> Markdown version of [/jobs/ext/2628284-head-of-data-infrastructure](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/jobs/ext/2628284-head-of-data-infrastructure). Every page supports `.md` or `Accept: text/markdown`. Links point to the HTML versions so they work for humans too. Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Head of Data Infrastructure - **Company:** Beacon Software - **Location:** San Francisco, CA, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), Artificial Intelligence, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Software as a Service, Cloud Computing, Data Infrastructure, Distributed Systems, Identity and Access Management, Python (Programming Language), Cloud Services, Salesforce.Com, SQL Databases, Data Streaming, Parquet, Pulumi, Business Intelligence Development Studio, Feature Engineering, Snowflake, Apache Spark, Data Layers, Stripe, Apache Flink, Apache Kafka, Terraform, Confluent, Databricks - **Published:** August 9, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=0ea937cd283979d0 ## About the Role We are looking for a senior data infrastructure leader who is still deeply hands-on. Someone who has spent time inside companies like Snowflake, Databricks, or Confluent building the platforms others run on, and who now wants to apply that depth to a genuinely interesting operational problem., Technical depth * Hands-on background in distributed systems, query engines, or cloud data platforms. * Comfortable writing production Python, SQL, and infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, Pulumi). * Deep familiarity with modern lakehouse and warehouse internals (Iceberg, Delta, Parquet, Snowflake, Databricks). * Strong grasp of streaming architectures (Kafka, Kinesis, Flink) and CDC patterns. * Experience building for both analytical and operational workloads at scale. ## Description * Ingestion strategy. Connect diverse source systems (SaaS apps, transactional DBs, Stripe, Salesforce, custom APIs) into a low-latency data layer. The hard part is not any individual connector. It is the operating model that makes onboarding portco 50 as fast as portco 5. * Modeling and transformation standards. Define the data modeling standards, transformation logic (dbt, Spark, or equivalent), and lineage practices used by the entire portfolio. The canonical model is the thing that lets a query like "show me sales across all portcos" actually resolve, and it is the thing that determines whether the platform compounds or fragments as we grow. * Real-time and batch frameworks. Establish the processing framework for operational analytics, AI feature engineering, and executive reporting. Batch where batch is right. Streaming where it matters. The discipline to know which is which. * Multi-tenant isolation and security posture. Per-portco data, compute, and credential boundaries. Cross-cloud (AWS and Azure) connectivity. Regional residency for portcos in regulated verticals. KMS scoping, IAM design, and the audit surfaces that make it all defensible. * Infrastructure-as-code for the data stack. Cloud provisioning, cost management, and observability. You will own the Terraform or Pulumi modules that other engineers build against. The bar is not novelty. It is correctness, repeatability, and the kind of module design that ages well. * AI and feature serving partnership. Partner with AI and product teams to build feature stores, vector infrastructure, and low-latency serving layers as we embed intelligence in portfolio products. You do not need to be the ML expert. You need to be the person who makes sure the data layer underneath is ready when ML needs it. * Vendor stack ownership. Evaluate and own the cloud warehouse, orchestration, cataloging, and BI tooling. Build vs. buy decisions, with long-term leverage in mind. We have an active evaluation underway between Snowflake and Databricks, and you will be the senior voice in landing that. * Acquisition diligence. Act as the senior technical voice in acquisition diligence, assessing target companies' data maturity and integration complexity. Some of the highest-leverage moments in our operating model happen pre-close, and the data infra perspective is missing from most diligence processes., * This is not a heads-down IC role with no scope. You will be setting the technical direction for data infrastructure across the entire portfolio. * This is not a purely strategic role. We expect you to write code, review PRs, and be in the systems day-to-day. The team you build around you will follow the bar you set. * This is not a maintenance role. The platform is net-new. You will be designing it from scratch and living with the consequences. ## Related Videos - [Parquet, Delta, Iceberg & Ducklake - An introduction for developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100075-parquet-delta-iceberg-ducklake-an-introduction-for-developers) - [From Messy Queries to Scalable Systems - How Data Engineering actually works](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100203-from-messy-queries-to-scalable-systems-how-data-engineering-actually-works) - [Navigating Growth, Scaling Challenges, and Office Expansions with David Singleton, CTO at Stripe](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100362-navigating-growth-scaling-challenges-and-office-expansions-with-david-singleton-cto-at-stripe) - [Why segmenting your infrastructure into tiers makes your infrastructure design better](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1960-why-segmenting-your-infrastructure-into-tiers-makes-your-infrastructure-design-better) - [Tracking vehicles at scale](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1999-tracking-vehicles-at-scale) - [Modern Data Architectures need Software Engineering](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1030-modern-data-architectures-need-software-engineering) ## Related Articles - [Making Data Warehouses Fast: A Developer’s Story](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/107-making-data-warehouses-fast-a-developer-s-story) - [Highest Paying Tech Companies for Developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/220-highest-paying-tech-companies-for-developers) - [Top Big Data Technologies That You Need to Know](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/108-top-big-data-technologies-that-you-need-to-know) - [How We Built a Worry-Free System That Runs for 10+ Years – And What We’d Do Again](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/751-how-we-built-a-worry-free-system-that-runs-for-10-years-and-what-we-d-do-again) - [Navigating the AI Shift](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/629-navigating-the-ai-shift) - [Coffee with Developers - Maria Apazoglou - Making AI understandable for all in production](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/475-coffee-with-developers-maria-apazoglou-making-ai-understandable-for-all-in-production)