Sr. Program Manager of Energy Decarbonization Initiatives

The Microsoft Cloud continues to grow and more important than ever is the foundation and environmental sustainability of the energy infrastructure on which it depends. Delivering on Microsoft’s ambitious energy commitments requires the scaled execution of decarbonization initiatives at speed. Successful progress hinges on our ability to build comfort across organizations in new territory: first-of-a-kind technologies, evolving regulations, and bespoke commercial arrangements. We will need centralized stakeholder alignment to advance initiatives with the sustained buy-in of Cloud Operations and Infrastructure (CO+I) leadership, Finance, Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA), and beyond.  

“The next major wave of computing is being born, as the Microsoft Cloud turns the world’s most advanced AI models into a new computing platform,” said Satya Nadella, chairman and chief executive officer of Microsoft. “We are committed to helping our customers use our platforms and tools to do more with less today and innovate for the future in the new era of AI.” 

The Microsoft Datacenter Energy Strategy Team identifies long term growth obstacles and develops global mitigation strategies, centralizing global functions to deliver consistency and scalability.  This spans energy technology, resilience, commercial partnership, and business operations strategy.   

Microsoft Cloud Operations & Innovation seeks a Sr. Program Manager of Energy Decarbonization Initiatives to identify, execute, and manage energy decarbonization initiatives satisfying cross-functional stakeholders, both internal and external. The candidate will bring experience in the innovation ecosystem, knowledge of energy technologies and markets, as well as demonstrated experience in finance, procurement, and contracting processes. They will build relationships with emerging technology providers, electric utilities, and other stakeholders to source decarbonization initiatives aligned to CO&I’s roadmap and technical requirements. They will structure business transactions around these opportunities and build consensus to deploy, including performing financial analysis and carrying the opportunity through Microsoft’s internal approvals.  

The successful candidate will apply relationship-building, effective communication, analytical skills, and stakeholder management to unlock energy capacity and deliver tangible progress towards Microsoft’s 100/100/0 energy commitments. They will partner across CO&I (Markets, Energy Procurement, SEAL, Engineering & Construction) to coordinate cross-team collaboration and handoffs, filling gaps where necessary.  

In alignment with our Microsoft values, we are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment for all employees to positively impact our culture every day. 

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. 

• This role is located in- Atlanta, GA, Washington, D.C., Redmond, WA, San Antonio, TX or Phoenix, AZ. 
• Relocation support will be provided, and successful candidates must ​relocate or reside within 50 miles of the hub office location. 
• This role is eligible for hybrid or remote work, up to 100%. 

Responsibilities

 Engage the ecosystem: 

• Research and identify decarbonization initiatives, including adoption of innovative technologies (long-duration energy storage, advanced geothermal and nuclear, energy efficiency solutions, etc.), participation in demand-response programs, enablement of energy infrastructure, structuring of distributed energy applications, and more 
• Engage with startup innovation ecosystem to remain at the cutting edge of new technologies and market development 
• Partner with utilities to understand priorities and structure initiatives for a realistic path towards adoption, including participating in rate cases where necessary 
• Perform market analysis and remain up-to-date with headwinds and tailwinds for clean energy development 

Drive alignment across CO&I: 

• Make recommendations for investments in new technologies and initiatives that are critical to datacenter growth based on technical experience in those suppliers and industry trends.  
• Define, maintain, execute, and evangelize a strategic playbook of decarbonization initiatives aligned with CO&I’s up-to-date demand forecast to ensure continuity of datacente