Lead Data Engineer
On-siteChicago, Illinois, United States
Job Summary
Design and maintain enterprise-grade ETL/ELT pipelines integrating data from core firm systems like finance, HR, and document management. Define data architecture standards, schemas, and storage patterns for Azure-based data warehouses and lakehouses while optimizing for performance and scalability. Lead the implementation of CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and monitoring to ensure production data reliability and rapid delivery. Partner with IT, security, and business stakeholders to reduce data silos, enforce governance policies, and establish clear data ownership for reporting and AI initiatives. Provide technical mentorship, lead data-focused projects from initiation to delivery, and coordinate with external vendors to ensure long-term sustainability.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience
- 8+ years of hands-on experience in data engineering, ETL/ELT development, and data integration
- 3+ years of experience designing and operating cloud-based data platforms
- Strong MS SQL skills and experience with relational database design, development, and performance tuning
- Experience building reliable production data pipelines, including monitoring, alerting, and reconciliation
- Experience with source control and deployment practices for data workflows (e.g., Git and CI/CD pipelines)
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences
- Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion and professionalism
- Availability for occasional after-hours work for major releases or production incidents
Desired Qualifications
- Advanced experience with Azure data services (ADLS, Databricks, Azure Data Factory, Synapse)
- Experience implementing enterprise data warehouses, data marts, and lakehouse architectures
- Experience with data integration tools such as Azure Data Factory, Talend, Boomi, or similar platforms
- Strong scripting and programming skills (Python, PowerShell, and/or .NET/C#) for data processing and custom integrations
- Familiarity with business intelligence and analytics tools such as Power BI or Tableau
- Experience with data governance frameworks, data quality controls, data cataloging, and lineage documentation
- Experience in a law firm or professional services environment is a plus, including familiarity with systems such as Elite 3E, Aderant, iManage, NetDocuments, Intapp/InterAction, or similar platforms
- Relevant certifications (e.g., Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Engineer Associate) are a plus
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