Senior Data Engineer

NextGenEnergyJobs; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vis

Health Savings Account (HSA) with a雜?

Paid Time Off

16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave

Wellness Program and EAP

Home Office Reimbursement

Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursem

Tuition Reimbursement and access to L|

Equity

Commuter Benefits

Job summary

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. As a Senior Data Engineer, you will own and architect production data ecosystems, partnering with cross-functional teams to deliver enterprise-scale solutions for defense and intelligence customers.

This hybrid role requires 3 days in Washington DC or Denver, with a focus on data integrity and scalable pipelines.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of data engineering with leadership experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
• End-to-end data architectures for global-scale, customer-facing solutions.
• Proficiency in Python and SQL for ETL/ELT pipelines.
• Ability to lead problem-solving in high-stakes environments.
• Strong communication translating technical work to business requirements.
• Experience with CI/CD workflows using GitLab CI, Docker, and Kubernetes.
• Experience with cloud-native architectures (GCP preferred).
• Knowledge of geospatial datasets and related concepts.

Responsibilities

• Own, architect, and build production-scale data ecosystems using modern cloud technologies.
• Collaborate with cross-functional leadership to align data solutions with business needs.
• Drive end-to-end data architecture and production deployment including CI/CD and orchestration.
• Lead the evolution of complex data systems for defense and intelligence customers.

Skills

Python

SQL

CI/CD

Leadership

Communication

Cloud architectures

Geospatial datasets

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

GitLab CI

Terraform

dbt

Parquet

GCP

Job description

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history.

Key Responsibilities

• As a Senior Data Engineer (DE) at Planet, you will own, architect and build production, enterprise-scale data ecosystems using modern cloud technologies, to power mission-critical, customer-facing products. You will act as a strategic partner to cross-functional stakeholders, translating complex requirements into robust, scalable solutions. You will build and design data solutions end to end: from high-level architecture and implementation to CI/CD, orchestration automated QA, and seamless integration into production systems. You’ll be a senior member of the Data Team within the Software Engineering organization, which is made up of data scientists, engineers and analysts working on similar tasks across Planet domains.
• Your scope will focus on the architecture and evolution of data systems supporting our global monitoring products. These products are vital offerings designed to provide persistent, high-cadence monitoring and active intelligence, particularly for our Defence and Intelligence customers. You will collaborate closely with leadership across Product and Engineering to ensure some of our most sophisticated customers have the data required for global security and rapid decision-making. This role is ideal for an expert data engineer looking to lead the evolution of complex systems and deliver transformative technology to the defense sector. The ideal candidate is an independent operator who thrives in a dynamic, global environment and is deeply passionate about Planet’s mission and national security solutions.
• This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our Washington DC or Denver CO office 3 days per week.

Requirements

• 10+ years of relevant experience in data engineering with a track record of technical leadership.
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
• Expertise in designing and implementing end-to-end data architectures for global-scale, customer-facing solutions, with a focus on data integrity and efficiency.
• Expert-level proficiency in Python and SQL for complex ETL/ELT pipeline construction, including event-driven data architectures.
• Proactive, self-starter mindset with the ability to lead problem-solving initiatives in a dynamic, high-stakes environment.
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to translate between technical execution and high-level business requirements.
• Deep experience in maintaining enterprise-grade, peer-reviewed codebases and advanced CI/CD workflows using GitLab CI, Docker, and Kubernetes.
• Significant experience with cloud-native architectures (GCP preferred).
• Experience tuning storage formats such as Parquet to ensure sub-second query performance for consumers.
• Experience using modern data tooling (e.g. dbt) for pipeline inputs to customer-facing production systems.
• Experience leveraging Infrastructure as Code tooling (e.g. Terraform) to manage cloud architecture.
• Experience architecting solutions for geospatial datasets.
• Knowledge of earth observation and/or satellite operation concepts.
• This position requires access to export-controlled information, and as such, employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access all applicable export-controlled information without additional export licensing being required by the Bureau of Industry and Security and/or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.
• These offerings are dependent on employment type and geographical location, based upon applicable law or company policy.
• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans
• Health Savings Account (HSA) with a company contribution
• Generous Paid Time Off in addition to holidays and company-wide days off
• 16 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave
• Wellness Program and Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Home Office Reimbursement
• Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement
• Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning
• Equity
• Commuter Benefits (if local to an office)