Principal Data and AI Engineer

JR United Kingdom; Reading; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company is seeking a Principal Data and AI Engineer to drive technical innovation and lead a talented team in transforming vast amounts of semi-structured data into valuable insights. The ideal candidate will have proven experience in data/content operations, work extensively with Microsoft SQL Server, and possess strong leadership and communication skills.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in large-scale data operations and platform engineering.
• Expertise in Microsoft SQL Server, T-SQL, C#, REST API integration.
• Familiarity with Data Lakehouse architectures, Agile environments.

Responsibilities

• Define and evolve the long-term strategy for data and content operations.
• Design, optimize, and govern large-scale data architectures.
• Champion data metrics: quality, accuracy, completeness, timeliness.

Skills

Data architecture

Database design

Performance tuning

Data Lakehouse architectures

Agile methodologies

API integration

Data-driven mindset

Workflow optimization

Job description

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Reimagine enterprise data and content operations at massive scale! As the Principal Data and AI Engineer at Flexera, you will drive technical innovation and lead a talented team focused on the ingestion, curation, and organization of the world's IT assets. Your mission: transform vast amounts of semi-structured data into trusted insights, empowering customers to manage and optimize their IT landscapes—including hardware, software, SaaS, cloud, containers, AI services, and more.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Ownership

• Define and evolve the long-term strategy for data and content operations at scale.
• Balance current realities with an ambitious roadmap toward future innovation.
• Lead automation efforts in data normalization, enrichment, and quality assurance using AI/ML and Agentic AI.
• Align technical direction with business priorities to shape the roadmap.

Technical Leadership

• Design, optimize, and govern modern, large-scale data architectures.
• Oversee architecture across applications, infrastructure, and ecosystem integrations.
• Apply advanced performance tuning, database optimization, and domain-driven design principles.
• Collaborate with and mentor engineers on system architecture, CI/CD workflows, and API integrations.
• Provide technical oversight in data modeling, system scaling, availability, and reliability.
• Act as a hands-on contributor to unblock teams and drive execution on complex projects.

Operational Excellence

• Champion foundational data metrics: quality, accuracy, completeness, and timeliness.
• Ensure security and cost-effectiveness of operations through thoughtful oversight.

Required Experience

• Proven experience in large-scale data/content operations and platform engineering.
• Expertise in Microsoft SQL Server, including:
• Database design and performance tuning
• Transact-SQL (T-SQL), C#
• REST API integration
• Familiarity with Data Lakehouse architectures, especially Databricks.
• Strong understanding of data architecture, domain modeling, and system design in distributed environments.
• Experience working in Agile environments with cross-functional teams.
• Proficiency in workflow optimization through tooling, process, automation, and AI augmentation (including Agentic AI).
• Domain knowledge in IT Asset Management, FinOps, or vulnerability intelligence is a plus.

Personal Attributes

• Clear communicator: Crisp, honest, and transparent communication style.
• Data-driven mindset: Always seeks to validate hypotheses with data.
• Detail-oriented and strategic: Able to zoom into details while maintaining a broader perspective.
• Hands-on leader: Actively seeks challenges and empowers the team.
• Storyteller and mentor: Inspires teams through vision and guidance.
• Emotionally intelligent: Maintains composure under pressure.
• Change advocate: Balances incremental improvements with transformative innovation.