Azure Data Architect - Insurance

Square One Resources; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 125,000 - 150,000; Part time

Job summary

A recruitment agency is seeking a Data Architect to lead a data transformation program within the insurance sector. This contract position requires expertise in Azure Databricks, data architecture, and leadership skills. The ideal candidate will develop and optimize data pipelines, ensure data quality and governance, and collaborate with both engineering teams and business stakeholders. The role offers a competitive rate of up to £680 per day with flexible working options, including two days in the London office.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in data architecture & engineering on Azure Databricks.
• Hands-on knowledge of data tools: dbt, Delta Live Tables, and Azure DevOps CI/CD.
• Ability to work with senior stakeholders and bridge technology with business needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead data architecture design on Azure Databricks.
• Develop and optimize data pipelines for insurance data.
• Ensure data governance and quality across the platform.

Skills

Data architecture & engineering

Azure Databricks

dbt

Delta Live Tables

Prefect

Azure DevOps CI/CD

Actuarial data structures

Leadership

Communication

Job description

Job Title: Data Architect - Azure Databricks - Insurance Industry
Location: London - 2 days per week in the office
Salary/Rate: Up to £680 per day inside IR35
Start Date: 12/01/2026
Job Type: Contract - 3 months

Company Introduction

We are seeking a Data Architect to help drive an insurance client's data transformation program. This role combines business leadership with hands‑on technical execution, ensuring delivery of scalable insurance data platforms.

Job Responsibilities/Objectives

• Lead data architecture and platform design on Azure Databricks + Unity Catalog, ensuring scalability, governance, and performance.
• Develop and optimize data pipelines (dbt, Delta Live Tables, Spark) for actuarial, claims, reference, and other data.
• Design and implement data models for claims (paid, incurred, case reserves, exposures), enabling actuarial reserving, financial reconciliation, and regulatory reporting, with support for incremental vs. cumulative structures.
• Guide and help engineering team and client on best practices: CI/CD, version control, testing, DevOps pipelines.
• Mentor and coordinate data engineers, analysts, and offshore delivery teams.
• Ensure data quality, lineage, and governance across the platform.
• Partner with actuaries and business SMEs to validate models, KPIs, and reporting outputs.
• Drive orchestration & automation (Prefect, Azure DevOps) for reliable production workflows.
• Act as technical escalation point and ensure successful delivery of transformation roadmap.

Required Skills/Experience

The ideal candidate will have the following:

• Strong background in data architecture & engineering on Azure Databricks (Spark, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog).
• Hands‑on experience with dbt, Delta Live Tables, Prefect, Azure DevOps CI/CD.
• Knowledge of actuarial data structures (triangles, claims, exposures, reserving).
• Ability to bridge business and technology, working with senior stakeholders.
• Strong leadership, communication, and delivery management skills

Desirable Skills/Experience

Although not essential, the following skills are desired by the client:

• Background in reinsurance or insurance finance.
• Knowledge of actuarial methods and reporting frameworks.
• Experience with advanced analytics/ML for claims and reserving

If you are interested in this opportunity, please apply now with your updated CV in Microsoft Word/PDF format.

Disclaimer

Notwithstanding any guidelines given to level of experience sought, we will consider candidates from outside this range if they can demonstrate the necessary competencies.
Square One is acting as both an employment agency and an employment business, and is an equal opportunities recruitment business. Square One embraces diversity and will treat everyone equally. Please see our website for our full diversity statement.