Senior Data Engineer

SentraAI; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 367,000 - 441,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading data engineering firm in Abu Dhabi is seeking a Senior Data Engineer to build and operate enterprise-scale data pipelines. This role demands expertise in Spark and Kafka to ensure reliable operation of data systems. Candidates must have hands-on experience with production environments and be ready to take ownership of complex data transformations. Benefits include exposure to significant data projects and a merit-based career progression. If you thrive on responsibility and impactful engineering, we want to talk!

Benefits

Exposure to complex data transformations

Meritocratic progression based on impact

Team valuing engineering rigor

Qualifications

• Proven experience in building and maintaining production data pipelines.
• Ability to handle failures under pressure.
• Experience with large complex enterprise systems.

Responsibilities

• Design and build Spark-based batch and streaming pipelines.
• Migrate large volumes of legacy ETL into modern architectures.
• Communicate clearly with engineers, architects, and client stakeholders.

Skills

Spark-based pipelines

Data quality validation

Kafka

ETL migration

Operational resilience

Tools

Debezium

Great Expectations

Flink

Job description

Overview

This is a production engineering role.

As a Senior Data Engineer at SentraAI you will build, migrate and operate data pipelines at enterprise scale involving vast numbers of source systems, hundreds of TB of data, and thousands of ETL workloads inside complex, highly governed environments.

If you have not owned data systems in production, handled failures under pressure, or worked inside large complex enterprises this role is not for you.

The Operating Context

SentraAI is delivering a multi-year data and AI transformation for a large complex enterprise.

The programme includes:

• Migration from legacy Hadoop, Oracle, SAP and bespoke ETL systems
• A modern cloud lakehouse architecture supporting batch and real-time workloads
• Enterprise reporting, operational analytics and Customer 360-style use cases
• Downstream AI and advanced analytics at scale

This is not greenfield. These systems are used, audited and relied upon.

Your Accountability

You are accountable for data pipelines that run reliably in production.

That includes:

• Designing and building Spark-based batch and streaming pipelines
• Migrating large volumes of legacy ETL into modern architectures
• Implementing and enforcing data quality validation and data contracts
• Supporting live systems including during incidents and critical delivery windows
• Communicating clearly with engineers, architects and client stakeholders

Ownership does not end at deployment.

What You Will Build

• Spark pipelines processing large-scale enterprise datasets
• Streaming pipelines using Kafka and Spark Streaming or Flink
• Medallion lakehouse layers Bronze Silver Gold
• CDC pipelines using Debezium or equivalent
• Data quality frameworks using Great Expectations, dbt or similar

You are expected to actively use AI tools to improve development speed, testing, quality and operational resilience within defined governance standards.

This Role Is Not For You If

• Your experience is primarily academic, conceptual or notebook-only
• You have not supported data systems in production
• You avoid accountability for failures or incidents
• You prefer fixed hours over delivery responsibility
• You are uncomfortable being challenged on technical decisions

We are explicit because the work demands it.

What Strong Looks Like

Within 612 months:

• Pipelines you own are stable, observable and trusted
• Legacy ETL migrations are predictable and low-risk
• Data quality issues reduce materially
• Stakeholders trust your judgment and communication
• You raise the bar for those around you

This is how performance is measured.

Benefits

What SentraAI Gives in Return

• Work on the region’s most complex data transformations
• Exposure to enterprise-scale systems and real accountability
• A team that values engineering rigor over optics
• Meritocratic progression based on impact, not tenure
• Career capital that carries real weight globally

Final Note

SentraAI is not for everyone.

It is for engineers who want to build systems that matter, take ownership seriously and grow through responsibility rather than protection.

If that describes how you work, Lets Talk!