Principal Data Engineer & Tech Lead — Hybrid

REA Group Ltd.; Richmond Shire; Hybrid; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid and flexible working

Flexible leave options (birthday leave

Purchase additional leave

Flexible parental leave

Volunteer & community program

Hackdays

Job summary

REA Group Ltd. seeks a Principal Data Engineer to lead architecture and technical excellence across Listings and Enrichment within the Experience Platform. You will guide data delivery with data scientists, analysts, and engineers using agile practices and shape the data strategy for scalable systems.

You will mentor engineers, collaborate on roadmap items, and drive best practices across ETL/ELT, data modelling, and governance while keeping hands-on involvement with the tech stack.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in data engineering or related fields.
• Proficiency in Python, Scala, Java, or Kotlin.
• Strong experience with cloud data warehouses (BigQuery, Snowflake, Redshift).
• Hands-on experience with data orchestration tools (Airflow, Dagster, Prefect).
• Cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure).
• Designing and optimising large-scale ETL/ELT workflows.
• Experience mentoring or coaching teams on technical projects.
• Strategic thinker with strong problem‑solving and stakeholder management skills.
• Collaborative leadership and commitment to continuous learning.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with data scientists, analysts, and platform engineers to ensure reliable data delivery.
• Drive best practices in data modelling, orchestration, governance, and automation.
• Define technology strategy for your area with Architects and Engineering Directors.
• Partner with Engineering Managers to ensure alignment with strategy.
• Contribute to data platform roadmap and emerging technologies.
• Design high-quality, user-centric cross-squad data solutions.
• Foster a connected internal tech community and share knowledge.

Skills

Python

Scala

Java

Kotlin

Communication

Mentoring/Leadership

Problem-solving

Stakeholder management

Tools

Airflow

dbt

Kafka

Flink

Spark Streaming

CI/CD

Job description

REA Group Ltd. seeks a Principal Data Engineer to lead architecture and technical excellence across Listings and Enrichment within the Experience Platform. You will guide data delivery with data scientists, analysts, and engineers using agile practices and shape the data strategy for scalable systems.

You will mentor engineers, collaborate on roadmap items, and drive best practices across ETL/ELT, data modelling, and governance while keeping hands-on involvement with the tech stack.