Data Platform Lead

SF Technology Partners; Warrington; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

SF Technology Partners is seeking an experienced Data Platform Architect / Lead to own the architecture and technical direction of a modern enterprise data platform. You will lead a small Data Engineering team and guide engineers while shaping the platform’s evolution on the Microsoft Fabric estate.

The role requires deep knowledge of Azure, Lakehouse architectures, and data governance, with the ability to translate complex decisions into clear recommendations for senior stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Significant leadership in Data Platform Architecture or Data Engineering.
• Experience guiding architecture and technical direction of an enterprise data platform.
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Azure data ecosystem and Fabric.
• Solid understanding of Lakehouse/Medallion architecture and data engineering principles.

Responsibilities

• Own architecture and technical roadmap for the enterprise data platform.
• Lead the Data Engineering team and provide technical direction.
• Own and shape the Microsoft Fabric estate and its evolution.
• Make architectural decisions across lakehouse, ingestion, transformation, modelling, integration, security and platform design.
• Ensure the platform is scalable, resilient, secure and maintainable as adoption grows.
• Establish engineering standards across CI/CD, testing, deployment, monitoring and data quality.
• Develop reusable engineering patterns and reduce technical debt.
• Collaborate with Data Management and Governance on lineage, quality and controls.
• Explain complex technical decisions to senior stakeholders and justify architectural choices.

Skills

Data Platform Architecture

Data Engineering Leadership

Azure

Microsoft Fabric

Databricks

Lakehouse Architecture

CI/CD

DevOps

Python PySpark

Data Governance

Tools

Azure

Microsoft Fabric

Databricks

Job description

Warrington - Hybrid (Flexible)

We're supporting a large, established UK organisation that has made significant investment into modernising its Data & Analytics capability.

Over the last 12 months, the business has migrated its legacy data estate onto a modern Microsoft Fabric platform. The foundations are now in place.

The next challenge is turning that foundation into a scalable enterprise data platform that accelerates Analytics, enables AI and supports the development of high-value data products across the organisation.

We're looking for an experienced Data Platform Architect / Lead to take ownership of that next phase.

The opportunity

Reporting directly to the Head of Data, you'll become the technical authority for the data platform, owning its architecture and technical direction while leading a small Data Engineering team.

This isn't a role centred around writing code all day. Equally, it isn't a high-level architecture position that is disconnected from engineering.

You need to understand modern Data Engineering properly, be able to challenge technical decisions and guide experienced engineers, but your real value will come from architecture, recommendations, technical leadership and your ability to determine how the platform should evolve.

You’ll be responsible for:

• Owning the architecture and technical roadmap for the enterprise data platform.
• Taking technical ownership of an established Microsoft Fabric estate and shaping its continued evolution.
• Making architectural decisions across Lakehouse, ingestion, transformation, modelling, integration, security and platform design.
• Ensuring the platform is scalable, resilient, secure and maintainable as adoption grows.
• Establishing strong engineering standards across CI/CD, testing, deployment, monitoring, observability and data quality.
• Developing reusable engineering patterns and avoiding solutions that create unnecessary technical debt.
• Leading and developing a small Data Engineering team, providing technical direction and challenging designs where required.
• Working closely with Data Management and Governance colleagues around lineage, quality, ownership and controls.
• Working directly with senior business and technology stakeholders, explaining complex technical decisions and making clear recommendations.
• Ensuring the platform provides the foundations for the organisation's wider Analytics, AI and automation strategy.

What we’re looking for

We're not interested in somebody simply matching a long list of technologies.

We want someone who has already taken meaningful ownership of a modern data platform and can demonstrate the decisions and recommendations they've made along the way.

You’ll ideally bring:

• Significant experience across Data Platform Architecture and/or Data Engineering leadership.
• Experience owning or significantly influencing the architecture and technical direction of an enterprise data platform.
• Strong knowledge of the Microsoft Azure data ecosystem.
• Experience with Microsoft Fabric and an understanding of how its wider capabilities fit together.
• Strong understanding of modern Lakehouse / Medallion architecture and Data Engineering principles.
• Experience establishing engineering standards across CI/CD, DevOps, testing, data quality and monitoring.
• Enough technical depth across areas such as SQL, Python/PySpark and data pipelines to challenge and guide experienced engineers.
• Experience leading, mentoring or developing Data Engineering teams.
• Good understanding of data governance, security and lineage.
• The confidence to hold your own with senior stakeholders, challenge thinking and explain why architectural decisions matter to the wider business.

We’re also open to senior Data Platform leaders coming from broader Azure / Databricks

environments where the architecture, engineering leadership and platform ownership experience is strong.

Why consider it?

The interesting part of this role is where the organisation is in its journey.

You're not inheriting a failing legacy environment and spending the next two years firefighting. Significant work has already gone into creating the modern data foundation.

The opportunity now is to decide what comes next.

You’ll have genuine ownership of the platform's technical direction, direct access to the Head of Data and significant influence over how Data Engineering develops across the organisation.

For someone who enjoys being senior enough to shape the architecture, technical enough to challenge it and commercially minded enough to explain why it matters, it's a genuinely influential opportunity.