Data Architect – Knowledge Graph & AI

ZS Associates; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Travel opportunities

Competitive total rewards

Job summary

ZS is seeking a visionary Semantic Architect to lead enterprise Knowledge Graphs and Semantic AI initiatives. The role sits at the intersection of technology, data, and business value, translating graph theory into actionable insight for stakeholders and end-users.

You will shape semantic strategy, govern metadata, and drive end-to-end architecture across integrations, processing, and consumption in a hybrid U.S. setting. Travel will be required for client engagements.

Qualifications

• Experience in Data Architecture with semantic modeling and knowledge graphs.
• Strong communication and governance knowledge.
• Fluency in English and client-facing leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead architectural design of enterprise Knowledge Graphs.
• Architect graph-based patterns with GenAI & LLM integration.
• Design user-facing applications with high-performance APIs and visualizations.
• Guide governance standards and cross-functional transformation initiatives.

Skills

Graph databases

Ontology development

Cloud platforms

Python

ETL tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

Tools

Neo4j

Stardog

Protégé

Job description

ZS is a place where passion changes lives. As a management consulting and technology firm focused on improving life and how we live it, we transform ideas into impact by bringing together data, science, technology and human ingenuity to deliver better outcomes for all. Here you’ll work side-by-side with a powerful collective of thinkers and experts shaping life-changing solutions for patients, caregivers and consumers, worldwide. ZSers drive impact by bringing a client-first mentality to each and every engagement. We partner collaboratively with our clients to develop custom solutions and technology products that create value and deliver company results across critical areas of their business. Bring your curiosity for learning, bold ideas, courage and passion to drive life-changing impact to ZS.

We are seeking for a visionary Semantic Architect to lead the design and implementation of enterprise-scale Knowledge Graphs and Semantic AI solutions. You will sit at the intersection of Technology, Domain, Data and Generative AI, transforming complex data landscapes into intelligent, interoperable, and actionable knowledge assets.

The ideal candidate is a "Digital Thread-builder" who can translate deep technical graph theory into strategic business value and design the intuitive applications that allow end-users to consume graph intelligence.

ZS's Supply Chain & Manufacturing group helps our clients to drive higher product availability at lower costs (stock-outs, carrying costs, and supply chain operating costs) and lower environmental impact through leveraging analytics, automation and process re-design approaches. Our offerings span the spectrum of strategy, advanced analytics, planning and technology to optimize deployment of resources (inventory, network, etc.) while maintaining customer service levels.

What you'll do:

• Semantic Strategy & Design:Lead the architectural design of enterprise Knowledge Graphs, including RDF/Property graph modeling, ontology development (OWL, SKOS), and taxonomy management.
• Graph Query Mastery:Act as the subject matter expert in complex graph traversals and performance tuning usingSPARQL, Cypher, or Gremlin.
• Semantic capabilities integration with GenAI & LLM:Design and implement "Graph-RAG" (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) patterns, utilizing Knowledge Graphs to provide ground truth, context, and explainability to Large Language Models.
• Consumption Application Design:Design the architecture for end-user applications that consume graph data, ensuring high-performance APIs, intuitive graph visualizations, and seamless integration with downstream analytics tools.
• Stakeholder Leadership:Lead both high-level business discussions and deep-dive technical sessions. You must be able to articulate the ROI of semantic technologies to executives while guiding developers through implementation.
• Leadership & Governance:Lead cross-functional teams through complex transformation engagements. Define data governance standards, metadata management protocols, and semantic interoperability frameworks.

What you'll bring:

• At least a Bachelor's degree, specializing in Business Analytics, Computer Science, MIS, MBA, or a related field with academic excellence
• Experience:7–10 years in Data Architecture, with a heavy focus on Semantic Modeling, Ontologies Development, Knowledge Graphs and Governance.
• Technical Expertise:Deep expertise with graph databases (e.g., Neo4j, Stardog, GraphDB, Neptune, etc.) and Ontology development/management tools like Protégé, Topbraid, CENtree, etc. Expertise in Cloud platforms like AWS / Azure / GCP, Python, prominent ETL tools are must to have
• Architectural Breadth:Proven experience designing detailed end-to-end architecture from Integrations, Processing to Consumption using cloud technologies
• AI Expertise:Experience integrating LLMs with structured knowledge bases to reduce hallucinations and improve domain-specific reasoning.
• Consultative Leadership:Demonstrated ability to lead technical and business discovery workshops and manage large-scale digital transformation initiatives.
• Governance Knowledge:Strong understanding of data architecture and data governance principles as they apply to decentralized or linked data.
• Fluency in English
• Client-first mentality
• Intense work ethic
• Collaborative spirit and problem-solving approach

Additional skills:

• Life Sciences (e.g., FAIR data, drug discovery) or Manufacturing (e.g., Digital Twins, Supply Chain) is highly desirable.
• Strong coding skills will be an added advantage

How you’ll grow:

• Cross-functional skills development & custom learning pathways
• Milestone training programs aligned to career progression opportunities
• Internal mobility paths that empower growth via s-curves, individual contribution and role expansions

Perks & Benefits:

At ZS, your growth matters. We offer a comprehensive total rewards package that supports your health and well‑being, financial future, time away, and professional development. With robust skills‑building programs, multiple career progression paths, internal mobility, and a deeply collaborative culture, you’ll have the opportunity to do meaningful work, expand your capabilities, and thrive as part of a global community. For details on total rewards in United States, visit ZS US office locations | Where we work | ZS.

Hybrid working model:

We are committed to giving our employees a flexible and connected way of working. A flexible and connected ZS allows us to combine work from home and on-site presence at clients/ZS offices for the majority of our week. The magic of ZS culture and innovation thrives in both planned and spontaneous face-to-face connections.

Travel:

Travel is a requirement at ZS for client facing ZSers; business needs of your project and client are the priority. While some projects may be local, all client-facing ZSers should be prepared to travel as needed. Travel provides opportunities to strengthen client relationships, gain diverse experiences, and enhance professional growth by working in different environments and cultures.

ZS is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment and advancement opportunities without regard to any class protected by applicable law.