Data Engineer, Lead

Job Description

Job Description

Farmer’s Fridge makes fruits and vegetables accessible and approachable for everyone. We offer a variety of fresh, healthy, ready-to-eat meals and snacks through our fresh food vending machines, wholesale partners, and our office pantry solution — providing chef-curated meals to customers within seconds. Today, we operate a network of Fridges and partner with clients nationwide in high-foot-traffic areas, such as airports, hospitals, universities, and large office buildings — where there is limited accessibility to fresh, healthy, grab-n-go options.

We care deeply about what we’re creating and aspire to make sure our customers feel that through every touchpoint. This shows up in many ways across the business. We are committed to prioritizing food safety, we are passionate about product quality, we value our employees, we champion the best idea no matter where it comes from, and we’re committed to making an overall positive impact as we scale. 

 

About this Role:  This is a rare opportunity for an experienced Data Engineer who wants to own something. Farmer's Fridge is growing fast, and our data infrastructure needs to grow with it. You won't be one of dozens of engineers waiting in line to ship. You'll be the person setting the direction. Small team, big problems, massive amounts of data, and the latitude to solve them the right way. If you're energized by impact over organizational overhead, this is your kind of role.

This role is based in Chicago and requires in-office availability.

What You’ll Do…

What you will do at Farmer’s Fridge:

• Lead data engineering and analytics engineering at Farmer’s Fridge, setting technical direction and quality standards across the stack.
• Tear down data silos and rebuild FF's data infrastructure from the ground up, creating a foundation where every team can access reliable, trusted data without waiting on a ticket.
• Own FF's dbt environment end to end and architect a semantic layer strategy that becomes the single source of truth for how Farmer's Fridge defines its most important metrics..
• Coordinate closely with the Data Product Analyst and Head of Data on roadmap planning, sprint priorities, and overall data strategy.
• Partner with the Supply Chain tech team to revamp data infrastructure and tooling for the manufacturing team, improving visibility and operational efficiency.
• Lead the integration of Sigma as FF’s next-generation BI platform, working with business stakeholders to drive adoption and build out reporting capabilities.
• Lead the integration of optimization models developed by the data science team into production data pipelines, ensuring models are operationalized reliably and at scale.
• Hunt down data gaps and lead the charge on bringing in, modeling, and surfacing new data sources, turning blind spots into competitive advantages.
• Direct a team of three contractors: one data engineer and two analytics engineers, providing technical guidance, code reviews, and mentorship.
• Work directly with stakeholders across supply chain, operations, finance, sales, and marketing to understand data needs and deliver high-quality solutions.
• Set the bar for how data gets built at FF, defining and driving best practices for modeling, pipeline development, testing, and documentation that the whole team lives by.

What are we looking for in a Data Analyst?  

• 6–8+ years of experience in data engineering or a related field, with at least 1–2 years in a lead or senior individual contributor role.
• Strong hands-on SQL and data modeling skills; experience building and maintaining production data pipelines.
• Experience with cloud data warehouses (Snowflake preferred) and ELT tools (Fivetran or similar).
• Proficiency with dbt for data transformation and data modeling. Experience owning or contributing to a semantic layer is a strong plus.
• Familiarity with NoSQL databases (DynamoDB or similar) and working with REST APIs for data ingestion.
• Experience with analytics engineering concepts and tools.
• Proven ability to lead and manage technical contractors or small teams.
• Strong communication skills—comfortable translating technical complexity for non-technical stakeholders and working cross-functionally across the business.
• Familiarity with using AI tools in your day-to-day workflow.
• Experience with BI platform integrations (Sigma, Tableau, Hex, or similar) is a strong plus.
• Experience operationalizing data science or optimization models is a plus.
• Based in Chicago or willing to relocate. This is an in-office role.

The base salary range for this role is $150,000 - 160,000. The base pay offered will be determined by factors such as experience, skills, training, certifications, education, and any applicable minimum wage requirements.

In addition to base salary, this position is eligible for company performance-based bonuses and equity.

We provide a comprehensive benefits package, including:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance (multiple plans available)
• 401(k) with immediate employer match vesting
• Paid time off (including vacation, sick leave, and holidays)
• Paid sabbatical after 5 years of service
• Employee discounts
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

In This Together - We stay connected, whether in person or virtually. We encourage transparency through monthly town hall meetings and weekly financial updates. Participation ranges from sampling and providing feedback on the new menu items we’re coming up with in our test kitchen to contributing meaningfully to our DEIB committee. We enjoy cross-functional lunch & learns, social hours, and game nights but also respect that you have a life outside of work.

Happier Weekdays - Each day at work should fill you with joy. We're a fun and passionate group, and we don't take ourselves too seriously. Bring your unique self to work, dress comfortably, and always feel free to share your thoughts and opinions. We encourage curiosity; there's no hierarchy here when we're all swapping ideas.  

Never run on empty - Daily Farmer's Fridge meal, Thursday charcuterie, draft cold brew and beer, office snacks, and Friday happy hours are just some of the offerings to make sure you aren't distracted by a growling stomach.

Innovate & Elevate - We're all teachers and learners. You'll grow, and help grow the company through cross-functional collaboration, open access to leadership, and regular business updates. You have a direct impact on the company’s bottom line. You can also impact your personal bottom line by participating in our 401(k) plan that includes a company match with immediate vesting.

Farmer’s Fridge Diversity Statement:

"Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Farmer’s Fridge, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.”

Farmer’s Fridge is an equal-opportunity employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunity in all employment practices, including hiring, without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. View our disclosures related to External Agencies and Applicants below:

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