Data Platform Engineer
Summary
Mid/senior Data Platform Engineer designing and maintaining ETL/ELT data pipelines for a tech company building digital infrastructure for public health and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa, working hybrid from Warsaw.
Use your talent to make a positive change in the world.
QED offers unique opportunities to talented people that are determined to positively affect the world.
For most software engineers and mathematicians, work is easy to come by, but meaningful work is nearly impossible to find. We select our partners and design our projects very carefully, so they can direct their talents on worthwhile problems whose solutions will clearly benefit the welfare of others.
Location
Warsaw
Employment Type
Full time
Department
QED (https://qed.ai ) is a tech company focused on public health and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. We build the digital infrastructure and AI used at the intersection of aid and scientific inquiry, including surveillance of HIV/malaria/TB, and nutrient analysis of crops and soils, working at national-scale in several African countries. Our funding comes from multiple philanthropic and governmental organizations, including the Global Fund, Gates Foundation, and the CDC.
We are looking for a mid/senior Data Platform Engineer (backend) to join our team in Warsaw. Desired skills include:
experience designing and maintaining data pipelines using ETL and/or ELT approaches, with the ability to reason about trade-offs rather than defaulting to a single pattern
understanding of data pipeline reliability concepts, including idempotency, backfills, and handling late or corrected data
ability to structure data systems into clear layers (e.g. raw, cleaned, curated) and reason about their different purposes and guarantees
experience deciding between batch, micro-batch, and streaming approaches based on latency, correctness, and operational complexity
strong background in software engineering, version control, writing readable code and tests, robust design, and basic data structures and algorithms
ability to conceive logical software architectures and express yourself clearly, both verbally and in writing
willingness to tackle a wide array of problems and technologies
willingness to participate in regular design sessions, code reviews, and working in teams
development primarily on UNIX-based or OSX-Darwin platforms
working proficiency (≥C1) in speaking, reading, and typing English (≥45 words per minute)
willingness and interest in working with people from other cultures
emotional resilience and social intelligence
and you have to care about the work that you do
and you have to be optimistic at least sometimes, although pessimism tends to be useful
Below are additional skills that are a bonus, but are not required:
understanding of analytical data modeling concepts, including how to transform raw data into analytics-ready datasets and define clear data semantics for downstream consumers
experience with Python, Django, DBT, Dagster, Luigi or Clickhouse
experience with containerization (Docker), Terraform, Kubernetes or Nix
knowledge and experience with data warehousing, online analytical processing, metadata management, dimensional modeling, and relational database theory
experience with programming and/or math competitions
product-oriented mindset
willingness to go on an adventure
domain knowledge and/or interest in the sustainable development goals, particularly in public health, agriculture, and assisting developing countries
What can you expect:
unusual, socially conscious projects
a mix of product, internal platform, and client integration work
ability and encouragement to explore technologies other than your main expertise
optional travel to learn more about problems we're trying to solve
Requires a full-time commitment physically based in Warsaw, Poland, with a hybrid of remote and in-person work throughout the week. We expect at least 2-3 days per week in the office. The working hours are flexible, for example you do not need approval to take out a small chunk in the middle of the day to handle some personal business.
If you are
Passionate about your craft
Interested in international development
It looks like a perfect match! We would like to learn more about you.
Culture and Expectations
We are the opposite of a big corporation. We impose extremely light bureaucracy. There is no matrix organization structure, careerism, or politicking ... we focus only on the mission and delivering excellent work.
We are willing to take unconventional paths and learn quickly through rapid scientific experimentation, unconstrained by excessive regulations. We are highly motivated to work cleverly and succeed, as no one is there to bail us out and inefficiencies cannot be sustained.
Regardless of one’s age or position in life, we ask that job candidates make serious time commitments if they choose to work with us, which will be reciprocated by equal devotion to the cause from others.
We seek people who are eager for a challenge, willing to take on responsibility, passionate about your craft, and genuinely interested in doing good works for the developing world. If this sounds like you, we would love to learn more about you.
Perks of working with QED
Unusual, socially conscious projects
Little bureaucracy
Travel to exotic places around the world!