Contract Principal Data Engineer (Databricks)

Role: Principal Data Engineer (Databricks)

Industry: Commodities

Location: London (hybrid, 3 days per week)

Rate: £800-900/d (inside IR35)

Contract: 6 months rolling (multi-year scope)

X4 Technology are partnered with a global commodity trading firm in central London to hire a contract Principal Data Engineer (Databricks). You'll take a lead role in a flagship transformation programme that places Databricks at the centre of how trading data is standardised, governed and used to drive sharper commercial decisions globally.

Responsibilities of the Principal Data Engineer (Databricks)

• Design and architect end-to-end data platforms and modernised data environments
• Lead the shift toward data-driven thinking across both IT and business stakeholders
• Drive adoption of Databricks and modern data engineering practices
• Oversee change, incident and problem management processes
• Champion best practices, community development (CoE/CoP), and continuous improvement
• Act as a visible thought leader - delivering technical guidance and mentorship

Requirements for the Principal Data Engineer (Databricks)

• Deep hands-on experience with Databricks, Delta Live Tables (DLT), data modelling, data ingestion & integration
• Strong proficiency across Data Factory, SQL DB, Synapse, Stream Analytics, Glue, Airflow, Kinesis, Redshift, GITHUB/DevOps tools, testing frameworks (SonarQube/PyTest)
• Proven experience leading data engineering teams while remaining actively hands-on involved in delivery
• Background within energy, utilities, commodities or financial trading environments

Day rates are £800-£900/d inside IR35 for an initial 6-month contract with multi-year scope. Many contractors we've placed here have been extended for 3-4+ years, reflecting the scale and long-term nature of transformation work on offer.

Interviews are starting w/c 27th October, so if you're a Principal Data Engineer eager to play a key role in unifying data across systems - delivering standardised, trusted and granular data that enables sharper trading insights - please apply online for immediate consideration.