Principal Land Acquisition Manager

Microsoft's Cloud Operations & Innovation (CO+I) teamis responsible forthe full lifecycle of Microsoft's cloud infrastructure, spanning siteselection, development, and operations. Our global footprint includesmore than 400datacenters in 34 countries, supported by over 165,000 miles of fiber optic cable. These facilities form the backbone of Microsoft Azure and are central to our commitment to reliable, secure, and sustainable digital infrastructure.

As part of the CO+I Cloud Infrastructure Acquisition team, you willjoina team of real estate professionals responsible for sourcing, negotiating, and closing strategic land transactions. You will drive market entry and expansion strategies by partnering with legal, finance, energy, engineering, and community engagement teams to enable site readiness and optionality. This role requires strong deal-makingexpertise, the ability to navigate diverse regulatory and cultural environments, and the leadership skills to build trusted partnerships across internal and external stakeholders.This rolerequires an exceptional ability to manage complexity, build systems for accountability, and deliverresults atscale.

• Lead the identification, evaluation, and acquisition of strategic land parcels across America's to meet Microsoft's cloud growth needs.

• Develop regional market strategies informed by business demand, competitive dynamics, and regulatory landscapes.

• Negotiate complex real estate transactions, ensuring alignment with Microsoft's financial, legal, and operational requirements.

• Manage relationships with brokers, landowners, developers, and government authorities to accelerate deal execution.

• Partner with internal teams (engineering, energy, community affairs, legal, finance) to ensureacquiredsites can be advanced to development on schedule.

• Establish and track portfolio-level metrics on deal velocity, pipeline health, and transaction risk.

• Drive due diligence processes, ensuring proactive identification and mitigation of legal, zoning, and entitlement risks.

• Represent Microsoft in market engagements, industry forums, and with government stakeholders to advance Microsoft's position as a trusted, long-term partner.

• Build, lead, and develop a regional acquisition team, fostering collaboration and operational excellence.

Required/Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Business Management, Real Estate, Project Management, or related field AND 7+ years in real estate acquisitions, land strategy, or large-scale infrastructure development or relevant experience OR 10+ years equivalent experience

Background Check 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.

While not required, we also look for the following Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Business Management, Real Estate, Project Management, or related field AND 10+ years Portfolio Management, Real Estate, or Office Management experience OR 15+ years equivalent experience.
• Demonstrated success in sourcing and negotiating high-value, complex real estate transactions across multiple jurisdictions.
• Understanding of land use, zoning, permitting, and entitlement processes in US markets.
• Track record of building and managing high-performing, geographically dispersed teams.
• Proven ability to develop and execute regional strategies in alignment with global objectives.
• Stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence across senior leadership, external partners, and government agencies.

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Real Estate Portfolio Management IC6 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $130,900 - $277,200 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 $165,600 - $303,600 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.