Principal Data Engineer - Vice President Level

BlackRock Services India Pvt Ltd; Gurugram District; On-site; INR 3,500,000 - 12,000,000; Full time

Job summary

BlackRock Services India Pvt Ltd seeks a Senior/Principal Data Engineer with hands-on leadership to design and run large-scale data platforms and GenAI-enabled data pipelines. The role combines data engineering with AI/GenAI system ownership and architectural guidance.

The candidate will drive reliable, secure pipelines, mentor engineers, and partner with cross-functional teams to deliver enterprise-grade data solutions at scale.

Qualifications

• 12 years of experience owning and operating large-scale data engineering platforms in production.
• Strong hands-on expertise in Python and SQL with cloud data platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP).
• Experience architecting distributed, high-performance data systems.
• Experience using AI/ML or GenAI to design, build, or optimize data pipelines.
• Experience supporting ML/AI systems in production, including feature pipelines, data validation, monitoring, retraining.
• Understanding of data modeling, performance tuning, DevOps/CICD, and Agile delivery.
• Excellent communication and ability to work in fast-paced, cross-functional environments.

Responsibilities

• Architect, build, deploy, and operate scalable ETL/ELT data pipelines for analytics, ML, and GenAI workloads.
• Use AI/ML and GenAI to design and build data pipelines, including AI-assisted design and automated tests.
• Apply AI/ML techniques to automate data engineering workflows like ingestion, schema evolution, and data quality checks.
• Build and maintain feature engineering pipelines, training datasets, and feedback loops for production ML/GenAI systems.
• Enable GenAI use cases, including unstructured data ingestion, retrieval pipelines (RAG), and governance-aware data flows.
• Ensure reliability, observability, lineage, security, and compliance across data and AI pipelines.
• Partner with product, program, analytics, and AI teams; provide senior technical leadership through architecture reviews.

Skills

Python

SQL

Cloud (AWS/Azure/GCP)

Distributed systems

GenAI in data pipelines

DevOps/CICD

Communication

Tools

Spark

Hadoop

Airflow

Job description

Vice President - Principal Data Engineer

About this role

Role Overview Data and AI are central to our platform and competitive advantage. We are seeking a Senior / Principal Data Engineer (12 years) to design, build, and operate largescale, enterprise data platforms, with deep AI/ML and GenAI expertisenot only enabling AI use cases, but using AI as a firstclass tool to design, build, and optimize data pipelines. This role is a handson senior engineering position with architectural ownership, operating at the intersection of data engineering, AI/ML systems, and platform modernization.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect, build, deploy, and operate scalable ETL/ELT data pipelines supporting analytics, ML, and GenAI workloads.
• Use AI/ML and GenAI to design and build data pipelines, including: AIassisted pipeline and schema design; AIgenerated and optimized transformation logic and code; automated test generation, data validation, and performance tuning; AIdriven documentation and operational runbooks.
• Apply AI/ML techniques to automate data engineering workflows, including ingestion, schema evolution, data quality checks, anomaly detection, and pipeline optimization.
• Build and maintain feature engineering pipelines, training datasets, and feedback loops for production ML and GenAI systems.
• Enable GenAI use cases, including unstructured data ingestion, retrieval pipelines (RAG), and governanceaware AI data flows.
• Ensure enterprise standards for reliability, observability, lineage, security, and compliance across all data and AI pipelines.
• Partner with product, program, analytics, and AI teams in Agile delivery models to translate business needs into scalable AIenabled data solutions.
• Provide senior technical leadership through architecture reviews, mentoring, and setting data & AI engineering standards.

Required Qualifications

• 12 years of experience owning and operating largescale data engineering platforms in production.
• Strong handson expertise in Python and SQL, with deep experience on cloud data platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP).
• Proven experience architecting distributed, highperformance data systems.
• Demonstrated experience using AI/ML or GenAI to design, build, or optimize data pipelines (not just consuming AI outputs).
• Strong experience supporting ML/AI systems in production, including feature pipelines, data validation, monitoring, and retraining support.
• Solid understanding of data modeling, performance tuning, DevOps/CICD, and Agile delivery.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to operate in fastpaced, crossfunctional environments.

Preferred / Plus Skills

• Experience with GenAI/LLM ecosystems (e.g., RAG, vector data, prompt or model lifecycle support).
• Experience with microservices, APIs, and largescale analytics platforms.
• Prior experience leading or mentoring senior engineers (playercoach model).
• Experience working in financial services or regulated environments.

Why This Role

This role goes beyond traditional data engineering. You will use AI to fundamentally change how data pipelines are designed, built, and operated, while delivering missioncritical data and AI platforms at enterprise scale.

Our benefits

To help you stay energized, engaged and inspired, we offer a wide range of benefits including a strong retirement plan, tuition reimbursement, comprehensive healthcare, support for working parents and Flexible Time Off (FTO) so you can relax, recharge and be there for the people you care about.

Our hybrid work model

BlackRocks hybrid work model is designed to enable a culture of collaboration and apprenticeship that enriches the experience of our employees, while supporting flexibility for all. Employees are currently required to work at least 4 days in the office per week, with the flexibility to work from home 1 day a week. Some business groups may require more time in the office due to their roles and responsibilities.

Guidance on AI use for candidates

At BlackRock, AI has long been part of how we work enhancing decision-making, improving operations, and helping us deliver better outcomes for clients. We encourage candidates to use AI thoughtfully to learn, prepare, and work more effectively; but during our interview process, we want to focus on getting to know you through your own experiences, thinking, and judgment. To support you, weve provided guidance on when and how to use AI during our hiring process so you can approach each step with confidence and showcase your best self.