Associate Data Engineer

About the role

The Associate Data Engineer is an early-career engineer learning the full HR Analytics data engineering vertical hands-on from ingestion, through modeling and transformation, into the Microsoft Fabric semantic layer and Power BI visualizations.

Responsibilities

• Execute assigned components of solution designs handed off by Senior and Data Engineers, delivering production-grade code under senior engineer guidance.
• Lands source data into the team's unified ingestion framework using the patterns specified in the design.
• Implements assigned data models and transformation logic in Snowflake (including Iceberg tables) and Databricks (Delta Lake, Unity Catalog) per the design.
• Applies medallion (bronze, silver, gold) architecture and the team's engineering standards to all work, including naming conventions, documentation, and code review practices.
• Buils assigned components of the semantic layer in Microsoft Fabric (Fabric IQ, OneLake) per the design specifications.
• Buils assigned Power BI visualizations and reports following the design specifications and the team's BI standards.
• Implements unit tests, data quality checks, and reconciliation for assigned work.

Requirements

• Graduation Year: 2024, 2025 or 2026
• GPA: 3.5
• Experience: 1+ years
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Management, or equivalent experience in field plus 1+ years of related work experience, OR equivalent demonstrated experience through internships, bootcamps, or self-directed project work.
• Must be located in the United States.
• Hands-on data engineering or software engineering experience, including internships and academic project work that demonstrate production-quality engineering habits.
• Working proficiency in SQL and Python.
• Exposure to Spark (PySpark or Spark SQL) for distributed data transformation, or strong willingness and demonstrated ability to learn it quickly.
• Exposure to cloud data platforms Databricks, Snowflake, or comparable with a willingness to develop hands-on depth.
• Familiarity with at least one BI tool (Power BI preferred, Tableau or similar acceptable).
• Understanding of fundamental data engineering concepts data modeling, ETL/ELT, data quality, source-to-target mapping.
• Familiarity with Git, code review practices, and basic CI/CD concepts.
• Good communication skills able to ask clarifying questions, communicate progress clearly, and learn from feedback.
• Strong problem-solving instincts, curiosity, and the discipline to deliver well-defined work to a high standard.
• Eagerness to learn the full vertical from ingestion through visualization, and to take on broader ownership over time.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on coursework, internship, or project experience with Databricks (Delta Lake) or Snowflake at any scale.
• Hands-on coursework, internship, or project experience with Microsoft Fabric, OneLake, or Power BI.
• Exposure to Iceberg tables or other modern open table formats.
• Exposure to HR data domains talent acquisition, workforce analytics, compensation, learning, performance, or people analytics.
• Familiarity with Workday, ServiceNow HR, or comparable HR systems of record.
• Exposure to streaming technologies (Kafka, Azure Event Hub, Delta Live Tables, or Spark Structured Streaming).
• Exposure to AI/ML pipelines or building data products that support ML workloads.
• Azure certifications (Azure Fundamentals, Data Engineer Associate) or working toward them.
• Familiarity with data privacy concepts (GDPR, CCPA) and HR data handling considerations.