Sr Manager, Data Engineering

Sr Manager, Data Engineering

Chicago, IL – hybrid WFH: 2 days onsite in the loop; 3 days work from home

We're looking for a Sr Data Engineering Manager to build out a centralized data platform to power AI and Analytics within our organization. This is a fairly new initiative within the last 12-18 months, and we're looking for the right person to come in to lead the build out, and grow a team over time. You'll start with 3 direct reports, and have budget to grow a team to 5+ in 2026.

We are a Microsoft/Azure shop primarily, but are open to expanding to multicloud so any multicloud experience is a big nice to have. Key technologies we use today are Azure, Databricks and SQL.

• Support the execution of data strategy by contributing to initiatives that uphold high standards of data quality, security, and performance in alignment with organizational objectives.
• Manage the implementation and enhancement of scalable data architectures that support analytics, machine learning, and AI capabilities under the guidance of the Director
• Lead the development and continuous evolution of scalable, robust, and business-aligned data platforms & pipelines, driving the adoption of modern tools and technologies, including cloud-native services, distributed computing, and real-time data processing.
• Collaborate with cross-functional partners—including AI, BI, Product, Operations, and support teams—to align on project-level priorities and ensure integrated execution across teams.
• Design and implement robust processes and tooling to ensure comprehensive data visibility, enable actionable insights, and drive data-centric awareness across the organization.
• Contribute to the maintenance and improvement of data governance practices, helping to ensure data integrity, accessibility, and compliance with regulations such as GDPR.
• Translate technical concepts and progress updates into clear communications for internal stakeholders, supporting alignment with broader data and technology goal
• Assist in vendor assessments and contribute to the evaluation of third-party tools and services to ensure alignment with technical and budgetary goals.
• Hires, develops, coaches, and supervises direct reports. Conducts annual performance reviews.

• Bachelor’s Degree is a requirement – ideally in Computer Science or an IT, Data or AI related field
• 7+ years of Data Engineering experience (more the better)
• 3+ years of managerial experience, managing a team of technical direct reports
• While this is a manager position, we’re looking for a “buck stops here” technical leader, who is strong with the following:
• Azure Data Engineering:
  Data Lake, ADF, Databricks, etc.
• Databricks is a must have
• Spark and/or Kafka
• Data modeling
• SQL
• BI

• Experience leading the build outs of centralized data platforms being used to power AI insights
• Multi-cloud experience with AWS or GCP
• Experience managing CI/CD for data pipelines
• Agile leadership experience