Senior Data Engineer

Hiscox Insurance Company Inc.; Lisboa; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Hiscox is seeking a Senior Data Engineer for the Europe Data Team to lead the design and evolution of our European data platform on Databricks. You will drive technical decisions aligned with the data strategy, ensuring scalable, robust, and cost-efficient solutions across Europe.

You will collaborate with Data Analysts, Data Management, IT and Group Data teams, owning end-to-end delivery and mentoring junior engineers while shaping engineering standards and practices.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics or related field.
• Fluent in English, both spoken and written.
• 5+ years in Data Engineering or Data & Analytics roles.
• Experience leading platform migrations and data platforms, ideally in insurance.
• Hands-on Databricks with Spark/PySpark, Delta Lake, orchestration.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and evolution of the Europe data platform on Databricks.
• Own CI/CD, observability, and cost management (FinOps).
• Mentor junior engineers and guide the engineering pod.
• Collaborate with Data Analysts, IT, Architecture, and Group Data teams.
• Translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions.

Skills

Databricks

Spark/PySpark

SQL

Python

Azure Data Factory

CI/CD

FinOps

Data modelling

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s in CS/Engineering

Tools

Azure DevOps

Git

Delta Lake

Job description

Job Type:
Permanent

Build a brilliant future with Hiscox

About Hiscox

Hiscox is an international insurer specialising in luxury goods & property markets, as well as high-end professional insurance. As experts in risk, we empower individuals and businesses to achieve their ambitions. With offices in 9 European countries, we boast a highly international workforce, fostering a culture of inclusion, collaboration, and personal and professional growth.

About the Hiscox Data Team

The Europe Data Team is a cross-country, multidisciplinary group responsible for driving and enabling Hiscox Europe’s data capabilities. We combine expertise in Data Engineering, Data Analysis, and Data Management to deliver high-quality data pipelines, insightful reporting, and strong governance frameworks, working closely with business teams across Europe.

Our mission is to ensure trusted, consistent, and accessible data that empowers smarter decision-making and supports the evolution of our enterprise Hiscox Data Strategy.

The Role

The Senior Data Engineer for the Europe Data Team leads the design and evolution of our European data platform, which uses Microsoft Azure and Databricks. This role drives technical decisions aligned with the Hiscox Data Strategy, ensuring our data solutions are scalable, robust, efficient, and cost-effective.

Working with Data Analysts, Data Management, and business stakeholders across Europe, the Senior Data Engineer owns end-to-end engineering delivery for key platform components, sets the engineering standards the team works to, and leads the day-to-day work of a small engineering pod, while appraisal and progression remain with the Data Engineering Manager.

With ongoing data transformation in Europe, including the migration to Databricks and the decommissioning of legacy platforms, this position offers the chance to shape the technical direction of the platform while supporting daily operations and existing commitments.

Key Responsibilities

Platform Design & Engineering

• Lead the design and implementation of complex data pipelines and platform architecture on Databricks;
• Own the technical direction of the platform, including compute strategy, governance, and Delta Lake standards;
• Ensure the scalability, performance, and reliability of the Europe Data Platform;
• Lead data modelling and optimise data structures to ensure scalability, performance, and maintainability.

Platform Operations & Cost

• Own deployment execution, CI/CD, and observability, ensuring reliability and consistency of release processes;
• Drive infrastructure cost management (FinOps), identifying and delivering optimisation opportunities;
• Lead troubleshooting and resolution of complex data and platform issues;
• Act as a senior escalation point for platform incidents, ensuring timely resolution and follow-up.

Technical Leadership

• Define and enforce best practices in data engineering (standards, patterns, governance);
• Lead the day-to-day work of the engineering pod, including allocation, sequencing, and delivery quality;
• Mentor and support the development of junior and mid-level engineers through technical guidance and ongoing feedback;
• Contribute to hiring, onboarding, and the continuous improvement of engineering practices.

Collaboration & Solution Design

• Collaborate with senior stakeholders to understand and translate requirements into technical solutions;
• Partner with Data Analysts and Data Management to deliver end-to-­-end data solutions;
• Work with IT, Architecture, and Group Data teams on platform integration;
• Evaluate and integrate new technologies and improvements, including automation and AI-supported engineering practices.

Skills

Technical Skills

• Hands-on experience with Databricks is a must, including Spark/PySpark, Delta Lake, job orchestration, cluster configuration, and performance tuning;
• Experience with Unity Catalog, data governance, and access management within Databricks;
• Deep understanding of data modelling (star schema) and ETL processes;
• Advanced experience with SQL and Python; strong knowledge of Azure Data Services, including Azure Data Factory;
• Experience with CI/CD, version control, and deployment automation for data pipelines (e.g., Azure DevOps, Git);
• Experience with platform monitoring, observability, and cloud cost management (FinOps).

Functional Skills

• Ability to translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions;
• Strong communication skills, able to explain technical decisions to non-technical stakeholders;
• Experience leading the day-to-day work of a small engineering team;
• Experience in Data Engineering or Data & Analytics roles (5+ years);
• Experience leading platform migrations, ideally within the insurance industry.

Education & Languages

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field;
• Fluent in English, both spoken and written.

Person Specification

• Comfortable operating in complex, cross-functional environments with evolving priorities;
• Takes ownership and accountability for technical outcomes end to end;
• Able to communicate ideas clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences;
• Pragmatic in balancing technical excellence with delivery commitments;
• Motivated by developing others and raising the technical bar of the team;
• Resilient, adaptable, and committed to continuous learning and improvement.

Work with amazing people and be part of a unique culture