Data Architect
Required Skills & Experience
Must Have
- 8+ years of data architecture experience with at least 3 years hands-on with Azure Databricks in production environments
- Proven experience designing and implementing medallion architecture (Bronze / Silver / Gold) using Delta Lake on Azure Databricks
- Strong hands-on experience with Unity Catalog — metastore setup, catalog and schema design, access controls, and governance policies
- Experience configuring Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 — containers, access control lists, lifecycle policies, and integration with Databricks
- Hands-on experience with Microsoft Fabric — specifically Mirrored Azure Databricks Unity Catalog and Power BI connectivity to Databricks SQL Warehouses
- Experience with enterprise data source integration — MS SQL Server (on-premises and Azure SQL) and Oracle Database ingestion into Azure landing zones
- Strong Apache Spark skills — PySpark or Scala, optimisation, partitioning, and job scheduling in Databricks
- Experience assessing and remediating partially built or vendor-abandoned data platform implementations
- Proven ability to engage senior stakeholders — Architecture Council, CIO, CDO level — presenting technical findings in clear business language
- UK-based with ability to travel to Pennon client sites (South West England) — onsite presence required particularly in Weeks 1–2
Highly Desirable
- Experience in the utilities, water, or regulated infrastructure sector — understanding of operational data, compliance requirements, and safety-critical system considerations
- Familiarity with Lakehouse Federation in Azure Databricks — federating queries across external data sources without full ingestion
- Experience with Azure Data Factory or equivalent ETL/ELT tooling for enterprise source ingestion pipelines
- Exposure to Delta Live Tables (DLT) for declarative pipeline management
- Experience with Power BI data modelling and DirectQuery / Import mode considerations for Databricks SQL Warehouse connectivity
- Familiarity with Azure Key Vault for secrets management and secure credential handling in Databricks
- Prior experience in a vendor transition or rescue engagement — inheriting and assessing another vendor's technical work
- Knowledge of Databricks Asset Bundles or Databricks Workflows for job orchestration
- TOGAF or equivalent enterprise architecture certification