AWS Data Engineer

About the role

Syms Strategic Group (SSG) is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer (AWS Data Engineer) to work remotely for the Veterans Affairs (VA) department. This is a full‑time, W‑2 position requiring a Public Trust (MBI) security clearance and U.S. citizenship. Military veterans are highly encouraged to apply. Candidates must be based in the United States, but applicants from CA, CO, IL, MN, NJ, NY, OR, or WA will not be considered.

Responsibilities

• Lead the next phase of the healthcare data platform modernization.
• Implement the evolution from a Microsoft SQL XML object store toward a scalable, cloud‑native AWS data architecture that enables performant, SQL‑based reporting and queries.
• Evaluate and decide the right AWS data strategy for the platform.
• Recommend the optimal AWS‑native data storage and query architecture (e.g., S3 + Athena, Aurora, DynamoDB, Redshift, OpenSearch) based on query patterns, reporting needs, cost, and scalability.
• Design and build the reporting and query layer that allows business stakeholders and non‑technical users to run relational SQL queries using familiar tooling.
• Architect the migration path for XML object store data from MSSQL into the target AWS platform, defining storage formats, partitioning strategies, and data organization for optimal query performance.
• Build and maintain an AWS data catalog, schemas, and metadata management so that object store data is discoverable and queryable.
• Optimize query performance and cost across chosen AWS services (partitioning, compression, file formats, query pattern tuning).
• Work directly with business stakeholders and analysts to translate reporting requirements into durable, performant data models and query patterns.
• Collaborate with back‑end C#/.Net engineers to ensure clean data flows from Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) pipelines into the new data layer.
• Implement and maintain CI/CD pipelines for data infrastructure using AWS‑native tooling (CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy).
• Apply Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices using AWS CDK, CloudFormation, or Terraform.
• Document architecture decisions, data flows, and data dictionaries for both technical and non‑technical audiences.

Required Skills and Experience

• 8+ years of software or data engineering experience with a strong AWS focus.
• Proven experience architecting and executing cloud data platform migrations in production enterprise or healthcare environments.
• Track record of evaluating and selecting AWS data services to meet business reporting and query requirements.
• Experience delivering reporting or analytics solutions for non‑technical business users.
• Deep hands‑on AWS experience with data‑oriented services: S3, Athena, Glue, Aurora, DynamoDB, Redshift, OpenSearch, Lambda, IAM, CloudWatch.
• Strong SQL skills and ability to design relational query layers over semi‑structured or non‑relational data (XML, JSON).
• Experience working with XML‑heavy data stores—parsing, querying, and transforming XML at scale.
• Ability to evaluate trade‑offs across AWS data services and make architecture recommendations based on cost, performance, and business requirements.
• Familiarity with AWS analytics and reporting services (Athena, QuickSight, Redshift) and equivalent BI tooling.
• Proficiency with Git and GitHub (branching strategies, pull requests, collaborative workflows).
• Experience with CI/CD practices and AWS‑native tooling (CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy).
• IaC experience (AWS CDK, CloudFormation, or Terraform).
• Strong communication skills for presenting technical architecture decisions to non‑technical stakeholders.
• Experience gathering and translating business reporting requirements into technical data models.
• Comfort driving ambiguous architecture decisions to resolution with limited direction.
• Experience with Agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban) and JIRA.
• Strong documentation habits—architecture diagrams, data dictionaries, migration runbooks.

Desired Experience

• Knowledge of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) X.12 standards (e.g., medical claims 837, 835, 277CA).
• Familiarity with Health Level 7 (HL7) and Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR).
• Experience with C#/.Net back‑end services for integration touchpoints.
• Experience with Entity Framework migration or deprecation projects.
• Background in healthcare payer, Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM) systems, clearinghouses, or pharmacy operations.
• Understanding of HIPAA compliance requirements in cloud data architecture.
• AWS certifications are a bonus (no certifications required).

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical discipline; equivalent practical experience will also be considered.

Security Clearance

Must possess or be able to qualify for a Public Trust (MBI) clearance.

Citizenship

U.S. citizenship is required for this opportunity.

Pay

Salary range: $85,389 – $116,975 per year.