VP, Principal Data Engineer

LPL Financial LLC; Fort Mill (SC); On-site; USD 160,000 - 267,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401K matching

Health benefits

Employee stock options

Paid time off

Volunteer time off

Job summary

LPL Financial seeks a VP, Principal Data Engineer to modernize investor data platforms across Reporting, Statements and Letters for 2.4M+ investors. You will architect high-performance pipelines, real-time processing, and cloud-native services with strict standards and best practices.

Lead engineering pods, mentor teams, and drive cloud transformation while partnering with business leaders to prioritize initiatives and ensure reliability, security, and cost efficiency across the data ecosystem.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience designing and developing large-scale ETL/ELT pipelines and data platforms using AWS, Glue, S3, RDS/Aurora, Snowflake, DBT, and Airflow.
• 8+ years of hands-on experience developing data solutions with Python.
• 6+ years of experience building event-driven and streaming architectures using Kafka, EventBridge, SQS, and related technologies.
• 6+ years of experience with relational and NoSQL databases, including performance tuning and optimization.
• 6+ years of experience with source control, CI/CD, and DevOps practices using GitHub, TeamCity, Jenkins, Octopus, or similar tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead the delivery of scalable, high-quality data solutions aligned to business priorities.
• Own end-to-end execution across engineering pods, balancing resources to optimize delivery and mitigate risk.
• Partner with business and technology leaders to prioritize initiatives and improve productivity.
• Mentor engineers and promote engineering excellence and continuous improvement.
• Architect and build cloud-native data platforms supporting large-scale ingestion, transformation, validation, and distribution.
• Design, develop, and optimize ETL/ELT pipelines using Python, AWS, Snowflake, DBT, Airflow.
• Develop event-driven and real-time data processing solutions leveraging Kafka, EventBridge, SQS, SNS.
• Modernize legacy platforms with secure, reusable cloud-native architectures and patterns.
• Define technical roadmaps, standards, and best practices for enterprise data capabilities.
• Ensure platform reliability, performance, and SLA compliance.

