Software Engineer - Data Lake Architect - TX

Data Lake Architect

Client: Financial Services

Team: TBA

Location: Zone 2

Contract Length: 12mo

Pay Rate: $69 - $72

Top Requirements

1. 5+ years of Software Engineering experience
2. Proven experience designing and implementing data lake architectures (Bronze/Silver/Gold or layered models)
3. Strong knowledge of Google Cloud Storage (GCS) design, including bucket structure, lifecycle policies, and access controls
4. Hands-on experience with columnar storage formats (Parquet, Avro, ORC) and compression strategies
5. Expertise in partitioning strategies, large-scale data layout, and backfill execution
6. Experience designing curated, analytics-ready semantic data models
7. Strong understanding of large-scale data systems and cloud-based data engineering patterns

Plusses

1. Experience working with BI teams and optimizing datasets for consumption
2. Familiarity with modern data lake governance and lineage frameworks
3. Expertise with scalable metadata-driven pipelines
4. Knowledge of performance optimization techniques for cloud-based data storage
5. Experience supporting enterprise-level data platform modernization

Job Summary

The Software Engineer 4 will contribute to complex, large-scale Software Engineering initiatives with a primary focus on enterprise data lake architecture. This role involves designing layered data models, implementing GCS-based storage architectures, and establishing standards for data organization, governance, and analytics readiness. The engineer will collaborate across teams, evaluate multi-faceted engineering challenges, and influence long-term architectural strategies related to data lakes, storage optimization, and curated data models—all within a large enterprise cloud environment.

Day-to-Day Responsibilities

• Design and implement layered data lake architectures (Bronze/Silver/Gold or similar)
• Define and manage GCS storage structures, including bucket layout, naming conventions, lifecycle rules, and access controls
• Work with columnar formats (Parquet, Avro, ORC) to optimize storage and query performance
• Implement partitioning strategies and support large-scale backfills and data restructuring
• Design analytics-optimized curated data models for BI and downstream consumption
• Evaluate complex data engineering problems and propose scalable architectural solutions
• Collaborate with product, analytics, and engineering teams on long-term data architecture planning
• Establish best practices for data organization, compression, archival, and lifecycle management
• Contribute to architectural discussions and guide teams on data lake standards and patterns
• Ensure architectural decisions align with enterprise policies, procedures, and compliance requirements

EEO Employer

Apex Systems is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate or allow discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, genetic information, registered domestic partner status, marital status, disability, status as a crime victim, protected veteran status, political affiliation, union membership, or any other characteristic protected by law. Apex will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law. If you have visited our website in search of information on employment opportunities or to apply for a position, and you require an accommodation in using our website for a search or application, please contact our Employee Services Department at View email address on click.appcast.io or View phone number on click.appcast.io.

Apex Systems is a world-class IT services company that serves thousands of clients across the globe. When you join Apex, you become part of a team that values innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning. We offer quality career resources, training, certifications, development opportunities, and a comprehensive benefits package. Our commitment to excellence is reflected in many awards, including ClearlyRated's Best of Staffing® in Talent Satisfaction in the United States and Great Place to Work® in the United Kingdom and Mexico.

Apex Benefits Overview: Apex offers a range of supplemental benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life, disability, and other insurance plans that offer an optional layer of financial protection. We offer an ESPP (employee stock purchase program) and a 401K program which allows you to contribute typically within 30 days of starting, with a company match after 12 months of tenure. Apex also offers a HSA (Health Savings Account on the HDHP plan), a SupportLinc Employee Assistance Program (EAP) with up to 8 free counseling sessions, a corporate discount savings program and other discounts. In terms of professional development, Apex hosts an on-demand training program, provides access to certification prep and a library of technical and leadership courses/books/seminars once you have 6+ months of tenure, and certification discounts and other perks to associations that include CompTIA and IIBA. Apex has a dedicated customer service team for our Consultants that can address questions around benefits and other resources, as well as a certified Career Coach. You can access a full list of our benefits, programs, support teams and resources within our 'Welcome Packet' as well, which an Apex team member can provide.