Senior Data Engineer
IWSR is the world's most trusted source of beverage alcohol data, used by the biggest names in the industry across 160+ countries. We're a small, expert team with a big remit, and we're looking for a Senior Data Engineer who wants to own things, not just build them. This isn't a ticket-driven role inside a large platform team. You'll be one of two data engineers, working closely with an engineering lead, taking real ownership of production‑critical systems from day one.
What you'll actually be doing:
- Owning and improving the data ingestion pipeline that powers our Global Database
- Leading the migration of Excel‑based processes into production Python
- Collaborating on Databricks migration work (GTR and data pooling)
- Taking charge of our SQL Server environment, security, structure, day‑to‑day management
- Working directly with non-technical stakeholders to translate data problems into business outcomes
What we're looking for:
We care less about your CV checklist and more about how you work. The strongest candidates tend to:
- Think in problems, not just technologies — "here's what was broken and here's how I fixed it"
- Be comfortable inheriting messy, real‑world systems rather than always building green field
- Have worked in small teams where you had to figure it out yourself — no dedicated platform team, no safety net
- Show an engineering mindset: careful, methodical, aware of what goes wrong in production
Technically, you'll need solid Python (data pipelines, production code), hands‑on SQL Server experience, and genuine Databricks / PySpark exposure.
AWS familiarity and comfort with AI‑assisted dev tools (Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code) are a plus.
If you've ever built something a bit scrappy to solve a real problem, a quick front end, a workaround that became the system, we'd like to hear from you.
Location & Experience
Central London, hybrid (3 days in office)
5–7 years' experience in data engineering or adjacent role