Principal Engineer - Data Platforms

Early Warning (Zelle); New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Early Warning (Zelle) is seeking a hands-on Principal Engineer to shape the architecture and direction of enterprise data platforms and data products. You will provide technical leadership across Data Exchange, Enterprise Data Products, data engineering, and cloud data platform capabilities.

Responsibilities include designing scalable data ingestion, transformation, governance, and consumption, while mentoring engineers and collaborating with cross-functional teams to modernize legacy systems to

Qualifications

• Requires a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field, with extensive FinTech domain experience.
• Typically 15 years' experience with 8+ years in leading large data platforms and tech initiatives.
• Proven track record designing end-to-end data platforms and data products.
• Hands-on with Databricks/Spark, Kafka, Snowflake, Python and cloud data tooling.

Responsibilities

• Owns architecture and engineering direction for enterprise data platforms and data products.
• Translate product strategy into data capabilities, roadmaps, and domain data models.
• Establish reusable patterns, data contracts, and architectural standards across teams.
• Lead modernization from on-premises to cloud-based architectures with migration strategies.
• Coach engineers and lead architectural reviews and technical presentations.

Skills

Data architecture

Data engineering

Cloud platforms

SDLC/Agile

DevOps/CI-CD

Test automation

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science

Tools

Databricks

Spark/PySpark

Kafka

Snowflake

Python

SQL

NoSQL

Job description

At Early Warning, we've powered and protected the U.S. financial system for over thirty years with cutting-edge solutions like Zelle®, Paze®, and so much more. As a trusted name in payments, we partner with thousands of institutions to increase access to financial services and protect transactions for hundreds of millions of consumers and small businesses.

Positions located in Scottsdale, San Francisco, Chicago, or New York follow a hybrid work model to allow for a more collaborative working environment.

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States, for any employer, at the date of hire. This position is ineligible for employment Visa sponsorship.

Overall Purpose

This position is a hands-on Principal Engineer responsible for shaping the architecture and engineering direction for enterprise data platforms and data products. The role provides technical leadership across Data Exchange, Enterprise Data Products, data engineering, and cloud data platform capabilities, establishing scalable approaches for data ingestion, transformation, modeling, quality, governance, and consumption.

Essential Functions

• Owns technical product design and architecture for enterprise data platforms, Data Exchange, Enterprise Data Products, data engineering, and related cloud capabilities.
• Develops and shapes departmental technical vision, including target-state and transition architectures that support incremental modernization and continuity of existing business capabilities.
• Partners with Product Management to translate product strategy and business outcomes into data capabilities, domain data products, and technology roadmaps.
• Establishes reusable engineering patterns, data contracts, domain models, integration approaches, and architectural standards across engineering teams.
• Provides technical leadership for modernization of legacy and on-premises data capabilities to cloud-based architectures, including appropriate interoperability and transition patterns.
• Collaborates with Security, Infrastructure, Cloud Platform, SRE, Data Governance, Product, and Engineering teams to ensure solutions meet scalability, resiliency, security, data quality, and operational requirements.
• Serves as a senior technical expert across data architecture, data engineering, data modeling, distributed processing, analytics, and data-product engineering, coaches and mentors engineers and technical leaders.
• Remains hands-on in evaluating technologies, prototyping, and validating architectural patterns, and resolving complex technical challenges.
• Works with internal and external customers to understand data and product needs and improve products and capabilities.
• Creates and conducts technical presentations, architecture reviews, and design reviews for engineering and leadership audiences.
• Supports the company's commitment to risk management and protecting the integrity and confidentiality of systems and data.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education and/or experience typically obtained through a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related technical field.
• Typically has 15 years of experience or demonstrated portfolio consistent with experience required of the role, including designing and developing complex software projects and at least 8 years of experience in the FinTech domain.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and major technical initiatives to deliver complex technology solutions.
• Proven track record designing and building complex end-to-end systems and data platforms.
• Hands‑on experience designing and developing modern data platforms using technologies such as Databricks, Spark/PySpark, Kafka, Snowflake, cloud object storage, relational and NoSQL databases, Python, or comparable technologies.
• Strong understanding of modern cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.
• Knowledge of Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) best practices, software development methodologies such as Agile, Scrum, and LEAN, and DevOps practices.
• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines and working with modern code repositories, build, and deployment tooling.
• Hands‑on experience with test automation across unit, component, integration, and functional testing.
• Effective communication and presentation skills, including the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to audiences across the organization.
• Background and drug screen.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field.
• Deep experience designing and modernizing enter