Finance Director - Azure AI Partnerships

Empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more. That’s what inspires us, drives our work, and pushes us to challenge the status quo every day. Our Azure AI Partnerships team is an exciting and fast-paced finance organization at the forefront of Microsoft’s cloud growth with our key AI customers. We partner deeply with Microsoft engineering and business development teams to build strategic AI deals that deliver maximum value.  
 
We are seeking a Finance Director- Azure AI Partnerships to lead financial strategy and high-impact deal-making for Microsoft’s most significant AI partnerships. This role shapes the economic vision for transformative AI engagements, influences C-suite decisions, and drives alignment across global stakeholders. Acting as a strategic advisor, the Finance Director defines innovative business models, guides complex multi-year negotiations, and ensures risk-balanced outcomes that accelerate Microsoft’s AI growth agenda. Success requires executive presence, agility in ambiguity, and a proven ability to influence strategic outcomes at scale. 

Responsibilities

The main responsibilities include: 

• Leading cross-functional engagements with internal and external stakeholders to clearly define complex technical requirements and articulate the financial impact of business decisions  
• Leading negotiations for strategic corporate partnerships, ensuring alignment on financial terms and risk mitigation strategies, defining financial parameters and guardrails for complex, multi-year agreements and high-value transactions. 
• Influencing deal structures and strategic outcomes by providing thought leadership and guiding executives through trade-offs and risk considerations 
• Maintaining and strengthening relationships with finance and business development teams at partner organizations, acting as the primary financial liaison. 
• Managing escalations and resolving critical issues across internal and external stakeholders to protect business objectives and timelines. 
• Creating robust and detailed financial models to evaluate complex transactions and determine clear negotiations guardrails 
• Collaborating with Business Development, Engineering, and other teams to gather input and provide thought leadership throughout the financial deal-making process 
• Providing clear executive-level communication on financial terms for complex, first-of-their-kind engagements, balancing business objectives with risk management  

Qualifications

Required/Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, Economics, Data Science, or related field AND 10+ years of post-graduate financial analysis, accounting, controllership, or finance work experience
  • OR Master's Degree in Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, Economics, Data Science, or related field AND 8+ years of post-graduate financial analysis, accounting, controllership, or finance work experience 
  • OR equivalent experience. 
• 1+ year(s) experience managing direct reports.

Preferred Qualifications

• Passionate about the technology industry, AI, and ability to engage in technical discussions  
• Proficient written and verbal communication skills, en