Data Engineer / Data Architect III
- Compensation
- Not disclosed
- Location
- Suitland, MD, United States
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Lead
- Employment
- Not specified
- Experience
- 1+ years
- Category
- Data engineering
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems or a related technical field. Equivalent work experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
- Must have 5-9 years of real-world experience in data management (preferably in support of federal government programs).
- Policy development
- Organizational goals for handling and using data
- Having led a data analysis team
- Ability to query a database
- Advanced proficiency in Python and SQL.
- Proven hands-on experience building ETL/ELT pipelines and designing databases to clean and structure complex, messy legacy data.
- Experience with on-premises infrastructure is required.
- At minimum, stellar core engineering skills paired with a solid working knowledge of GIS data structures.
- Demonstrated understanding of the DoD Data Strategy.
- Proven ability to act as a technical anchor, interface with cross-functional teams, and establish standards for adjacent staff.
- Ability to obtain and maintain Security+ Certification.
- Active DoD Security Clearance is required.
- Must have or be able to obtain and maintain a TS security clearance, be able to take/pass a polygraph, and be able to maintain both for the tenure of this position.
- Position tenure ship is dependent on completing the full security clearance application process successfully within 1-2 years of accepting position.
- Must be a U.S. Citizen.
Nice to have
- Active TS/SCI security clearance is strongly preferred.
- Hands-on experience with geospatial data (coordinates, spatial querying) and integration with ESRI portals is strongly preferred.
- Experience architecting and engineering data solutions on classified systems (SIPR/JWICS) is highly desirable.
Full description
The Lead Data Engineer / Data Architect will spearhead the creation of our next-generation “Analytics Core” within a closed, classified, on-premises environment. This mission-critical project will unify our 30-year legacy archive of diverse data—including reports, sensor data, imagery, and heavily geospatial intelligence—into a single, query-able, and AI-ready ecosystem.
Because our historical data is highly complex with deep attribution challenges, this is a “roll-up-your-sleeves” role. We expect a balance of approximately 60% hands-on data engineering (ETL pipeline construction, data cleaning, and mapping) and 40% data architecture (strategic design and governance).
As our management team upskills our dedicated in-house staff to execute the broader data migration, this role will act as the technical anchor. The Lead Data Engineer / Data Architect will build strong relationships, set clear technical standards, and seamlessly interface with transitioning staff to ensure the project’s success.
ESSENTIAL
- Data Architecture & Modeling
- Design the foundational multidimensional data models for complex, multi-modal data.
- Untangle 30 years of complex historical data to resolve attribution issues and establish a clean, authoritative data model.
- Foundational Engineering
- Act as the hands-on technical lead to build initial ETL/ELT pipelines using Python, SQL, and on-premises infrastructure.
- Develop programmatic solutions to clean, parse, and ingest legacy unstructured and structured data.
- Geospatial Integration
- Given that nearly all database records contain coordinate data, lead the integration between our on-premises ESRI portal and the new Analytics Core.
- Ensure spatial data seamlessly aligns with the multidimensional model.
- AI/ML Data Preparation
- Establish standards for feature engineering, ensuring the database architecture is optimized for future Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning applications within a classified environment.
- Governance & Compliance
- Enforce data governance, metadata tagging, and access control protocols in strict alignment with the DoD Data Strategy and classified network handling requirements.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration & Integration
- While management will handle direct personnel training, you must establish effective working relationships and technical interfaces with our evolving internal team:
- Software Engineers: Interface with engineers transitioning into data engineering. Provide clear technical specifications, architectural blueprints, and constructive code reviews as they take over building scalable ETL/ELT pipelines.