As a Data Center Technician (DCT), you will develop an understanding of standard processes and procedures for preparing, installing, performing diagnostics, troubleshooting, replacing, and/or decommissioning equipment under the guidance of more experienced Data Center colleagues. This opportunity will allow you to develop an understanding of our Data Center environment, familiarize yourself with security and data management procedures, and accelerate your career growth in the process.
Microsoft's Cloud Operations & Innovation (CO+I) is the engine that powers our cloud services. As a CO+I DCT, you will perform a key role in delivering the core infrastructure and foundational technologies for Microsoft's online services including Bing, Office 365, Xbox, OneDrive, and the Microsoft Azure platform. As a group, CO+I is focused on the personal and professional development of all employees and offers training and growth opportunities including Career Rotation Programs, Diversity & Inclusion trainings and events, and professional certifications.
Our infrastructure is comprised of a large global portfolio of more than 200 Data Centers in 32 countries and millions of servers. Our foundation is built upon and managed by a team of subject matter experts working to support services for more than 1 billion customers and 20 million businesses in over 90 countries worldwide.
With environmental sustainability and optimization at the forefront of our data center design and operations, we continue to grow and evolve as we meet the ever-changing business demands that hold Microsoft as a world-class cloud provider.
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
Data Center Operations
Demonstrates an applied understanding of standard processes and procedures for preparing, installing, performing diagnostics, troubleshooting, replacing, and/or decommissioning equipment, as well as a fundamental understanding of the functions of, and interactions between, network and server equipment.
Proactively shares relevant information to enable efficient workflow and mitigate the impact that changes to their area of work will have on others; asks questions when they do not have required information and may provide feedback on changes to processes to management.
Complies with Data Center Services (DCS) business unit and service-level policies, procedures, and deadlines with guidance from other technicians; escalates resolution of compliance issues to technician leads.
Completes assigned tickets efficiently and in alignment with expectations for Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) per task type while meeting or exceeding established Service Level Agreements (SLAs), with minimal guidance from other technicians; appropriately escalates tickets to more experienced technicians.
Service Delivery
Prepares, stages, sets up, and performs startups and shutdowns (e.g., racks, hard drives, switches) according to specific instructions provided via checklists, guides, standard protocols, and emails; assists and provides guidance to other technicians to complete challenging or complex tasks and escalates issues as needed; may perform tasks in tandem with other technicians to comply with procedures and safety protocols.
Performs post-execution quality checks and verifies that grounding, staging, labeling, and cabling are set up properly according to safety protocols, deployment standards, and planned Network Design Tasks (NDTs); may identify errors in deployment standards or NDTs and escalates with engineering and/or relevant specialists to coordinate corrections as needed.
Performs diagnostics and troubleshooting following standard procedures, quickly identifies the cause(s) of issues, and replaces faulty components with minimal customer and business disruption; provides guidance to technicians troubleshooting issues to meet or exceed established Service Level Agreements (SLAs); escalates issues with significant customer or business impact to appropriate experts and stakeholders.
Follows procedures to communicate, report, and escalate incidents to appropriate Microsoft data center operations management units, and Technician Leads; participates in bridge calls to provide details on incident status and executes on-site follow-up actions as directed if necessary; may leverage learnings to contribute to the improvement of quality of service and support.
Decommissions hardware for simple changes and refreshes (e.g., memory upgrades, OS rebuilds) following standard procedures with minimal guidance; escalates decommissioning work and discrepancies in projects or tickets to senior or lead technicians when appropriate; processes data-bearing devices for destruction or confirms any data contained have been eradicated.
Managing Services
Exercises judgment and discretion to contribute to issue tracking, follow-up, resolution, the overall quality of the service; provides guidance to less experienced technicians around client interactions.
Develops an understanding of cross-functional processes to support partnerships with internal and external stakeholders.
Completes required training aligned to the role and workload; observes more experienced technicians to gain hands-on experience and relevant on-the-job training (OJT); may complete additional training to obtain or maintain relevant role certifications.
Data Center Work Environment
Participates in daily safety briefings, completes required safety training, complies with safety procedures (e.g., equipment use, lifting, electrical hazards, ladder/rolling stair use), completes required Task Hazard Analysis (THAs), and uses appropriate tools and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for assigned tasks; adheres to and promotes a culture of safety, takes action and alerts others to safety concerns and/or incidents; participates in Get Out And Look (GOAL) safety observations.
Complies with security and data management procedures and policies and completes required security training; may escort third party vendors or IT support on-premises at data centers or network sites; appropriately takes action and alerts others to security concerns and/or incidents.
Contributes to a positive and effective team environment by sharing information with others, contributing in regular team meetings, asking questions and staying apprised of the status of others' work, and partnering with other technicians to complete and/or hand off tickets as needed; responds to feedback received on ways to work more effectively within their team and adopts best practices shared within and across technician teams.
Ownership
Has pride and a sense of accountability for the service quality, completeness, and resulting user experience; displays accountability and ownership of the data center facilities.
Learns the client's business and maintains a strong client focus to understand the impact of their work when completing tickets and assigned tasks.
Other
Qualifications
Re quired Qualifications:
High school diploma, GED, or equivalent and basic knowledge of computer hardware and components
Ability to work 12-hour shifts, including shift assignments during non-standard business hours that may include evening, nighttime, weekends and/or holidays.
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.
Citizenship & Citizenship Verification: This position requires verification of U.S. citizenship due to citizenship-based legal restrictions. Specifically, this position supports United States federal, state, and/or local United States government agency customers and is subject to certain citizenship-based restrictions where required or permitted by applicable law. To meet this legal requirement, citizenship will be verified via a valid passport.
Criminal Justice Information Services: This position may require passing a background check conducted through the CJIS criminal justice information system by authorized local, state, and/or federal agencies.
Additional or Preferred Qualifications:
The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $26.39 - $46.83 per hour. 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 $36.68 - $51.73 per hour.
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
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. Consistent with applicable law, 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 (https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/accessibility.html) .
