Principal Data Engineer
Deputy is a global SaaS remote‑first workforce management company with hubs in Sydney, Melbourne, San Francisco and London, plus team members working remotely across the United States. Our platform serves over 1.5 million workers and 375,000 workplaces across 100 + countries. We are backed by top global investors and recently achieved Unicorn status.
At Deputy, we’re improving the world of work, one shift at a time, for 80 % of the world’s workforce: hourly workers. These are the dedicated employees who keep our world running – from baristas to nurses, cleaners to delivery drivers, florists to factory workers. Despite their vital role in society, most workplace technology has focused on those workers who sit behind a desk, but at Deputy, we transform the frontline. When businesses use Deputy, their workplaces thrive – the business is more profitable, compliant and productive, while the workers are more engaged and happier at work.
We're becoming an AI‑native company, a commitment that means you'll be empowered (and expected) to use AI tools and thinking in your day‑to‑day work. You'll have the training, support and freedom to use AI responsibly and creatively to spark ideas, solve problems faster and unlock new ways of working.
Role
The Principal Data Engineer is the technical cornerstone of our data team, building a scalable and reliable data platform that will support the next phase of growth. This foundational, strategic role combines hands‑on technical leadership and strategic influence, enabling you to shape our data architecture, champion engineering best practices and mentor a talented team while partnering with leaders across the business.
Responsibilities
Architect and Evolve Our Core Data Platform
* Design, implement and refine a robust data lakehouse architecture (e.g., Medallion) using Databricks and Delta Lake to ensure data reliability and performance.
* Develop and maintain resilient, reusable patterns for ingesting data from a diverse set of sources, including our systems, transactional databases, event streams and third‑party SaaS APIs.
* Lead the implementation of our core data‑modelling principles (e.g., Kimball dimensional modelling) to produce curated, intuitive datasets for business intelligence and product analytics.
* Use tools like Unity Catalog to establish a comprehensive data governance framework, covering data lineage, fine‑grained access controls and a user‑friendly data catalogue.
* Develop and implement strategies for monitoring, optimising and forecasting our Databricks and cloud expenditure to keep the platform powerful and cost‑effective.
Champion Engineering Excellence and Best Practice
* Implement and advocate for automated CI/CD pipelines (e.g., using GitHub Actions) for all data assets, including dbt models, infrastructure changes and Databricks jobs.
* Champion a Git‑first culture for all data transformation code, establishing clear processes for branching, code reviews and version control.
* Implement comprehensive, automated data quality testing at every stage of our pipelines using tools like dbt test to ensure data is accurate and trustworthy.
* Establish thorough monitoring, logging and alerting for all data pipelines to proactively detect, diagnose and resolve issues before they impact the business.
Be a Strategic Partner Across the Business
* Collaborate directly with leaders in Product, Engineering, Sales, Finance and Customer Success to understand their challenges and design data solutions that enhance our product, improve customer outcomes and drive business strategy.
* Advise analysts, data scientists and other stakeholders on how to best leverage the data platform for impactful analysis and data‑driven decision‑making.
* Serve as the go‑to expert on our data architecture, running workshops and design sessions to align technical direction with business needs.
Lead, Mentor and Elevate Our Data Team
* Mentor data analysts and engineers through pair programming, constructive code reviews and technical guidance to grow their skills in Python, SQL and data modelling.
* Lead initiatives such as a data guild to encourage knowledge sharing, explore new technologies and collaboratively solve complex problems.
* Partner with data leadership to define career progression pathways for data engineering and take a leading role in interviewing and hiring new team members.
Skills & Experience
* Mastery of data architecture principles, data modelling frameworks (e.g., dimensional modelling) and a strong understanding of data governance and security best practices.
* A strong software engineering mindset, with significant experience implementing CI/CD for data, Git‑based workflows and automated data quality testing.
* Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills, with a proven ability to translate complex technical concepts for non‑technical audiences and influence business decisions.
* A genuine passion for leadership and mentorship, with a track record of elevating the technical skills of those around you.
Tech Stack
* dbt
* Databricks, Unity Catalog
* Terraform
* AWS services: Redshift, DynamoDB, API Gateway, CloudWatch, Lambda, streaming with Kinesis/Firehose, Glue, Bedrock
* Stitch & Fivetran
* Languages: advanced SQL, Python
Employee Perks
* Flexible remote‑first work policy (with a work‑from‑home stipend to set you up for success)
* Ownership via our Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP)
* Paid parental leave
* Group Salary Continuance Insurance
* Employee Assistance Program
* Additional leave days – including study assistance, celebration days and volunteering
* Global working groups focused on collaboration, belonging and connection
* Annual Hackathons
* Novated leasing for electric vehicles, internet reimbursement and more
Deputy believes in equal opportunity and that inclusiveness and diversity promotes innovation. Our global team members are from a variety of cultures, and we welcome different perspectives and skills.
Seniority Level
Mid‑Senior level
Employment Type
Full‑time
Job Function
Information Technology
Industries
Software Development and IT Services and IT Consulting
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