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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Associate Director, Lead Data Architect - Databricks - **Company:** Guidehouse Inc. - **Location:** McLean, VA, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Cloud Computing, Information Systems, Data Architecture, Information Engineering, Data Mapping, Metadata, DataOps, Information Technology, Databricks - **Published:** September 22, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.clearancejobs.com/jobs/9181828/associate-director-lead-data-architect-databricks ## About the Role * Must be able to OBTAIN and MAINTAIN a Federal or DHS "PUBLIC TRUST"; candidates must obtain approved adjudication of their PUBLIC TRUST prior to onboarding with Guidehouse. Candidates with an ACTIVE PUBLIC TRUST or SUITABILITY are preferred * Bachelor's degree in computer science, data engineering, information systems, engineering, or a related field. * EIGHT (8) or more years of experience in enterprise data architecture, data engineering, cloud platforms, or analytics modernization. * Experience architecting Databricks lakehouse solutions and Unity Catalog security and governance structures. * Strong knowledge of dimensional, relational, canonical , and data-product modeling patterns. * Experience with ingestion, API, integration, orchestration, metadata, lineage, data contracts, quality, and DataOps patterns. * Experience designing migration architectures and guiding source-to-target mapping and conversion decisions. What Would Be Nice To Have: * Databricks Data Engineer Professional, Databricks Architect, or equivalent certification. * Ability to lead technical teams and communicate architecture decisions to executive and non-technical audiences. * Experience with HR, workforce, ERP, or financial data models. * Experience with Azure, AWS, or cloud networking and security patterns. * Experience supporting public-sector data modernization. ## Description * Serve as deputy to the Data Workstream Lead and lead day-to-day technical architecture decisions. * Define the secure Databricks lakehouse architecture, environments, workspaces, storage patterns, identity and access considerations, and Unity Catalog structure. * Define canonical HR data models, domain boundaries, curated layers, semantic approaches, and reusable data-product standards. * Establish DataOps , ingestion, transformation, orchestration, integration, API, and other consumption patterns. * Develop the migration architecture, source-to-target design standards, metadata and lineage approach, and data-contract framework. * Define architecture standards for security, privacy, quality, observability, performance, testing, deployment, and supportability. * Review detailed models, mappings, pipelines, interfaces, and data products for conformance with the target architecture. * Facilitate architecture decisions and communicate tradeoffs to technical teams, business stakeholders, and leadership. * Mentor architects and engineers and provide technical quality assurance across Prepare, Stabilize, and Operationalize. ## Related Videos - [Modern Data Architectures need Software Engineering](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1030-modern-data-architectures-need-software-engineering) - [A Data Mesh needs Open Metadata](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/505-a-data-mesh-needs-open-metadata) - [Cutting LLM Costs Without Cutting Quality: How to Beat Proprietary LLMs with Fine-Tuned Open Source](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100151-cutting-llm-costs-without-cutting-quality-how-to-beat-proprietary-llms-with-fine-tuned-open-source) - [OLTP in the Lakehouse: Redefining Data for AI Workloads](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/2038-oltp-in-the-lakehouse-redefining-data-for-ai-workloads) - [Parquet, Delta, Iceberg & Ducklake - An introduction for developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100075-parquet-delta-iceberg-ducklake-an-introduction-for-developers) - [Blueprints for Success: Steering a Global Data & AI Architecture](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1577-blueprints-for-success-steering-a-global-data-ai-architecture) ## Related Articles - [Data Engineer Salary UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/253-data-engineer-salary-uk) - [Making Data Warehouses Fast: A Developer’s Story](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/107-making-data-warehouses-fast-a-developer-s-story) - [Graph and AI Trends 2026: Why Is AI Running but Not Yet Delivering?](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/680-graph-and-ai-trends-2026-why-is-ai-running-but-not-yet-delivering) - [Top Big Data Technologies That You Need to Know](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/108-top-big-data-technologies-that-you-need-to-know) - [Data Analyst Salary in the UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/278-data-analyst-salary-in-the-uk) - [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)