Data Engineer - Level III

Role Description

The Data Architect / Data Engineering Lead provides technical leadership for data architecture, data engineering, database modernization, and AI/ML enablement across the NRCS IT ecosystem. This role is responsible for guiding the transformation of legacy data platforms into scalable, cloud-native architectures on AWS.

• Works in close coordination with the Enterprise Lead Architect, Government Program Managers, and cross-functional delivery teams.
• Executes data management, modernization, and operational sustainment activities under the OMNI contract.

Qualifications

• 7 years of progressive experience in data architecture, data engineering, and database administration across enterprise environments.
• 5+ years of hands-on experience designing and deploying data solutions on AWS.
• Deep expertise in Microsoft SQL Server and PostgreSQL/PostGIS.
• Proven experience building production data pipelines for batch, streaming, and geospatial workloads.
• Strong proficiency in SQL/T-SQL, Python, and PySpark.
• Demonstrated ability to design and implement enterprise data architectures.
• 3+ years of experience supporting federal IT programs.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines and Git-based version control.
• Experience working within SAFe Agile or equivalent iterative delivery frameworks.

Requirements

• Direct experience with USDA systems.
• Experience with FPAC IT governance and CI/CD pipeline standards.
• Hands-on experience with AWS Bedrock, SageMaker, and Generative AI patterns.
• Experience with geospatial data engineering.
• Experience with AI-enabled legacy modernization platforms.
• Azure experience as a complement to primary AWS focus.
• Relevant certifications: AWS Solutions Architect, AWS Data Analytics Specialty, Azure Data Engineer Associate, or equivalent.
• Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Science, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Define and maintain data architecture standards, patterns, and governance practices.
• Lead conceptual and logical decomposition of monolithic database structures.
• Architect service-layer data access patterns.
• Design and maintain data models for enterprise soil data systems.
• Align supported systems with USDA’s cloud-native Lakehouse Data Strategy.
• Register and maintain schemas, interfaces, and metadata in AWS DataZone.
• Design, build, and maintain end-to-end data engineering pipelines.
• Modernize legacy SSIS-based ETL/ELT pipelines to cloud-native equivalents.
• Build and operate AWS DMS full-load and CDC pipelines.
• Implement Delta Lake standards and performance tuning.
• Develop serverless orchestration workflows for event-driven processing.
• Implement data quality controls and maintain audit-ready evidence.
• Provide senior-level DBA support for SQL Server clusters and PostgreSQL/PostGIS.
• Lead database schema versioning and deployment automation.
• Execute database modernization activities.
• Develop and maintain application-specific database recovery runbooks.
• Design and implement AI/ML and Generative AI solutions.
• Apply GenAI tooling to accelerate documentation and workflows.
• Support AI-assisted analysis for data flows and schema drift.
• Provide data engineering and DBA expertise in support of AWS migration.
• Design and execute data migration and transformation activities.
• Maintain audit-ready documentation for all data architecture decisions.
• Enforce architectural principles and secure coding standards.
• Conduct architecture reviews and design assurance gates.
• Deliver knowledge transfer sessions to Government personnel and vendors.
• Maintain and update troubleshooting playbooks and knowledge articles.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation and benefits packages including paid vacation.
• Medical, dental, vision, matching 401K plan.
• Tuition/training reimbursement.
• Long & Short-Term Disability.