> Markdown version of [/jobs/ext/3657819-principal-data-engineer](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/jobs/ext/3657819-principal-data-engineer). 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). --- # Principal Data Engineer - **Company:** Fintal Partners - **Location:** Melrose Park, IL, United States - **Experience:** Experienced - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Java (Programming Language), Amazon S3, Bash Shell, Big Data, Unix, Information Engineering, Data Infrastructure, Linux, Apache Hadoop, Hadoop Distributed File System, Monitoring of Systems, Python (Programming Language), Prometheus, Standard Sql, Grafana, Apache Spark, Kubernetes, Apache Flink, Apache Kafka, Data Pipelines, Docker, Pagerduty, Databricks - **Published:** October 9, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.disabledperson.com/jobs/75947218-principal-data-engineer ## About the Role * 5+ years in an established data engineering environment * 3+ years building Kafka streaming applications and/or managing Kafka clusters * 2+ years developing pipelines or applications on Big Data backends (S3, HDFS, Databricks, Iceberg, etc.) * Experience working in an "on-prem" / Linux environment is highly preferred * Experience with Apache Spark, Apache Flink or comparable tools * Strong Java, Python and SQL skills * Familiarity with common data science toolkits, particularly Python-based * Practical experience with Kubernetes and Docker * Exposure to monitoring tools such as Prometheus/Grafana, Alert Manager, Alerta and OpsGenie * Solid statistical analysis skills * Proven troubleshooting and root-cause analysis ability * Unix scripting experience (bash, Python, etc.) ## Description We're looking for an experienced, driven Principal Data Engineer to join our Chicago office. You'll do well here if you enjoy a fast-moving, innovative environment that keeps the firm at the leading edge of global financial markets. What You'll Do * Design, build and roll out our Big Data platform (Kafka, Hadoop, Dremio, etc.) * Develop, deploy and monitor data processing pipelines (Java, Python, Spark, Flink) * Partner with engineering teams on data modeling, ingestion and capacity planning * Work with users to keep data accurate and accessible * Serve as the go-to Big Data expert, advising users and developers on data questions