Jr Data Engineer

SmartLight Analytics; United States; Remote; USD 65,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

SmartLight Analytics is expanding its data platform with a junior data engineer role. You will ingest and model healthcare claims data, build dbt pipelines, and shape fact/dimensional models alongside analysts and reporting tools.

This hands-on position emphasizes independence after clear requirements, applying AI-assisted development while maintaining quality and security standards.

Qualifications

• Solid foundations in ETL/ELT, SQL, and data pipeline design.
• Working knowledge of dbt for transformation and modeling.
• Understanding of fact and dimensional modeling (star/snowflake).
• Familiarity with semantic layers for consistent reporting.
• Ability to translate business questions into data structures.
• Ability to work independently with clear requirements.
• Comfort using AI tools as part of development while maintaining quality.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain data ingestion pipelines to Snowflake from claims and other healthcare data.
• Develop and maintain transformation models in dbt with testing and version control.
• Contribute to fact and dimensional modeling to support analytics use cases.
• Support a semantic layer for consistent metrics in reporting tools.
• Troubleshoot data quality, pipeline failures, and schema drift with minimal escalation.
• Write idempotent, reliable pipeline logic that reruns safely.
• Collaborate with engineers, analysts, and stakeholders to translate requirements into data structures.
• Leverage AI-assisted development tools to accelerate code generation and documentation while ensuring review.

Skills

ETL/ELT concepts

SQL proficiency

Data pipeline design

dbt knowledge

Fact & Dimensional modeling

Semantic layer

Data translation fundamentals

Independent work

AI-assisted development

Technical documentation

Tools

dbt

Snowflake

Terraform

Sigma

Looker

Power BI

Job description

SmartLight is building out its next-generation Snowflake data warehouse to power claims analytics, waste and abuse analytics, and client reporting at scale. We're looking for a Junior Data Engineer to join our Data Platform Team and grow alongside a modern, AI-augmented data stack. This is a hands-on role: you'll ingest and model real healthcare claims data, build transformation pipelines in dbt, and help shape the fact/dimensional models and semantic layer that our analysts and reporting tools depend on every day.

This role suits someone early in their data engineering career who has strong fundamentals and is comfortable working independently once given clear requirements — not someone who needs each task broken into small steps.

What You'll Do

• Design, build, and maintain data ingestion pipelines feeding SmartLight's Snowflake warehouse from claims, eligibility, and other healthcare data sources

• Develop and maintain transformation models in dbt, following testing, documentation, and version-control best practices

• Contribute to fact and dimensional modeling (star schema design, slowly changing dimensions, grain definition) supporting claims analytics use cases

• Support and help maintain a semantic layer that gives consistent, governed metrics to downstream reporting tools (e.g., Sigma)

• Troubleshoot data quality issues, pipeline failures, and schema drift with minimal escalation

• Write idempotent, reliable pipeline logic that can be safely rerun without creating duplicate or inconsistent data

• Collaborate with senior data engineers, analysts, and product stakeholders to translate business/reporting requirements into technical data structures

• Use AI-assisted development tools (Claude, Copilot, or similar) as a core part of your daily workflow — for code generation, debugging, documentation, and accelerating pipeline development — while maintaining human review and code quality standards

• Follow SmartLight's change management, SDLC, and data security practices, given the sensitivity of the healthcare data we handle

What You'll Need

Required:

• Solid foundational knowledge of data engineering: ETL/ELT concepts, SQL proficiency, and data pipeline design

• Working knowledge of dbt (or strong readiness to ramp quickly if exposure is limited) for transformation and modeling

• Understanding of fact and dimensional modeling principles (star/snowflake schemas, grain, SCDs)

• Familiarity with the concept of a semantic layer and why it matters for consistent, trustworthy reporting

• Strong data translation fundamentals — the ability to take a business question or reporting requirement and reason through the correct data structure/logic to answer it accurately

• Ability to work independently and complete assigned tasks with minimal day-to-day supervision once requirements are clear

• Comfort using AI tools as a core part of the development process — this is a non-negotiable expectation of how we build, not an optional add-on

• Strong written communication skills for documentation and cross-team collaboration

Preferred:

• Prior experience in healthcare data (claims, eligibility, EHR, or similar) — familiarity with concepts like UB-04 revenue codes, claims adjudication, or payer/provider data structures is a plus

• Experience with Snowflake specifically

• Exposure to Terraform or other infrastructure-as-code practices

• Familiarity with Sigma, Looker, Power BI, or other modern BI/reporting tools

• Understanding of HIPAA-related data handling considerations

What Success Looks Like

• You can take a data ingestion or modeling task, ask clarifying questions up front, and deliver a working, tested solution without needing hand-holding through implementation

• Your dbt models are well-documented, tested, and follow the team's established modeling conventions

• You proactively flag data quality issues or schema risks before they become downstream reporting problems

• You use AI tools fluently to move faster without sacrificing code quality, security, or accuracy — especially given SmartLight's obligations around GenAI use disclosure in some client contracts

• You grow into increasing ownership of the Snowflake buildout over time, with a path toward more senior data engineering responsibilities