Head of Data

Head of Data | Bristol (Hybrid) | Outside IR35 | £650-£750/day | 6 months We're partnering with a scaling, data driven organisation as they invest heavily in their data capability during a period of transformation. The business is evolving from a primarily manual, compliance led setup into a more product oriented, technology enabled operation. Data is a key enabler of that shift, and this contract role will play a central part in laying the foundations.

The role This is a hands-on Head of Data contract focused on building a joined up, dependable data platform from a fragmented starting point. You'll take ownership of data architecture and delivery, working closely with engineering and product leaders to ensure data is reliable, well modelled, and Embedded into core applications.

You'll be expected to operate at both strategic and delivery levels - shaping direction while staying close to the technical detail to ensure progress is made.

Key responsibilities

• Design and own end to end data architecture from ingestion through to consumption
• Build and improve pipelines across APIs, files, and third party systems
• Establish robust data models to support analytics, workflows, and product features
• Introduce data quality, validation, and monitoring practices
• Ensure data is accessible and genuinely useful across the business
• Work closely with engineering teams to integrate data into applications
• Make pragmatic decisions around tooling, orchestration, and platform design
• Define standards for testing, deployment, and version control
• Collaborate with external partners while shaping longer term internal capability

What we're looking forYou'll be comfortable stepping into an environment that's still forming and bringing clarity and structure at pace. Ideal experience includes:

• Building and scaling data platforms in SaaS or data centric organisations
• Strong background in data engineering, modelling, and cloud platforms
• Hands on experience with tools such as Snowflake, dbt, Azure Data Factory (or equivalents)
• Advanced SQL skills and experience working with complex datasets
• Experience where data underpins customer facing products