Senior Data Engineer (Analytics & Applied AI)

Guidehouse; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 113,000 - 188,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Dental & Vision Insurance

401(k) Retirement Plan

Parental Leave

Transit and Parking Benefits

Tuition Reimbursement

Employee Referral Program

Job summary

Guidehouse in Washington, DC, is seeking a Senior Data Engineer (Analytics & Applied AI) to own end-to-end data platforms, write production Python services, and guide architectural decisions with high autonomy.

You will design cloud data pipelines on AWS, model data for analytics, and implement data-quality checks, while growing into applied AI/ML capabilities such as entity resolution and AI-assisted analytics.

Qualifications

• SIX (6+) years in data engineering and/or software engineering building and operating production systems.
• Strong software engineering — production-quality Python, clean architecture, testing, code review, and CI/CD.
• Expert SQL — window functions, complex joins, aggregation-grain reasoning, and query performance.
• AWS data & compute stack — Glue, Step Functions, S3, Redshift, Aurora/RDS, Lambda, EventBridge, ECS/Fargate, IAM.
• Data modeling — dimensional/analytical modeling, grain, SCD, and idempotent recompute patterns.
• Data-quality discipline — validate outputs, reconcile totals, defend numbers.
• Infrastructure as code — Terraform or CDK in real projects.
• High autonomy — own systems end-to-end with architectural judgment.
• Agentic coding assistants — use AI tools effectively in workflow.
• Analytics fluency — profile datasets, interpret metrics, explain discrepancies.

Responsibilities

• Own data platforms end to end—from ingestion to analytics-serving layers—with correctness and auditability.
• Write production Python and build services, APIs, and tooling; maintainable code with tests.
• Design and orchestrate cloud data pipelines on AWS with scheduling, retries, and data-quality gates.
• Model data for analytics and application serving, including dimensional modeling and SCD.
• Implement data-quality checks and reconciliation to defend published numbers.
• Drive architecture decisions independently and lead implementations with limited supervision.

