Lead Data Engineer

Role: Lead Data Engineer - Azure/Databricks

Location: Sheffield

Working Model: Hybrid - 2 days per week in person

Salary: Up to £85k depending on experience

Own the data platform. Shape the future architecture.

This role is for a hands-on data engineering leader who wants to build something properly, not babysit legacy pipelines.

You’ll take full ownership of the data engineering domain, leading the design and building of a modern, highly scalable data platform that handles complex, high-frequency industrial data. You’ll work closely with data scientists, software engineers, and senior leadership, with the trust and mandate to make meaningful architectural decisions.

If you enjoy balancing strong engineering principles with real-world business needs, and you like mentoring others while staying deeply technical, this role is built for you.

What you’ll be working on

• Architecting and rebuilding the data transformation layer in Databricks
  
  
• Designing robust data flows that support both real-time operational views and deep historical analysis
  
  
• Moving pipelines from ad-hoc scripts to software-engineering standards (CI/CD, testing, modular design)
  
  
• Defining clear data models, schemas, and standards across a complex data estate
  
  
• Establishing a stable, high-performance serving layer for analytics, visualisation, and data science workloads
  
  
• Working closely with data scientists to remove bottlenecks and enable better modelling and experimentation
  
  
• Pair-programming, mentoring, and raising the engineering bar for a small, capable team
  
  You won’t just be delivering features; you’ll be setting direction.
  
  The tech you’ll work with
  
  
• Core: Azure, Databricks, Python, SQL, dbt, MQTT
  
  
• Storage & Serving: Delta Lake, Postgres, TimescaleDB
  
  
• Modelling & ML: MLflow, Visualisation: Grafana
  
  What makes you a great fit
  
  You’re someone who can zoom out to architecture and zoom in to code, comfortably.
  
  
• Proven experience building and owning data platforms on Azure
  
  
• Deep, hands-on knowledge of Databricks (lakehouse architecture, cluster management, performance and cost optimisation)
  
  
• Strong opinions on data modelling, schema design, and standardisation
  
  
• You treat data pipelines as software: version control, CI/CD, automated testing. Comfortable challenging architectural decisions, and explaining why
  
  
• Able to translate technical trade-offs into business impact for non-technical stakeholders. A mentor by nature: you raise the team through pairing, guidance, and example
  
  Experience with industrial, sensor-driven, or time-series data is highly desirable. Alternatively, a background in high-volume or highly variable data environments (missing data, duplicates, schema drift, spiky load) will transfer well.
  
  Why you’ll want this role
  
  
• You’re trusted to make architectural calls, that’s why you’re being hired
  
  
• Your work directly unlocks better analytics and machine learning outcomes. You’ll work on advanced data patterns and architectures, not cosmetic refactors. This is a leadership role without stepping away from code
  
  What you’ll get
  
  
• 5 weeks paid holiday plus bank holidays
  
  
• Tax-efficient stock options, Company pension scheme, Salary sacrifice EV scheme
  
  
• Training and professional development support, regular all-hands sessions with real transparency
  
  
• Quarterly employee recognition awards, and access to discounts via BrightHR
  
  We welcome diverse applicants and are dedicated to treating all applicants with dignity and respect, regardless of background