Lead Data Engineer - £600p/d Inside IR35 - Hybrid

Exalto Consulting; Greater London; On-site; GBP 150,000 - 162,000; Part time

Job summary

Exalto Consulting is seeking a hands-on Lead Data Engineer on a contract basis. The role will provide technical leadership across a Data & AI delivery programme, coaching teams and driving best practices in testing, version control, CI/CD and releases.

You will develop reusable engineering patterns and explore AI tools to accelerate delivery, balancing hands-on implementation with leadership responsibilities.

Qualifications

• Hands-on AWS data engineering experience.
• Experience leading technical delivery and coaching teams.
• Strong grasp of modern software engineering practices.
• Snowflake delivery experience is advantageous.
• Interest in applying AI to improve engineering productivity.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical delivery across the data engineering workstream.
• Coach and mentor engineers through pairing, code reviews and guidance.
• Strengthen testing, version control, CI/CD and release practices.
• Develop reusable engineering patterns to improve delivery speed and quality.
• Explore and apply AI tools to accelerate engineering delivery.

Skills

Hands-on AWS

Technical leadership

Modern software practices

Snowflake delivery

AI in engineering

Tools

AWS

Snowflake

Job description

Lead Data Engineer — Contract

Rate: £600 per day, inside IR35

Location: Heathrow - 1–2 days per week on site

Start: ASAP

Duration: Until the end of 2026, with a strong possibility of extension into 2027

We’re looking for a hands‑on Lead Data Engineer to provide technical leadership across a Data & AI delivery programme. You’ll combine strong engineering expertise with the ability to coach teams, improve delivery practices and build reusable solutions.

What you’ll do

• Lead technical delivery across the data engineering workstream.
• Coach and mentor engineers through pairing, code reviews and practical guidance.
• Strengthen testing, version control, CI/CD and release practices.
• Develop reusable engineering patterns that improve delivery speed, quality and maintainability.
• Explore and apply AI tools to accelerate engineering delivery.

What you’ll bring

• Strong hands‑on AWS software or data engineering experience.
• Experience leading technical delivery and supporting engineering teams.
• A solid understanding of modern software engineering practices.
• Snowflake delivery experience would be advantageous.
• Experience of or a strong interest in using AI to improve engineering productivity.