Overview
Come shape the future of commerce built for passion with us! At EQL, we're building tools for brands that don't just have customers—they have fans. These are high-stakes cultural moments where passion runs deep, but the experience has often been broken: sites crash, bots win, and real fans lose out. EQL is changing that. We're creating the world's first fair launch platform to help retailers manage demand, block bad actors, and deliver seamless experiences that give real fans a fair shot. Backed by top VCs and angels, we're solving big, meaningful problems with smart tech and a bold, collaborative team. It's challenging and rewarding work, and we're building a culture where curious, kind, and ambitious people thrive. If you want to help us shape the future of fan-first commerce—even if you don't tick every box—we would love to talk.
The Role
We're looking for a Staff Data Engineer to take technical ownership of our data platform and grow the function around it.
Responsibilities
* Define platform architecture; dbt model design, Snowflake warehouse organisation, governance (PII tagging, contracts, doc blocks, glossary), cost allocation through query tags and dbt_snowflake_monitoring, and the AWS-side Snowflake guardrails (typed query wrappers, ESLint policy, Zod-enforced rows).
* Build the semantic layer; the contracts and concepts the layer exposes to Cortex agents and our product LLM features. Own the evolution of the layer and partner with engineers consuming it across product and platform.
* Define the endorsed-dataset pattern, lifecycle and quality bar. Own the catalogue across business domains — Shopify, finance, products, retailer health — and the marketplace integration strategy (Cybersyn ACS, Similarweb, Placekey, paid sources).
* Close architectural decisions via written ADRs; ratify go/no-go on platform changes proposed by the team.
* Own reliability and observability; source-freshness alerting, exposures, contract enforcement, and anomaly detection (Elementary OSS or equivalent). Set the production reliability bar.
* Mentor our Data Engineer and onboard future hires; establish paired-onboarding and code-review patterns to prevent knowledge concentration.
* Own the technical roadmap for the data platform. Partner with Engineering Manager and product on prioritisation, sequencing and trade-offs.
Who we look for
* Extensive experience building and operating production data platforms.
* Deep expertise in dbt; contracts, exposures, custom generic tests, macros and doc blocks.
* Ability to defend architectural choices in this stack; past decisions and learnings.
* Deep expertise in Snowflake - warehouse organisation, governance, cost optimisation and Cortex.
* Experience designing and maintaining a semantic layer for downstream LLM or BI consumption.
* Experience working in fast-paced technology environments, with adaptability to ambiguity and rapid priority changes.
* Proficiency in managing relationships with stakeholders, including customer-facing teams, product teams, and business users.
* Strong collaboration skills to co-create solutions and communicate technical concepts clearly.
* Track record of creating an accessible data culture, mentoring engineers and growing data teams without becoming a bottleneck.
* High level of comfort owning architectural decisions in writing and defending them in review.
* Excellent verbal and written communication skills for technical and non-technical audiences.
What we offer
* Equity in EQL to share in the company's success.
* Competitive compensation with market evaluation.
* Flexible work environment to support diverse working styles.
* Generous time off to promote well-being and engagement.
* A workplace that welcomes the whole team, including their furry friends.
* Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; equal opportunity employer and non-discrimination.
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