Skills

Python

SQL

CI/CD

Data pipelines

Cloud engineering

AI tooling

Education

University Degree

Tools

AWS Glue

AWS Step Functions

S3

Redshift

Aurora/RDS

Lambda

EventBridge

ECS/Fargate

IAM

Terraform

CDK

FastAPI

DuckDB

Parquet

Job description

Job Family:Software Development & SupportTravel Required:NoneClearance Required:Ability to Obtain Public TrustSenior Data Engineer (Analytics & Applied AI)About the roleWe build production data platforms that turn large, complex datasets into reliable analytics and applications. We are looking for a Senior Data Engineer who is equally strong as a software engineer and a data engineer — someone who writes production-quality Python, designs and orchestrates cloud data pipelines, and stands behind the correctness of the numbers those pipelines produce.This is a senior, high-autonomy role. You will own systems end to end, make architecture decisions, and drive work forward independently with minimal oversight. You should be comfortable setting technical direction, not just executing tickets. Experience with agentic coding assistants (using AI tooling to move faster while keeping quality high) is expected — we build with modern tooling and want engineers who leverage it well.Data analytics fluency is required — you reason about the numbers, not just move them.What you'll doOwn data platforms end to end — from source ingestion through transformation to the analytics and application layers that consume them — with correctness, idempotency, and auditability as first-class requirements.Write production Python and build software, not just SQL — services, APIs, tooling, and well-tested, maintainable code. This is a software-engineering role as much as a data role.Design and orchestrate cloud data pipelines on AWS with scheduling, retries, data-quality gates, and clean failure handling.Model data for analytics and application serving — dimensional/fact modeling, grain decisions, slowly-changing dimensions, idempotent recompute patterns, and the distinction between an analytical warehouse and an application system-of-record.Implement data-quality and reconciliation checks that run every pipeline and gate publication — you don't ship numbers you can't defend.Drive architecture and technical decisions independently — evaluate tradeoffs, choose approaches, and lead implementation with limited supervision.Use agentic coding assistants effectively — leverage AI development tooling to accelerate delivery while maintaining code quality and review discipline.Grow into applied AI/ML — entity resolution / record linkage, LLM-assisted analytics over structured and unstructured data, and anomaly/risk scoring as the work expands.What You Will NeedSIX (6+) years in data engineering and/or software engineering building and operating production systems.University Degree and minimum SIX (6) years of prior relevant experience; FOUR (4) years of relevant experience may be substituted for formal education.Strong software engineering — production-quality Python, clean architecture, testing, code review, and CI/CD. You build software, not just scripts.Expert SQL — window functions, complex joins, aggregation-grain reasoning, and query performance.AWS data & compute stack — hands-on with several of: Glue, Step Functions, S3, Redshift, Aurora/RDS, Lambda, EventBridge, ECS/Fargate, IAM.Data modeling — dimensional/analytical modeling, grain, SCD, and idempotent recompute patterns.Data-quality discipline — you validate outputs, reconcile totals, and defend your numbers.Infrastructure as code — Terraform or CDK in a real project.High autonomy — proven ability to own systems and drive them to completion independently, with sound judgment on architecture and tradeoffs.Agentic coding assistants — demonstrated, effective use of AI coding tools in a real workflow.Analytics fluency — profile a dataset, spot anomalies, reason about what a metric means, and explain discrepancies.Must be able to obtain and maintain a Federal or DoD \"public trust\"; candidates must obtain approved adjudication of their public trust prior to onboarding with Guidehouse. Candidates with an active public trust or suitability are preferredWhat Would Be Nice to HaveApplied AI / ML — practical LLM use (RAG, structured extraction from unstructured text), embeddings, or ML risk-scoring; strong interest counts even without deep production experience.Agent frameworks — AWS Strands Agents, Bedrock AgentCore, or similar for building tool-using / multi-agent systems.Entity resolution / record linkage — probabilistic matchingAPI development — FastAPI or similar; enough front-end awareness to collaborate with UI engineers.DuckDB / Parquet-based data flows and data-lake table formats (Iceberg/Delta).Experience in regulated or government data environments.The annual salary range for this position is $113,000.00-$188,000.00. Compensation decisions depend on a wide range of factors, including but not limited to skill sets, experience and training, security clearances, licensure and certifications, and other business and organizational needs.What We Offer:Guidehouse offers a comprehensive, total rewards package that includes competitive compensation and a flexible benefits package that reflects our commitment to creating a diverse and supportive workplace.Benefits include:Medical, Rx, Dental & Vision InsurancePersonal and Family Sick Time & Company Paid HolidaysParental Leave401(k) Retirement PlanGroup Term Life and Travel AssistanceVoluntary Life and AD&D InsuranceHealth Savings Account, Health Care & Dependent Care Flexible Spending AccountsTransit and Parking Commuter BenefitsShort-Term & Long-Term DisabilityTuition Reimbursement, Personal Development, Certifications & Learning OpportunitiesEmployee Referral ProgramCorporate Sponsored Events & Community OutreachCare.com annual membershipEmployee Assistance ProgramSupplemental Benefits via Corestream (Critical Care, Hospital Indemnity, Accident Insurance, Legal Assistance and ID theft protection, etc.)Position may be eligible for a discretionary variable incentive bonusAbout GuidehouseGuidehouse is an Equal Opportunity Employer–Protected Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities or any other basis protected by law, ordinance, or regulation.Guidehouse will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable law or ordinance including the Fair Chance Ordinance of Los Angeles and San Francisco.If you have visited our website for information about employment opportunities, or to apply for a position, and you require an accommodation, please contact Guidehouse Recruiting at 1-571-633-1711 or via email at [e-mail]. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodation.All communication regarding recruitment for a Guidehouse position will be sent from Guidehouse email domains including @guidehouse.com or [e-mail]. Correspondence received by an applicant from any other domain should be considered unauthorized and will not be honored by Guidehouse. Note that Guidehouse will never charge a fee or require a money transfer at any stage of the recruitment process and does not collect fees from educational institutions for participation in a recruitment event. Never provide your banking information to a third party purporting to need that information to proceed in the hiring process.If any person or organization demands money related to a job opportunity with Guidehouse, please report the matter to Guidehouse’s Ethics Hotline. If you want to check the validity of correspondence you have received, please contact [e-mail]. Guidehouse is not responsible for losses incurred (monetary or otherwise) from an applicant’s dealings with unauthorized third parties.Guidehouse does not accept unsolicited resumes through or from search firms or staffing agencies. All unsolicited resumes will be considered the property of Guidehouse and Guidehouse will not be obligated to pay a placement fee.