate in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 3+ years technical engineering experience
• OR Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience
• OR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience
• OR equivalent experience.
• 3 years of advanced experience with common programming paradigms, including Object-Oriented and Functional programming.
• 3 years of leadership experience with a proven track record of leading small teams and influencing stakeholders.
• 3 years of experience writing software using industry-standard languages such as Python, TCL, Perl, and C/C++ (Python preferred).
• 3 years of experience defining software architecture for complex systems.

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:

• Doctorate in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 5+ years technical engineering experience
• OR Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience
• OR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 12+ years technical engineering experience
• OR equivalent experience.
• 1+ year(s) experience working on or leading projects from beginning-to-end.
• 5 years of experience in Software development.
• Understanding of software design patterns.
• Well-rounded and familiar with silicon design Tools, Flows and Methodologies.
• Experience with continuous integration systems.
• Expertise in Computer Architecture, as well as CPU/SoC design principles.
• Expertise in Azure environments, Azure Security and DevOps concepts
• Expertise to own, maintain and drive complex Software projects independently.
• Expertise in Software Development Best practices.
• Exposure to Design and Verification execution and flows/infrastructure that is used

Silicon Engineering IC5 - 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:

Microsoft will accept applications for the role until October 21,2025.

In the Principal Engineer, Front-End Computer-Aided Design Software role, you will:

• Be a leader in a central CAD Software team that develops a common tool stack to internal SoC and IP designs.
• Lead software best practices within the CAD Software team.
• Work in close collaboration with the CAD Hardware and Compute infrastructure teams.
• Design software solutions and documentation that scale to a large user base.
• Be the specialist in your domain and act in partnership with the execution team.
• Work with stakeholders across the Microsoft Silicon groups to collect software requirements.

• Develop, enhance, and integrate CAD Flows and automation for organization-wide use.

• Embody our culture and values.

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.

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Industry leading healthcare

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Educational resources

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Discounts on products and services

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Savings and investments

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Maternity and paternity leave

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Generous time away

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Giving programs

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Opportunities to network and connect

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 and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.