Microsoft Site Reliability Engineer (Staff) Interview Preparation Guide
Site Reliability Engineer (SRE)
Microsoft
Staff
7 rounds
Updated 11/22/2025
Microsoft's interview process for Staff-level Site Reliability Engineer candidates consists of a recruiter screening, one technical phone screen, and five on-site interview rounds conducted over one full day. Each round lasts approximately 45-60 minutes and focuses on different dimensions of the role: systems architecture, technical depth, incident response, problem-solving, and leadership. The process evaluates your ability to design and optimize large-scale distributed systems, respond to complex reliability challenges, mentor team members, and collaborate across technical and cross-functional teams.
Interview Rounds
1
Recruiter Screening
30 min4 focus topicsbehavioral
2
Technical Phone Screen
60 min6 focus topicstechnical
3
On-Site: Systems Architecture and Distributed Systems Design
60 min5 focus topicssystem design
4
On-Site: Technical Depth - Infrastructure and Operations
60 min6 focus topicstechnical
5
On-Site: Incident Response, Problem-Solving, and Troubleshooting
60 min5 focus topicstechnical
6
On-Site: Behavioral, Leadership, and Collaboration
60 min6 focus topicsbehavioral
7
On-Site: Culture Fit and Long-Term Vision
60 min5 focus topicsbehavioral
Additional Information