Data Architect

Plante & Moran, PLLC; United States; On-site; USD 110,000 - 181,000; Full time

Job summary

Plante Moran, PLLC is seeking a Senior Data Architect to partner with business stakeholders and technology teams. You will define and deliver enterprise-grade data architectures using Microsoft Fabric, Azure Data Services, Databricks, and Power BI, guiding teams through discovery to production.

You will mentor a small data engineering team, establish standards for pipelines, CI/CD, observability, and governance, ensuring secure, scalable data flows across the organization.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, or related area required.
• 5-8 years of experience in data architecture, data engineering, analytics engineering, business intelligence, or related technical roles.
• Proven experience designing and delivering enterprise-scale data and analytics solutions from discovery through implementation and production support.
• Strong hands-on experience with Microsoft Fabric (Lakehouse, Data Engineering, Data Factory, OneLake, semantic model concepts).
• Experience designing modern lakehouse, warehouse, and data integration architectures using Microsoft Fabric, Azure Data Services, Databricks, and Power BI.
• Strong working knowledge of Azure Data Factory, Azure Data Lake Storage, Azure SQL, SQL/T-SQL, PySpark, Spark-based processing.
• Deep understanding of data warehousing, Medallion Architecture, data lifecycle management, and pipeline reliability.
• Experience establishing engineering standards for data pipelines, source control, CI/CD, testing, observability, and operational support.

Responsibilities

• Lead discovery and solution design efforts for data and analytics initiatives.
• Define requirements, risks, dependencies, and success criteria for target-state architecture.
• Design scalable, secure, governed data architectures using modern data platform technologies.
• Mentor and supervise a small team of data engineers and guide delivery teams through full lifecycle.
• Evaluate tradeoffs related to scalability, performance, security, and cost, aligning with enterprise standards.

Skills

Data architecture

Data engineering

Analytics engineering

Business intelligence

Technical leadership

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering/Computer Science/Data Science

Tools

Microsoft Fabric

Azure Data Services

Databricks

Power BI

Azure Data Factory

Azure Data Lake Storage

Azure SQL

SQL/T-SQL

PySpark

Spark

Job description

Count on us. Our "we-care" culture is more than just a motto; it's a promise. From day one, we prioritize your growth, well‑being, and success. You can count on us to support your career journey and help you achieve your professional goals. Join us.

Partner with business stakeholders, technology teams, and leadership to understand objectives, define business and data challenges, and align on practical data and analytics solutions. Lead discovery and solution design efforts, including defining requirements, risks, dependencies, success criteria, target‑state architecture, data flows, integration approaches, and implementation roadmaps. Design scalable, secure, and governed enterprise data architectures using Microsoft Fabric, Azure Data Services, Databricks, Power BI, and related modern data platform technologies. Establish and reinforce architecture standards, Medallion Architecture patterns, development practices, data modeling approaches, CI/CD processes, testing, observability, and operational support expectations. Provide technical leadership across multiple concurrent initiatives, translating architecture designs into executable delivery plans and guiding teams through design, build, testing, deployment, and handoff. Evaluate technical tradeoffs related to scalability, performance, maintainability, cost, security, governance, and long‑term supportability while ensuring alignment with enterprise standards. Serve as a trusted advisor and escalation point for complex solution decisions, helping stakeholders navigate ambiguity, balance competing priorities, and reach consensus on the path forward. Mentor and supervise a small team of data engineers while modeling accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, and responsible use of AI‑assisted productivity tools.

The Qualifications.

Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, or related area required. 5-8 years of experience in data architecture, data engineering, analytics engineering, business intelligence, or related technical roles. Proven experience designing and delivering enterprise‑scale data and analytics solutions from discovery through implementation and production support. Strong hands‑on experience with Microsoft Fabric, including Lakehouse, Data Engineering, Data Factory, OneLake, and semantic model concepts. Experience designing modern lakehouse, warehouse, and data integration architectures using Microsoft Fabric, Azure Data Services, Databricks, and Power BI. Strong working knowledge of Azure Data Factory, Azure Data Lake Storage, Azure SQL, SQL/T‑SQL, PySpark, and Spark‑based processing. Deep understanding of data warehousing, dimensional modeling, Medallion Architecture, data lifecycle management, and pipeline reliability. Experience establishing engineering standards for data pipelines, source control, CI/CD, testing, pull request reviews, observability, and operational support. Familiarity with GitHub, GitHub Actions, API integrations, data governance and lineage concepts, and legacy data platforms such as Informatica and SSIS.

What makes us different?

On the surface, we’re one of the nation’s largest audit, tax, consulting, and wealth management firms. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll see what makes us different: we’re a relatively jerk‑free firm (hey, nobody ‘s perfect) with a world‑class culture, consistent recognition as one of Fortune Magazine’s "100 Best Companies to Work For", and an endless array of opportunities. At Plante Moran, diversity, equity and inclusion means that all staff members have equitable and fair opportunities to succeed, in an inclusive environment, with their individual, unique identities. So,what are you waiting for?

Plante Moran enjoys a “Workplace for Your Day” model which, simply put, means we strive for flexibility and balance while staying true to our principally in‑person model. We believe that face‑to‑face interactions are paramount for individual and collective development, but also encourage individuals to work with their supervisor and team to determine their optimal working environment each day.

Plante Moran is committed to a diverse workplace. We strive to create a culture where each person feels accepted and valued. We believe that each person’s ultimate potential begins with first acknowledging their inherent dignity. When we can recognize — and celebrate — our many human differences, we’re able to create a workplace where all staff feel a sense of belonging and an opportunity to succeed. This allows us to attract and retain the best talent, serve clients through diverse thinking, and better represent and support the various communities in which we live and work.

Plante Moran is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Plante Moran maintains a drug‑free workplace. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship, with the exception of qualified candidates who are bilingual in either Japanese and English or Chinese and English. Unsolicited resumes from search firms or employment agencies, or similar, will not be paid a fee and become the property of Plante Moran.

We are pleased to offer eligible staff a robust benefits package. Eligibility and contribution requirements for some of these benefits vary based on the number of hours staff work per week. Highlights include health, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance. In addition to this, eligible staff are able to take advantage of our Flexible Time Off and various pre‑determined holidays, as well as a 401(k) plan, flexible benefits plans, business‑related travel expense, lodging, and meal reimbursement for business‑related use. A pension plan is also available for eligible administrative and paraprofessional staff. A discretionary bonus plan is available for eligible staff. Plante Moran also offers some contingent staff positions the option to elect health insurance in addition to limited paid sick time.

The compensation range reflects the base salary we reasonably expect to pay for this position across our offices in the following regions: CO, IL, OH, and MA. Please review the position description for the applicable geographic location. Generally, experienced hires are not hired at or near the maximum salary range, as compensation decisions take into account a wide variety of factors, including but not limited to: responsibilities, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and geography. For early career roles, including campus hires, we offer standardized, market‑based starting salaries among individuals within the same hiring group. This approach ensures fairness and reflects current industry benchmarks for entry‑level talent. Under Colorado’s Job Application Fairness Act, you have the right to redact, from any documents that you submit in connection with your application, information that identifies your age, date of birth, or dates of attendance at or graduation from an educational institution. Should you wish to exercise your right to redact such information, please redact it prior to submitting documentation.

The compensation range for this role in CO, IL, OH, and MA is: $110,000.00-$181,000.00. This application window is a good‑faith estimate of the time that this posting will remain open. This deadline will be promptedly updated if the deadline is extended.

Our founders often referred to our firm as "a people firm disguised as an accounting firm." Why? Because people are at the core of everything we do, and our firm was built on values and principles that support this philosophy to this day.