Data Architect

Forrest T. Jones & Company; Kansas City (MO); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company-paid medical

401(k) with company matching

Paid time off

Job summary

Forrest T. Jones & Company is seeking a Data Architect to define and drive the organization’s enterprise data strategy and architecture. You will govern data, ensure security and usability, and lead modernization of data warehouses with emphasis on analytics, AI readiness, and data quality.

You will establish standards for data models, ETL/ELT, APIs, and pipelines while guiding acquisitions, integrations, and data stewardship across business units.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in information systems, computer science, data management or related field, or equivalent experience; eight+ years of progressive data architecture
• Demonstrated success developing enterprise data strategies, governance practices, architecture roadmaps, and data migration/ integration solutions
• Strong knowledge of data modeling, quality, integration, warehousing, metadata, and security; cloud data platforms and APIs

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain FTJ’s enterprise data strategy, target architecture, standards, and multiyear modernization roadmap
• Establish governance framework covering data ownership, stewardship, quality, classification, retention, lineage, access, and usage
• Define canonical models, business definitions, and normalization standards for critical data domains
• Lead architecture for future data warehouse and BI/AI capabilities including Microsoft Fabric and Power BI
• Mentor teams and oversee conversions, integrations, and modernization initiatives

Skills

Data governance

Data modeling

Cloud data platforms

ETL/ELT

Data quality

Education

Bachelor’s degree in information systems, computer science, data management

Tools

Microsoft SQL Server

Azure data services

Microsoft Fabric

Power BI

Purview

Azure Data Factory

Job description

4 days ago Requisition ID: 1586

Forrest T. Jones & Company, Inc., and its affiliates ("FTJ"), provide insurance and insurance related services to clients, corporations, employers, and individuals. These services include providing benefits through innovative life and health insurance plans, financial services, and customized insurance products for niche markets.

Position Summary

The Data Architect defines and drives FTJ’s enterprise data strategy and architecture, ensuring data is governed, secure, consistent, and usable across the organization. The role establishes enterprise data standards and provides leadership for data quality, integration, normalization, reporting, analytics, AI readiness, and modernization. A key focus is creating repeatable methods for profiling, mapping, converting, and validating data from acquired books of business while defining the future-state roadmap for FTJ’s enterprise data warehouse and analytics platforms.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain FTJ’s enterprise data strategy, target architecture, standards, and multiyear modernization roadmap.
• Establish a practical governance framework covering data ownership, stewardship, quality, classification, retention, lineage, access, and usage.
• Define canonical models, business definitions, authoritative systems of record, and normalization standards for critical insurance and corporate data domains.
• Create a repeatable methodology for profiling, mapping, cleansing, converting, validating, and integrating acquired books of business.
• Lead architecture for the future data warehouse and related Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, reporting, analytics, and AI capabilities.
• Define standards for conceptual and logical models, ETL/ELT, APIs, pipelines, metadata, master/reference data, and system integration.
• Establish measurable data-quality controls and partner with business owners to resolve material issues and conflicting definitions.
• Maintain data flow, lineage, integration, and architecture documentation for critical systems and processes.
• Partner with the Enterprise Architect, Principal Software Architect, Azure Architect, DBAs, Security, PMO, application teams, and business leaders; mentor teams and provide oversight for conversions, integrations, application replacements, and modernization initiatives.
• Identify data risks, dependencies, technical debt, privacy, regulatory, audit, retention, and access-control requirements; recommend solutions based on business value, scalability, maintainability, risk, and cost.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in information systems, computer science, data management, or a related field, or equivalent experience; eight or more years of progressive data architecture, data management, or data engineering experience.
• Demonstrated success developing enterprise data strategies, governance practices, architecture roadmaps, and complex data migration, conversion, normalization, or acquisition-integration solutions.
• Strong knowledge of data modeling, quality, integration, warehousing, metadata, master/reference data, relational databases, cloud data platforms, ETL/ELT, APIs, pipelines, security, privacy, retention, and regulatory compliance.
• Ability to translate business needs into actionable architecture and establish accountability across technical and business teams.

Preferred:

Insurance or financial-services experience; acquired book-of-business integration; Microsoft SQL Server, Azure data services, Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, Purview, and Azure Data Factory; DAMA-DMBOK, TOGAF, or relevant Microsoft/DAMA certification.

We offer comprehensive benefits to full-time employees including company-paid medical, STD, LTD and life insurance plus voluntary dental, vision, life/AD&D insurance, 401(k) with company matching, generous paid time off and much more.

We encourage applicants of all ages and experience, as we do not discriminate on the basis of an applicant’s age.

ALL OFFERS OF EMPLOYMENT ARE CONTINGENT UPON THE PASSING OF A DRUG SCREEN AND BACKGROUND CHECK.