AI Architect

Next Gen IT Inc; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Next Gen IT Inc. seeks a senior AI Data Solutions Architect in a hybrid Chicago setting. The role leads data strategy for AI initiatives, defining data residence, flows, and structures to maximize AI value, while maintaining full data lineage and governance. Strong communication with executives is essential.

You will apply expertise in Snowflake/BigQuery, data lakes/mesh, and advanced data modeling to enable enterprise AI workloads and reliable data-driven decisions.

Qualifications

• 8 years of experience in data architecture, data engineering, or enterprise data management.
• 3 years of hands‑on experience designing data solutions for AI/ML workloads.
• Deep expertise with cloud data platforms, particularly Snowflake or BigQuery.
• Experience with enterprise data lake or data mesh architectures.
• Strong understanding of data modeling, ETL/ELT, and data integration patterns.
• Experience with data governance frameworks, data cataloging tools, and lineage tracking.
• Experience with AI/ML data requirements including feature engineering, vector embeddings, RAG, and unstructured data.
• Proficiency in SQL; working knowledge of Python or similar scripting languages.
• Excellent communication skills to translate data concepts for non-technical stakeholders.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Information Systems, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end data strategy for AI projects—where data resides and how it flows.
• Design and govern data architectures underpinning AI/ML workloads.
• Maintain a comprehensive data lineage and usage inventory for visibility.
• Collaborate with stakeholders and translate complex data concepts to executives.

Skills

Data Architecture

Data Engineering

SQL

Python

Data Governance

AI/ML Data Requirements

Executive Communication

Cloud Data Platforms

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science / Data Science / Information Systems

Tools

Snowflake

Google BigQuery

Data Lake / Data Mesh

Job description

AI Architech
Hybrid - Chicago, IL
15 yrs
++Goal profile:++
15 years in Data Architecture/Data Engineering, strong Snowflake or BigQuery background, experience building enterprise data lakes/lakehouses, proven AI/GenAI architecture experience (RAG, vector databases, embeddings, unstructured data), strong governance/lineage expertise, and executive-level communication skills.

Position Summary

The AI Data Solutions Architect is a senior technical role within the AI Center of Excellence, responsible for designing
and governing the data architecture that underpins all AI and machine learning initiatives
This individual will own the end-to-end data strategy for AI projects --- determining where data should
reside, how it flows between systems, and how it is structured to maximize value for AI workloads. They will maintain
a comprehensive data lineage and usage inventory, ensuring the organization has clear visibility into where data is
sourced, transformed, stored, and consumed.

Required Qualifications

• 8 years of experience in data architecture, data engineering, or enterprise data management.
• 3 years of hands‑on experience designing data solutions for AI/ML workloads.
• Deep expertise with cloud data platforms, particularly Snowflake, Google BigQuery, or equivalent.
• Experience with enterprise data lake or data mesh architectures.
• Strong understanding of data modeling (dimensional, graph, document), ETL/ELT pipelines, and data integration patterns.
• Experience with data governance frameworks, data cataloging tools, and lineage tracking.
• Experience with AI/ML data requirements including feature engineering, vector embeddings, retrieval augmented generation (RAG), and unstructured data processing.
• Proficiency in SQL; working knowledge of Python or similar scripting languages.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to translate complex data concepts for non-technical stakeholders.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Information Systems, or related field.

Preferred

• Experience with Snowflake's advanced features (Snowpark, Cortex, data sharing, dynamic tables).
• Hands‑on experience with Google Cloud Platform services (Vertex AI, Cloud Storage, Pub/Sub, Dataflow).
• Familiarity with knowledge graph technologies, semantic layers, or ontology design for AI applications.
• Background in retail, automotive, or RV/dealership industry data environments.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., Snowflake SnowPro, Google Cloud Platform Professional Data Engineer, AWS Data Analytics).
• Experience with MCP (Model Context Protocol) or similar AI‑to‑data integration frameworks