Senior Data Engineer

Mothers2Mothers

Cape Town

On-site

ZAR 900,000 - 1,500,000

Full time

8 days ago

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Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive health benefits

Retirement plan

Leave entitlement

Job summary

mothers2mothers is seeking a Senior Data Engineer to design, build, and secure the data architecture for its digital ecosystem in Cape Town. You will own the data infrastructure, establish Google Cloud Platform as the primary data repository, and drive resilience across platforms.

You will lead CHARM Central transition, manage data flows, APIs, and integrations with DHIS2, CommCare, Salesforce, and other systems, while documenting architecture and ensuring data quality and availability for

Qualifications

Bachelor-level or higher in a Computer Science, IT, Data or related field.
Five+ years of experience in data engineering or data platform engineering.
Experience designing and maintaining ETL/ELT pipelines and APIs.
Proven ability to manage production data environments and enterprise-scale data platforms.
Experience with cloud-based infrastructure (GCP preferred).
Strong documentation and governance habits.

Responsibilities

Design, build and maintain enterprise data architecture and data integration strategy.
Establish GCP as central repository for programme and platform data.
Design data flows between apps, databases, reporting platforms and external systems.
Develop and support ETL/ELT pipelines, APIs and integration services.
Integrate platforms like DHIS2, CommCare, Salesforce and future systems.
Ensure data architecture supports scalability, security, reliability and growth.
Maintain comprehensive documentation of architecture, data flows and processes.
Ensure data structures support reporting, analytics and learning needs.

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software Engineering, Data Engineering or related discipline

Tools

Google Cloud Platform

DHIS2

CommCare

Salesforce

Job description

The Senior Data Engineer is responsible for designing, building, maintaining and securing the data architecture that underpins mothers2mothers' digital ecosystem. The role ensures that organisational data is available, integrated, protected, recoverable and accessible across all platforms and systems.

The incumbent serves as the technical owner of m2m's programme data infrastructure and is responsible for establishing Google Cloud Platform (GCP) as the organisation's primary data repository and integration layer. The role ensures that critical programme and operational data remains independent of any individual application, vendor or technology platform, thereby strengthening organisational resilience and business continuity.

A key responsibility of the role is the operational transition and ownership of CHARM Central from the current supplier, ensuring that m2m develops and retains the technical knowledge, documentation, infrastructure management capability and operational procedures required to manage the platform independently. The Senior Data Engineer works closely with Digital Products & Learning colleagues, Enterprise IT, Programme Analytics, external suppliers and implementation teams to ensure the integrity, quality and sustainability of m2m's data ecosystem.

Key Performance Areas

Data Architecture, Engineering and Systems Integration

Responsibilities

Design, implement and maintain m2m's enterprise data architecture and data integration strategy.
Establish and maintain Google Cloud Platform (GCP) as the central repository for programme and platform data.
Design and manage data flows between mobile applications, backend databases, reporting platforms and external systems.
Build, optimise and maintain ETL/ELT pipelines, APIs and integration services.
Develop and support integrations with DHIS2, CommCare, Salesforce and future platforms.
Ensure data architecture supports scalability, reliability, security and future growth requirements.
Maintain comprehensive documentation of system architecture, data flows, integrations and technical processes.
Ensure data structures support organisational reporting, analytics and learning needs.

Key Deliverables

Reliable enterprise data architecture implemented and maintained.
Integrated data environment supporting programme and operational requirements.
Accurate and timely data availability across platforms.
Current and comprehensive architectural documentation.

CHARM Central Operational Ownership and Platform Management

Responsibilities

Lead the transition of CHARM Central operational ownership from the platform supplier to m2m.
Verify platform architecture, codebase, build processes, deployment practices and operating procedures during handover.
Establish and maintain operational control of system environments, databases, monitoring, deployment and infrastructure components.
Manage platform performance, availability and reliability.
Develop, maintain and continuously improve operational runbooks and technical documentation.
Support deployment and release activities in collaboration with the Senior Mobile Application Developer.
Proactively identify and mitigate platform risks and sustainability concerns.
Ensure operational knowledge is retained within m2m and not dependent on external suppliers.

Key Deliverables

Successful platform handover completed.
CHARM Central routinely managed internally.
Operational runbooks developed and maintained.
Reduced dependency on platform suppliers.

Data Continuity, Disaster Recovery and Quality Assurance

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain backup, recovery and business continuity processes for programme platforms and data assets.
Conduct and document regular restoration testing.
Monitor platform health, data quality, completeness and synchronisation processes.
Implement reconciliation processes to identify and address data discrepancies.
Design and evaluate contingency and fallback solutions for critical systems.
Ensure data remains secure, recoverable and resilient.
Support compliance with organisational security, governance and data protection requirements.
Identify and escalation risks relating to data integrity, continuity or availability.

Key Deliverables

Backup and restoration processes implemented and tested.
High levels of data integrity and platform reliability.
Reduced organisational continuity risk.
Data quality monitoring processes operating effectively.

Vendor, Technology Partner and Stakeholder Management

Responsibilities

Act as the primary technical counterpart to platform suppliers and technology vendors.
Validate deliverables and ensure technical outputs meet agreed standards and requirements.
Collaborate with Enterprise IT regarding cloud infrastructure, security and identity management.
Support technical assessments of new technologies and digital solutions.
Facilitate communication between internal stakeholders and external technical partners.
Contribute technical expertise to procurement and vendor evaluation processes.

Key Deliverables

Effective supplier engagement and accountability.
Successful delivery of vendor-supported initiatives.
Clear technical governance and oversight.

Organisational Collaboration and Knowledge Management

Responsibilities

Collaborate with the Lead: Programme Analytics & Forecasting to ensure programme data structures support reporting and analytics needs.
Support Digital Products & Learning initiatives through provision of reliable and accessible data services.
Promote knowledge sharing, technical documentation and operational transparency.
Contribute to digital strategy and organisational technology planning.
Support succession planning through documentation and knowledge transfer activities.
Foster a culture of continuous improvement and operational excellence.

Key Deliverables

Strong collaboration across functions.
Improved organisational technical capability.
Comprehensive knowledge management and documentation practices.

Qualifications, Experience and Competencies

Essential

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software Engineering, Data Engineering or a related discipline.

Preferred

Postgraduate qualification in Information Technology, Data Engineering, Computer Science or related field.
Google Cloud Platform Certification.
AWS or Azure Certification.
Database Administration or Data Engineering certifications.

EXPERIENCE

Essential

Minimum five (5) years' experience in Data Engineering, Data Platform Engineering or related technical roles.
Demonstrated experience managing production data environments and enterprise-scale data platforms.
Experience designing and maintaining ETL/ELT data pipelines.
Experience developing APIs and integrating multiple systems and platforms.
Experience administering databases, including backup, recovery and restoration processes.
Experience working with cloud-based infrastructure and environments.
Demonstrated experience inheriting, supporting and improving systems developed by third parties.
Proven ability to create and maintain comprehensive technical documentation.

Preferred

Experience with Google Cloud Platform.
Experience with health information systems such as DHIS2, CommCare or similar platforms.
Experience within public health, NGO or donor-funded environments.
Experience supporting mobile and offline-first architectures.
Experience with Infrastructure as Code tools such as Terraform.
Experience managing vendor transitions and system handovers

Reporting & Team Structure

Reports to: IT Manager
Collaborates with: Internal
Senior Lead: Digital Products & Learning, Senior Mobile Application Developer, Digital Platforms Administrator, Senior Officer: Portfolio Operations, Lead: Programme Analytics & Forecasting, Enterprise IT, Country Programme Teams, Programmes & Impact Department

External