Sr. Data Engineer (GCP/Vertex AI)

HEB; San Antonio (TX); On-site; USD 140,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

HEB Digital Technology in San Antonio, TX is seeking a Sr. Data Engineer (GCP/Vertex AI) to build production-grade data and machine-learning infrastructure that powers personalized search and product recommendations.

You will own data orchestration, feature engineering, and model serving at scale, collaborating with Data Science, ML Engineering, Search, Product Management, and Customer Experience teams to deliver scalable, real-time solutions using GCP, Vertex AI, and MLOps.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of data engineering experience.
• Experience with large-scale infrastructure and SLAs.
• Experience with GCP Vertex AI.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain data and ML infrastructure for the Customer Experience Engineering organization.
• Own data orchestration, feature engineering, and model serving for weekly personalized search and product recommendations.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to translate business objectives into scalable, production-grade technical solutions.
• Work hands-on with personalized online product search, search ranking, semantic search, and large-scale recommendation platforms.
• Operationalize ML and personalization models using GCP, Vertex AI, Feature Stores, and MLOps.
• Develop and support large-scale data pipelines using Python, PySpark, and SQL.
• Apply modern data lake/Lakehouse architectures, data modeling, and ETL/ELT pipelines including real-time Kafka streaming.
• Design and build scalable APIs and low-latency data services for production ML apps.
• Partner with Product, Data Science, and Engineering teams to deliver resilient technical solutions.

Skills

Lean Startup

Agile

BI & Analytics

Data modeling

Coding standards

Prioritization

Communication

Ambiguity handling

Learning new tech

Team collaboration

Education

Related degree or equivalent

Tools

GCP

Vertex AI

Feature Stores

MLOps

Python

PySpark

SQL

Kafka

Job description

HEB Digital Technology is building data and machine learning infrastructure that powers personalized search and product recommendations for millions of customers. In this Sr. Data Engineer (GCP/Vertex AI) role, you will help deliver scalable, production-grade solutions on Google Cloud Platform using Vertex AI and MLOps practices, working closely with Data Science, Machine Learning Engineering, Search Engineering, Product Management, and Customer Experience teams.

Location: San Antonio, TX (onsite)

What you will do

• Build and maintain the data and machine learning infrastructure supporting the Customer Experience Engineering organization.
• Own data orchestration, feature engineering, and model serving for personalized search and product recommendations delivered weekly at scale.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to translate business objectives into scalable, production-grade technical solutions.
• Work hands-on with personalized online product search, search ranking, semantic search, and large-scale recommendation or personalization platforms.
• Operationalize machine learning and personalization models using GCP, with emphasis on Vertex AI, Feature Stores, and MLOps.
• Develop and support large-scale data pipelines using Python, PySpark, and SQL.
• Apply modern data lake/Lakehouse architectures, data modeling practices, and ETL/ELT pipelines, including real-time event-driven streaming with Kafka.
• Design and build scalable APIs and low-latency data services for production machine learning applications.
• Partner with Product, Data Science, and Engineering teams to deliver resilient technical solutions.

What you bring

• Advanced knowledge of Lean Startup / Agile methods.
• Knowledge of business intelligence, analytics and reporting, and application integration.
• Strong working understanding of data architecture concepts including data warehouse, data lake, and data mesh, including when to apply them.
• Strong working understanding of data modeling best practices for analytics and data platforms.
• Strong working understanding of coding standards and design principles/patterns.
• Strong prioritization skills.
• Strong verbal and written communication, including data presentation skills.
• Ability to deliver on ambiguous projects with incomplete information.
• Ability and willingness to learn new technologies as they emerge.
• Ability to work calmly under pressure.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule as needed and collaborate across multiple work locations.
• Ability to work within a team and take feedback from peers and mentors.
• Education/Experience: related degree or comparable formal training, certification, or work experience.
• Experience: 5+ years of experience related to data engineering.
• Experience working in large-scale infrastructure, large data sets, and mission critical SLAs.

Technologies you will work with

• Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
• Vertex AI
• Feature Stores
• MLOps
• Python, PySpark, SQL
• Kafka

Nice-to-have

• Experience in retail, e-commerce, or high-volume digital commerce environments.
• Familiarity with vector search, search indexing/relevance tuning, and recommendation methods such as collaborative filtering, content-based filtering, embeddings, and feature engineering.
• Experience with high-volume clickstream and behavioral event data, plus work with Customer 360 platforms and customer identity resolution.
• Knowledge of A/B testing, experimentation frameworks, and metrics for measuring business impact of search and personalization.

How you will work

HEB looks for team members who demonstrate a heart for people through solution facilitation with multiple engineers, upward communication, and mentoring; a head for business by maintaining coding, infrastructure, and process standards; and a passion for results through high-velocity contributions across multiple technical domains.