Lead Data Engineer

About the Role
We are hiring for a Principal Engineer for Data and Platform Architecture to guide the evolution from a single shared SQL Server database toward domain-owned data and service boundaries. This role is central to the microservices modernization program because unsafe data separation can create more risk than the service decomposition removes.
You will define data ownership, migration sequencing, compatibility patterns, distributed processing, and reporting continuity across the platform. You will work as a peer to the Principal Architect and will not replace database administration, DevOps, analytics, or pod-level engineering ownership.
What You Will Own
Define the target data architecture, domain ownership model, and transition away from unrestricted shared-database access.
Create migration patterns for schema separation, data replication, synchronization, reconciliation, and cutover.
Guide transaction-boundary decisions, consistency models, event flows, and failure recovery across services.
Protect reporting, auditability, historical access, and client integrations during data migration.
Establish standards for data contracts, lineage, retention, privacy, quality, and controlled access.
Review high-risk data changes and lead proofs of concept for difficult migration or scale concerns.
Mentor Engineering Leads and senior engineers in data architecture and distributed data trade-offs.
What You Bring
12+ years in platform, backend, or data-intensive engineering with senior technical leadership experience.
Deep relational database architecture and SQL performance expertise; SQL Server experience is strongly preferred.
Experience decomposing a shared database or monolithic data model into owned domains incrementally.
Strong knowledge of transactions, consistency, messaging, change data capture, reconciliation, and data migration.
Experience with high-volume processing, operational reporting, audit controls, and production data safety.
Working knowledge of Java and Spring Boot systems and the operational needs of distributed services.
Ability to lead through design, code, prototypes, reviews, and written technical decisions.
What Sets You Apart
You have led a data or platform center of excellence and converted research into production standards.
You have modernized data architecture while preserving live reporting and client operations.
You know when a dedicated data pipeline, specialist engineer, or platform investment is justified by sustained demand.
Success in This Role
Each modernized domain has explicit data ownership and controlled access boundaries.
Migrations include reconciliation, rollback, observability, and reporting continuity from the start.
The platform reduces shared-database coupling without creating inconsistent or duplicated sources

Work arrangement
Hybrid