Lead Data Architect

Deeplight; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 520,000 - 900,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Comprehensive 'Gold Level' personal健康?

Individual Visa Sponsorship

Professional development and certficat

Job summary

DeepLight AI in the UAE seeks a Lead Data Architect to serve as the technical authority across fixed-scope enterprise projects. You will shape data platforms and guide clients through complex digital transformations.

You’ll mentor engineers, design secure, scalable Lakehouse architectures on Databricks with AWS/Azure, and present clear roadmaps to C-suite stakeholders. This role rewards strategic thinking, collaboration, and excellence in data governance, security, and regulatory compliance

Qualifications

• Significant demonstrable experience in enterprise data architecture and leading teams in top-tier technology or management consultancies.
• Ability to build authentic client trust and read organizational dynamics with empathy.

Responsibilities

• Design, validate, and govern enterprise Lakehouse architectures (Databricks, Delta Lake) and modern cloud data stacks (AWS, Azure).
• Act as primary technical advisor to client C-suite and IT leadership; translate challenges into fixed-scope blueprints and roadmaps.
• Direct and nurture a team of engineers and quantitative specialists, fostering learning and technical excellence.
• Use high EQ to de-escalate project friction and defend technical choices before ARBs and risk committees.
• Design zero-trust data security frameworks, fine-grained access controls, and audit trails compliant with regional regulatory frameworks.

Skills

Enterprise data architecture

Education

Master's or Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Theoretical Physics, Physics, Computer Science, or related quantitative field

Job description

DeepLight AI is a specialist AI and data consultancy dedicated to transforming the regional corporate landscape through bespoke, high-impact intelligent systems. We combine deep quantitative expertise, cutting-edge cloud architecture, and modern MLOps to engineer secure, scalable, and resilient data foundations designed to power enterprise AI at scale.

With deep roots across the financial services and banking sectors in the UAE, we help major institutions bridge the gap between complex legacy systems and future-ready AI platforms. We don't build temporary fixes—we engineer bulletproof, banking-grade data platforms for high-stakes digital transformations.

The Opportunity…

We are seeking an exceptional Lead Data Architect to serve as a technical authority, team mentor, and trusted client principal across our fixed-scope enterprise projects in the UAE.

What You'll Do…

• Design, validate, and govern enterprise Lakehouse architectures (Databricks, Delta Lake) and modern cloud data stacks (AWS, Azure) tailored for advanced analytics and production AI.
• Act as the primary technical advisor to client C-suite, CDO, and IT leadership. Translate complex client challenges into clear, fixed-scope architecture blueprints, SOW baselines, and delivery roadmaps.
• Direct and nurture a team of engineers and quantitative specialists. Build a culture of psychological safety, continuous learning, and technical excellence through hands-on coaching and active listening.
• Use high EQ to de-escalate project friction, align disparate business and IT agendas, and defend technical choices before architecture review boards (ARBs) and risk committees.
• Design zero-trust data security frameworks, fine-grained access controls, and audit trails compliant with regional Central Bank regulatory frameworks and data sovereignty laws.

As an AI consultancy, our greatest asset is the expertise of our people.
While technical mastery is the foundation of what we do, the ability to bridge the gap between complex data science and actionable business value is what defines your success with Deeplight.
We're looking for individuals who are not only world-class in their fields of specialism, but also compelling communicators and persuasive advocates for their own skills.
You will be the face of our firm, tasked with building trust, articulating the "why" behind your technical decisions, and effectively "selling" your vision to high-level stakeholders.
If you thrive on the challenge of presenting cutting-edge solutions as much as you do on building them, you will fit right in.

What We're Looking For…

• A Master's or Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Theoretical Physics, Physics, Computer Science, or a related quantitative field.
• Significant demonstrable experience in enterprise data architecture, with substantial experience leading teams inside top-tier technology or management consultancies.
• Demonstrated ability to build authentic client trust, read organizational dynamics, resolve conflict constructively, and lead teams with empathy and clarity.
• Proven experience owning technical delivery on fixed-scope consultancy projects—managing milestone commitments, scope, and technical risk effectively.
• Deep mastery of Lakehouse patterns, distributed data processing (Spark, Kafka), cloud storage topologies, and feature engineering pipelines for AI.
• While we welcome expertise across complex enterprise industries, a background in financial services, banking, or capital markets is highly advantageous.

What Gives You an Edge…

• Hands-on experience designing concurrent multi-cloud architectures across AWS and Azure in regulated environments.
• Practical knowledge of vector database topologies, LLM data flows, and MLOps platform orchestration.
• Experience navigating enterprise procurement, client dynamics, and local regulatory frameworks across the UAE or broader GCC region.

The benefits you’ll enjoy as part of this role include:

• Competitive salary
• Comprehensive 'Gold Level' personal health insurance
• Individual Visa Sponsorship
• Professional development and certification support
• Subscription reimbursement relating to your role
• Opportunity to work on cutting-edge AI projects
• Monthly Employee Incentive program
• Career advancement opportunities in a rapidly growing AI company

This position offers a unique opportunity to shape the future of AI implementation while working with a talented team of professionals at the forefront of technological innovation. The successful candidate will play a crucial role in driving our company’s success in delivering transformative AI solutions to our clients.

At DeepLight AI, we recognise that diversity drives innovation. We are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where individuals with different thinking styles can thrive and contribute their unique strengths to our specialised AI and data solutions.

Our goal is to ensure our application and interview process is accessible, predictable, and fair for all candidates.

If you require any specific adjustments to the application process, or if you require any reasonable adjustments should you be successful in being processed to the interview stage, please do let us know. This information will be kept strictly confidential and will not impact hiring decisions.