Principal Data Engineer

Empower is a financial services company focused on helping customers achieve financial freedom. The Principal Data Engineer will design, build, and optimize scalable data services, streaming solutions, pipelines, and cloud-based data platforms while leading complex enterprise initiatives. The role also establishes engineering standards, advances data governance and modernization, and mentors technical leaders.

Responsibilities:

• Design, build, and optimize scalable data engineering solutions, including streaming data services, data pipelines, data platforms, and operational data systems
• Serve as a hands-on technical leader, actively developing and implementing data engineering solutions rather than functioning solely as an architect
• Define and drive data engineering standards, patterns, best practices, and reusable frameworks
• Architect and implement highly complex, scalable data platforms and advanced data engineering solutions
• Lead complex, high-impact, cross-functional data initiatives across the organization
• Build and support streaming and data services for enterprise use, with experience beyond consuming or using existing platforms
• Establish and enforce data governance, security, data quality, and data management standards
• Ensure enterprise data platforms are reliable, well-modeled, accessible, secure, and optimized for broad consumption
• Drive innovation and modernization initiatives across data platforms, engineering practices, and cloud-based data services
• Partner with senior leadership, architects, product teams, and engineering teams on long-term data strategy and roadmap planning
• Mentor senior engineers and technical leaders across the organization
• Evaluate and adopt emerging technologies to advance enterprise data capabilities
• Ensure scalability, performance, resilience, and long-term sustainability of data platforms
• Champion continuous improvement and elevate engineering practices across teams
• Complete other duties as assigned

Requirements:

• Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time, including CPT/OPT.
• • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field, such as Information Systems, Mathematics, or Software Engineering, or an equivalent combination of training and experience
• • 10+ years of data engineering experience
• • Certified AWS Engineer or equivalent AWS certification required
• • Expert-level proficiency in Python, Spark, SQL, and modern data architectures
• • Extensive hands-on experience with AWS and distributed data systems
• • Proven experience building streaming data solutions, data services, and scalable data platforms, not just using existing platforms as a consumer
• • Deep expertise in data modeling, ETL/ELT, data platform design, and operational data stores
• • Proven experience with batch and streaming data integration at enterprise scale
• • Strong experience with data governance, data quality, security standards, and data management practices
• • Hands-on experience with Terraform or similar infrastructure-as-code tooling
• • Expertise across modern data platforms and cloud ecosystems
• • Demonstrated ability to define, influence, and implement enterprise-wide technical direction and engineering standards
• • Proven track record of leading enterprise-scale data transformations and initiatives
• • Exceptional leadership, mentoring, and organizational influence
• • Strong communication skills with the ability to advise executive stakeholders, partner with architects, and drive technical decisions
• ***For remote and hybrid positions you will be required to provide reliable high-speed internet with a wired connection as well as a place in your home to work with limited disruption. You must have reliable connectivity from an internet service provider that is fiber, cable or DSL internet. Other necessary computer equipment, will be provided. You may be required to work in the office if you do not have an adequate home work environment and the required internet connection.***
• • Experience with Snowflake
• • Data engineering, cloud data, or data platform certifications
• • Advanced AWS data services certifications
• • Experience building reusable data services, frameworks, or platform capabilities used by multiple engineering teams
• • Experience modernizing legacy data platforms into cloud-native, governed, scalable data ecosystems