Lead Data Architect

Job Description

Job Description

KLC Consulting, Inc.

Requirement for:      Lead Data Architect – Tallahassee, FL

Contact:                     Maggie Manning:

Client:                         Florida Department of Corrections, Carlton Building at 501 South Calhoun Street and 315 South Calhoun Street, Tallahassee, FL

Due Date:                   May 28, 2026 by 11am EST

Term                           July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 with a possible one (1) year renewal term

The Department's OIT is seeking the services of an experienced Data Architect under the working title of Lead Data Architect.

LOCATION: The work shall be conducted on-site with the Department's OIT at the Carlton Building at 501 South Calhoun Street and 315 South Calhoun Street, Tallahassee, Florida

SCOPE OF WORK/JOB CHARACTERISTICS: The Lead Data Architect provides strategic, technical, and personnel leadership for the enterprise data architecture function. This role oversees a team of Data Architects responsible for enterprise modeling, source-to-target mapping, data quality, and governance initiatives across the organization. The Lead Data Architect defines the long-term vision for enterprise data design, ensures rigorous application of architecture standards, and drives strategic alignment between business objectives, technical solutions, and the broader enterprise information strategy. The role requires a balance of high-level architectural expertise and proven leadership in guiding project teams, mentoring technical staff, and ensuring that all enterprise data assets are well-governed, high-quality, and trusted. The duties and responsibilities of this position are as follows:

Enterprise Data Architecture and Modeling

·         Lead the design, evolution, and roadmap of enterprise-wide data architectures, including operational data stores, data warehouses, and data marts;

·         Provide guidance to ensure all models, schemas, and structures align with enterprise standards and modernization objectives;

·         Oversee development and maintenance of logical and physical data models, ensuring coherent structures across programs and platforms; and

·         Direct the creation and review of source-to-target mappings across all integration and transformation projects.

Team Leadership and Oversight

·         Manage and mentor a team of Data Architects, providing coaching, work direction, and quality assurance of deliverables;

·         Allocate architectural resources to projects and ensure effective prioritization in partnership with program and project managers;

·         Establish best practices, enforce modeling standards, and ensure consistency in documentation, design approaches, and governance activities; and

·         Oversee skills development and support professional growth of team members to align with the enterprise data strategy.

Data Standards, Quality, and Governance

·         Define, maintain, and enforce data architecture standards, policies, and procedures governing metadata, naming conventions, modeling principles, and lineage documentation;

·         Lead the creation and validation of data quality rules; ensure business and technical stakeholders align on expected data behavior;

·         Oversee data lineage documentation, ensuring end-to-end traceability of data flow, business rules, and transformation logic; and

·         Ensure compliance with enterprise governance frameworks and contribute to continuous improvement of data policies.

Technical Strategy and Solution Guidance

·         Partner with engineering, analytics, and application teams to design scalable, performant data pipelines and storage solutions;

·         Provide expert-level guidance on database optimization, recovery strategies, and data loading methodologies;

·         Ensure effective data acquisition strategies and influence platform architecture decisions to support long-term scalability and modernization efforts; and

·         Evaluate emerging technologies, tools, and architectural patterns to enhance the enterprise data ecosystem.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

·         Collaborate with business leaders, solution architects, and program teams to align data architecture to organizational priorities and program roadmaps;

·         Participate in project intake, solution sessions, and design reviews to ensure data implications are fully accounted for; and

·         Champion a data-driven culture by promoting the value of high-quality data, strong governance, and forward-looking architecture.

Documentation, Standards, and Review

·         Ensure all architectural documents—including models, mappings, lineage, governance artifacts, and migration strategies—are accurate, accessible, and maintained to enterprise standards; and

·         Review and approve team outputs to ensure consistency, quality, and alignment with enterprise architecture.

NOTE: This position is designated as “essential staff” and is expected to report for duty when instructed to do so in times of emergency or potential emergency as required by Section 33-208.002(4), Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.)

NOTE: In addition to the above list, the selected Candidates must successfully complete a Level II Background Check.

NOTE: Any successful Candidate with access to the Department's network is required to complete the Department's Security Awareness Training within 30 calendar days of hire.

Submissions Must Include

1.      Candidate Resume (limited to a maximum of three (3) pages, highlighting relevant and recent experience) along with any supporting documentation, if desired (i.e., skills matrix, recommendations, etc.); and

2.      Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Matrix

3.      References

4.      Exhibit E – Signed Resume Self-Certification Form

Must Complete the following Education, Experience, and Skills Matrices

Education

Degree / Date of Graduation

University / School

A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Computer Science, Information Systems, or other related field,

Equivalent Experience

Years of Experience

or equivalent work experience in Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Azure Cloud Solutions will be considered.

Preferred Certifications

Certification / Certification #

Date of Certification / Certifier

Azure Data Engineer Associate

Azure Solutions Architect Expert

Azure Fundamentals

Possesses a Databricks Certification as a Data Engineer Associate.

Required Qualifications

Years of Experience

Year Skills Last Used

A minimum of seven (7) years of professional experience managing large-scale, complex database management systems;

Strong leadership experience managing data architects or similar technical teams;

Strong communication skills for engaging technical and business stakeholders;

Expertise in database platforms, data modeling tools, cloud data ecosystems, and modern data engineering patterns;

A minimum of seven (7) years of professional experience in Extract, Transform, Load (ETL)development and data engineering, with at least three (3) years of hands-on experience working with Azure Data Factory (ADF), Azure Databricks, Azure Synapse Analytics, and Azure Purview;

Proven ability to build and optimize large-scale ETL pipelines for high-performance, high-availability environments;

Deep expertise in Spark, Python, or Scala for large-scale data transformations;

Strong Structured Query Language (SQL) proficiency and experience working with complex data structures;

Comprehensive knowledge of data governance, security protocols, and Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) within the Azure ecosystem; and

Ability to design ETL processes that are resilient, efficient, and fully compliant with regulatory standards.