Overview
At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Few moments in our industry have demanded a clearer, more compelling voice from our engineering leaders than this one. As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes how the world builds, ships, and uses software, the way we tell that story — with technical credibility, customer empathy, and conviction — matters more than ever.
We’re looking for a Senior Executive Communications Manager to be the strategic communications partner to Executive Vice President of the Apps & Agents Engineering organization, including Dynamics 365, Power Platform, Copilot Studio, SharePoint, and OneDrive. This is a high-impact, high-visibility role focused primarily on the EVP and leadership team external presence (80%) — owned or industry keynotes, customer and partner events including customer meetings, media and analyst moments, and signature narrative platforms — complemented by internal communications (20%) that keep the organization aligned and inspired.
This role is built for a senior communicator who is equally at home in a keynote rehearsal, a product deep-dive, a CEO-level briefing, and a green room. You’ll own the executive narrative end-to-end: shaping the point of view, writing the words, producing the moments, and coaching the speakers. Technical curiosity isn’t optional — you should be energized by the working on the frontier of technology across AI, products, and platforms and be able to translate it into stories that resonate with developers, customers, partners, and employees.
Microsoft’s mission is grounded in a growth mindset. We embrace a learn-it-all culture over a know-it-all one, and we look for people who bring out the best in each other and the customers we serve.
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
Narrative Development (External-Facing)
- Define and steward the EVP and select additional leaders external narrative architecture — the core point of view, proof points, and storylines that ladder up to Microsoft’s broader product and AI strategy.
- Translate complex technical strategy, product roadmaps, and engineering bets into clear, differentiated stories for developers, customers, partners, press, and analysts.
- Help build and devise key messages with supporting evidence at key points in product and industry news cycles, in partnership with product marketing group (PMG) & public relations (PR).
- Partner with product, research, and corporate communications teams to ensure message consistency across launches, milestones, and reactive moments.
- Develop signature thought-leadership platforms — blogs, op-eds, LinkedIn posts, podcast appearances, and long-form interviews — that build durable industry voice.
Keynote & Speech Development
- Own end-to-end keynote development for major industry and customer moments (e.g., M365 Conference, Power Platform, Inner Circle, Microsoft Build, Ignite, customer summits, partner events, third-party industry conferences).
- Lead the keynote process from concept and outline through final script, including demo storytelling, customer proof, and the through-line that ties technical announcements to a human narrative.
- Collaborate with engineering leaders, product marketing, design, and demo teams to land technically precise content with cinematic clarity on stage.
- Iterate quickly — you’re comfortable taking a draft from a sticky-note outline to a 45-minute keynote in days, not weeks, and rewriting it the night before when the demo changes.
Events Strategy & Production Prep
- Build the EVP’s annual external moments plan in partnership with the Chief of Staff, communications leadership, and event teams — prioritizing where the executive shows up and why.
- Lead executive prep for tier-one external events: briefing decks, run-of-show, audience analysis, message maps, Q&A prep, social amplification, and post-event measurement.
- Partner with production, design, and audio-video (AV) teams to shape the on-stage experience — visuals, demos, segment pacing, and stagecraft — so the message and the moment reinforce each other.
- Manage customer councils and executive roundtables connected to event moments.
Speaker Management & Coaching
- Serve as the EVP and leadership team’s primary speech and presence coach — running rehearsals, giving direct feedback, and partnering on delivery, pacing, and audience connection.
- Build the briefing discipline that ensures the EVP walks into every external moment fully prepared: who’s in the room, what they care about, what we want them to leave believing, and what we will not say.
- Anticipate and prepare for tough questions — competitive, regulatory, AI safety, customer concerns — with crisp, on-strategy responses.
Internal Communications (~20%)
- Craft the EVP’s voice for internal moments — all-hands, town halls, written notes to the organization, and culture-defining communications.
- Ensure internal and external narratives are tightly aligned so employees hear the strategy from their leader before they read it in the press.
- Partner with the Chief of Staff and HR communications on org-shaping moments (reorgs, leadership changes, milestone announcements).
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Operate as a trusted advisor to the EVP and their leadership team — bringing judgment, candor, and a strategic point of view, not just execution.
- Partner deeply with Product Marketing, Corporate Communications, PR, Brand, Social, and the broader Engineering Comms community.
Qualifications
**Required Qualifications: **
Bachelor's Degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Finance, or related field AND 4+ years communications, marketing operations, field operations, program management, project management, or related experience.
- OR equivalent experience
**Preferred Qualifications: **
Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Journalism, English, Public Relations, Marketing, or a related field AND 8+ years of executive communications, speechwriting, corporate communications, or journalism experience.
- OR equivalent experience.
4+ years of experience writing for, advising, or directly supporting C-suite or senior executive principals.
Demonstrated experience writing keynotes, scripts, or long-form speeches delivered to audiences of 1,000+ and to media/analyst audiences.
Experience communicating about technology — software, cloud, AI, developer platforms, or adjacent technical domains.
Deep familiarity with the developer, enterprise IT, AI, or cloud landscape — you can hold your own in a technical review and know what questions to ask.
Proven ability to coach senior executives on delivery, presence, and message discipline — with the confidence to give a principal direct feedback.
Experience producing keynotes and demos for tier-one industry events (Build, Ignite, re:Invent, Google I/O, WWDC, Davos, or comparable) from a communications seat.
Track record of building thought-leadership platforms — LinkedIn presence, podcast strategy, op-eds, or signature blog franchises — that move industry conversation.
Sound judgment under pressure; fluency with reactive comms, sensitive moments, and ambiguity.
Effective cross-functional operator: you can navigate Microsoft’s scale, build coalitions across PR, AR, Product, Brand, and Engineering, and move work forward without formal authority.
A genuine passion for technology — you read the research, follow the launches, and have opinions about where the industry is headed.
Communications IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $106,400.00 - $203,600.00 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 $137,600.00 - $222,600.00 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.**