Senior Data Engineer
Summary
Senior Data Engineer at Nerdery, a digital product consultancy: design and build scalable, well-governed data platforms on AWS — pipelines, storage, and analytics — and migrate legacy infrastructure to modern cloud environments. Core stack: Snowflake, dbt, Dagster, Python, SQL, Terraform/Pulumi, and CI/CD.
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience).
- 6+ years of professional experience in data engineering or a closely related discipline.
- In-depth knowledge of Snowflake, including warehouse design, role-based access control, performance tuning, and cost optimization.
- Advanced proficiency with dbt for modular, tested, and version-controlled data transformations.
- Hands-on experience with Dagster for pipeline orchestration, asset management, and data observability.
- Proven experience designing and implementing data pipelines, data storage solutions, and analytics platforms on modern cloud data stacks.
- Experience migrating data pipelines and infrastructure to Snowflake from other platforms (legacy warehouses, on-premise systems, or hybrid environments).
- Advanced proficiency in Python with hands-on experience in data-processing libraries such as Pandas, Polars, PySpark, or similar.
- Strong SQL skills across both analytical and transactional workloads.
- Experience with relational and/or columnar databases such as PostgreSQL, SQL Server, or Snowflake.
- Deep understanding of data modeling, ETL/ELT processes, and data warehousing principles.
- Experience implementing data architecture patterns (e.g., medallion/multi-hop, data mesh, lakehouse) to support scalable, well-governed data platforms.
- Familiarity with Infrastructure-as-Code tools such as Pulumi or Terraform.
- Familiarity with event-driven architectures and integrating orchestration platforms with cloud services.
- Strong version-control practices (Git) with experience building CI/CD workflows for data workloads (e.g., GitHub Actions).
- Proven ability to translate business and technical requirements into production-grade, maintainable data pipelines.
- Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills.
- Ability to communicate clearly with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Proactive collaborator who mentors colleagues and raises the technical bar across the team.
- Experience building and consuming RESTful APIs. Exposure to containerisation (Docker) is a plus.
- Familiarity with data quality and observability tooling (e.g., dbt tests, Great Expectations, Monte Carlo) is desirable.
- Design and implement end-to-end data pipelines and ETL/ELT processes
- Architect scalable data platforms using patterns such as medallion/multi-hop, data mesh, or lakehouse
- Migrate data infrastructure from on-premise or hybrid environments to AWS
- Manage and optimize AWS data services including Redshift, Glue, EMR, and Kinesis
- Develop data-processing logic using Python (Pandas, PySpark, Polars) and advanced SQL
- Automate data workflows using orchestration tools like Airflow/MWAA and Step Functions
- Implement Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform/CloudFormation) and CI/CD for data workloads
- 130,000-170,000 per year
- Health & Wellness: Choose from two comprehensive medical plans (including an HSA-eligible option), plus high-quality dental and vision insurance.
- Financial Security (Company-Paid): We provide peace of mind by fully covering the cost of several essential plans: Basic Life and AD&D Insurance, Short-Term Disability (STD), and Long-Term Disability (LTD) coverage.
- Comprehensive Support: Take advantage of discounted, employee-paid options to protect your family, pets, and assets, including Voluntary Life and AD&D, Accident, Critical Illness, and Hospital Indemnity insurance, Pet Insurance, and plans offering Legal Support and Identity Theft Protection.
- Retirement: We offer a 401(k) plan with a company match of up to 3.5% with immediate vesting.
- Time Off: Nerds enjoy flexible time off with Flex PTO that can be used for vacation, personal time, personal illness, or time off to care for dependents.
- Remote Work: Nerdery is a remote-friendly workplace. Our Minnesota office space is available for Nerds who prefer an in-office environment or collaborative setting.
- Professional Growth: All Nerds have dedicated resources and access to funds to pursue professional development, attend industry conferences, and obtain certifications.
- Customer-Focused Execution and Communication: Excels at translating deep customer understanding into impactful work, ensuring that every project and decision delivers exceptional user value. Able to effectively explain technical decisions to non-technical stakeholders.
- Tenacious Problem-Solving: Relentlessly unravels complex problems, developing innovative solutions to overcome any challenge that stands in the way of progress.
- Integrity-Driven Work: Builds trust by consistently upholding high standards in all work and advocating for the right approach, ensuring quality and transparency.
- Collaborative Impact: Actively elevates the team's capabilities by fostering a collaborative environment, sharing knowledge, and prioritizing collective success over individual credit.
- End-to-End Ownership: Takes full accountability for an initiative's entire lifecycle, from concept to completion, ensuring the final result successfully achieves its intended goals.
- Dedication to Craftsmanship: Driven by a passion for their craft to continuously learn, deepen their expertise, and strive for excellence in their chosen field.
- Sitting for extended periods: will spend significant time in meetings, presentations, and computer use.
- Occasional standing and walking: will need to move around during presentations and client interactions.
- Computer Use: Extensive use of a keyboard, mouse, and computer screen for extended periods. Ability to adjust focus between screen and documents.
- Public Speaking: requires public speaking, including presenting to clients.
- Reaching: Reaching for items on a desk, retrieving documents, or working with equipment is required.
- Lifting: Occasional lifting of light objects (e.g., laptops, peripherals) may be necessary.
- Office Environment: The work environment is primarily an office setting, with typical office equipment and noise levels.
- On-site client work: some work might involve on-site client visits and demonstrations, possibly requiring some walking and standing for extended periods.
Skills
- Airflow
- Analytics
- API
- AWS
- CI/CD
- Cloud
- CloudFormation
- Containerization
- Dagster
- Data Engineering
- Data Mesh
- Data Modeling
- Data Pipelines
- Data Quality
- Data Warehousing
- dbt
- Docker
- ELT
- ETL
- Event Driven Architecture
- Git
- GitHub
- GitHub Actions
- Infrastructure as Code
- Kinesis
- Lakehouse
- Observability
- pandas
- Polars
- PostgreSQL
- Pulumi
- PySpark
- Python
- Redshift
- REST
- Snowflake
- SQL
- SQL Server
- Terraform
- Version Control