Skills

Technical leadership

Architectural decision-making

Data engineering

ETL/ELT design

Cloud-native platforms

Python development

Real-time streaming

CI/CD and DevOps

Stakeholder management

Mentoring engineering teams

Tools

Python

AWS

Snowflake

DBT

Airflow

Kafka

EventBridge

SQS

SNS

GitHub

Terraform

Data lake architectures

Job description

Where Ambition Meets InnovationBuild a career that matches all your initiative with an impressive dose of innovation. From cutting-edge resources and a collaborative environment to the freedom to make an impact and more, you’ll find the ingredients you need at LPL Financial to shape your success while helping clients pursue their financial goals.Job Overview:LPL Financial is seeking a highly accomplished VP, Principal Data Engineer to drive the modernization of the investor experience across the Reporting, Statements and Letters platforms, serving more than 2.4 million investors. This role will provide strategic and hands-on technical leadership in designing, building, and modernizing enterprise-scale data platforms. The VP, Principal Data Engineer will architect high-performance data pipelines, real-time streaming solutions, and cloud-native data services while establishing engineering standards, reusable frameworks, and best practices that support business growth and operational excellence. Working closely with business leaders, architects, product teams, and engineering organizations, this individual will influence technical strategy, accelerate cloud transformation initiatives, and deliver innovative data capabilities that enhance the investor experience.Responsibilities:Lead the delivery of scalable, high-quality, and cost-effective data solutions aligned to business priorities.Own end-to-end execution across engineering pods, balancing employee and vendor resources to optimize delivery and mitigate operational risk.Partner with business and technology leaders to prioritize initiatives, accelerate delivery, and improve engineering productivity.Mentor engineers and promote engineering excellence, innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.Architect and build cloud-native data platforms supporting large-scale data ingestion, transformation, validation, and distribution.Design, develop, and optimize ETL/ELT pipelines using Python, AWS, Snowflake, DBT, Airflow, and related technologies.Develop event-driven and real-time data processing solutions leveraging Kafka, EventBridge, SQS, SNS, and related technologies.Modernize legacy platforms through secure, resilient, and reusable cloud-native architectures and patterns.Define technical roadmaps, engineering standards, and best practices that advance enterprise data capabilities.Ensure platform reliability, scalability, performance, and service-level objective compliance.Implement data quality, observability, auditing, reconciliation, and monitoring capabilities.Drive CI/CD adoption, DevOps automation, and operational best practices that improve resiliency and efficiency.Lead root-cause analysis and resolution of complex production issues while optimizing cloud performance and cost management.Partner with architects, product teams, and business stakeholders to deliver modern data products and platform capabilities.Influence technical strategy, architecture decisions, automation initiatives, and continuous innovation across the data ecosystem.What Are We Looking For?We are seeking a technology leader who is motivated to pursue greatness, act with integrity, and is driven to help our clients succeed. The ideal candidate collaborates effectively across teams, embraces accountability, seeks opportunities to win together, and helps create and share joy while delivering innovative solutions that advance LPL Financial’s mission and business objectives.Requirements:10+ years of experience designing and developing large-scale ETL/ELT pipelines and data platforms using AWS, Glue, S3, RDS/Aurora, Snowflake, DBT, and Airflow.8+ years of hands-on experience developing data solutions with Python.6+ years of experience building event-driven and streaming architectures using Kafka, EventBridge, SQS, and related technologies.6+ years of experience with relational and NoSQL databases, including performance tuning and optimization.6+ years of experience with source control, CI/CD, and DevOps practices using GitHub, TeamCity, Jenkins, Octopus, or similar tools.Core Competencies:Technical leadership and architectural decision-making.Deep expertise in data engineering, ETL/ELT, and cloud-native platforms.Strong analytical, problem-solving, and strategic planning skills.Ability to translate complex business requirements into scalable technical solutions.Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.Proven ability to lead high-performing teams in fast-paced, agile environments.Preferences:5+ years of experience within financial services, wealth management, or brokerage organizations.Experience with AI-assisted development tools such as GitHub Copilot, Copilot Chat, Cursor, or similar technologies.Experience with Terraform, infrastructure automation, and data lake implementations.AWS Associate-level certifications, such as AWS Certified Developer – Associate or AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate.Experience leading enterprise cloud modernization and data transformation programs.Experience developing APIs and microservices using .NET technologies.Familiarity with GitHub Copilot and other AI-assisted development tools.Pay Range:$159,959.00 - $266,564.00Actual base salary varies based on factors, including but not limited to, relevant skill, prior experience, education, base salary of internal peers, demonstrated performance, and geographic location. Additionally, LPL Total Rewards package is highly competitive, designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play – such as 401K matching, health benefits, employee stock options, paid time off, volunteer time off, and more. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that LPL has to offer!Company Overview:LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: LPLA) is among the fastest growing wealth management firms in the U.S. As a leader in the financial advisor-mediated marketplace(6) , LPL supports over 32,000 financial advisors and the wealth management practices of approximately 1,100 financial institutions, servicing and custodying approximately $2.3 trillion in brokerage and advisory assets on behalf of approximately 8 million Americans. The firm provides a wide range of advisor affiliation models, investment solutions, fintech tools and practice management services, ensuring that advisors and institutions have the flexibility to choose the business model, services, and technology resources they need to run thriving businesses. For further information about LPL, please visit www.lpl.com.At LPL, independence means that advisors and institution leaders have the freedom they deserve to choose the business model, services, and technology resources that allow them to run a thriving business. They have the flexibility to do business their way. And they have the freedom to manage their client relationships, because they know their clients best. Simply put, we take care of our advisors and institutions, so they can take care of their clients.For further information about LPL, please visit www.lpl.com.Join the LPL team and help us make a difference by turning life’s aspirations into financial realities. Please log in or create an account to apply to this position. Principals only. EOE.Information on Interviews:LPL will only communicate with a job applicant directly from an @lplfinancial.com email address and will never conduct an interview online or in a chatroom forum. During an interview, LPL will not request any form of payment from the applicant, or information regarding an applicant’s bank or credit card. Should you have any questions regarding the application process, please contact LPL’s Human Resources Solutions Center at [phone].EAC 5.19.26