Data Architect

Roles of this type sit at the intersection of data engineering, systems design and stakeholder engagement. You could work within a collaborative technical environment, partnering with business analysts, software engineers and data teams to define data requirements, establish quality standards and build scalable, distributed architectures. The work could involve designing pipelines that serve both operational systems (such as SAP S/4HANA and SAP ECC environments) and analytics platforms, with scope to influence how data flows, transforms and delivers value across the organisation., * Designing end-to-end data architectures that serve operational and analytical workloads

• Gathering and clarifying data requirements with stakeholders across business and technical teams
• Defining data pipeline patterns, quality standards and governance frameworks
• Working with cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP) and containerised environments (Docker, Kubernetes) to build scalable, distributed data systems
• Collaborating on API design and microservices patterns that integrate data sources
• Supporting the alignment of data pipelines with business outcomes and technical constraints
• Mentoring team members on data quality, architecture principles and best practices
• Contributing to system design documentation (UML, BPMN) and technical standards

• Proven experience designing data architectures, pipelines or data integration systems
• Strong understanding of relational databases (SQL) and distributed data systems
• Hands-on experience with at least one major cloud platform (Azure, AWS or GCP)
• Familiarity with containerisation and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes)
• Experience gathering and validating data requirements with stakeholders
• Knowledge of data quality principles and quality assurance approaches
• Competence in at least one programming language (Python, Java, or similar)
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering or related discipline (Master’s degree a plus)

Nice-to-have

• Experience with SAP systems (S/4HANA, ECC, RISE)
• CI/CD pipeline experience (infrastructure-as-code, Terraform)
• Familiarity with API design, microservices or event-driven architectures
• Experience with BI tools (Power BI) or analytics platforms
• Understanding of CSDR, regulatory or data governance frameworks
• Linux administration or scripting (Bash, Python)

Most roles of this type offer the following, dependent on the industry and seniority of the role:

• Scope to influence how data systems are designed and governed across the organisation
• Exposure to modern cloud and distributed technologies in a hands-on capacity
• Collaboration with cross-functional teams and the opportunity to raise technical standards
• Contract-based flexibility with a competitive day rate (£575-750 per day)
• The chance to work on complex, mission-critical data challenges
• Potential for progression, learning and contribution to architectural decisions

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