Lead Data Engineer / Integration Specialist

About the role

The Lead Data Engineer / Integration Specialist plays a key role in designing, building, documenting, and improving enterprise data integrations across diverse City systems. This position focuses on complex integrations requiring strong data analysis, software development practices, and reusable engineering patterns.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, deploy, and maintain complex enterprise data pipelines and integrations.
• Work with departments, product teams, vendors, and technical partners to understand data creation, storage, update, access, and usage.
• Design integrations connecting systems of record, centralized databases, SaaS platforms, APIs, file-based systems, and custom applications.
• Develop robust ETL/ELT workflows using Python, SQL, Apache Airflow, DBT, Postgres, PostGIS, AWS, MuleSoft, and related tools.
• Develop or support custom API, data access, or extraction patterns for systems without native APIs or standard integration methods.
• Establish reusable integration templates, code patterns, data contracts, naming conventions, and documentation practices.
• Improve data consistency, transformation logic, performance, reliability, and maintainability across enterprise integrations.
• Support critical systems and platforms such as DataBridge, DataBridge-Airflow, AIS, open data publishing workflows, enterprise APIs, and department-facing data products.
• Collaborate with data architects, systems engineers, application teams, and department stakeholders to align integration designs with business processes and enterprise data standards.
• Contribute to data governance, metadata, master data management, data quality, and integration standardization efforts.
• Participate in technical design reviews, code reviews, and integration planning to improve maintainability, scalability, and quality.
• Troubleshoot production data pipelines and integration issues, including failures related to source-system changes, schema drift, data quality, performance, scheduling, or access.
• Write clear technical documentation for systems, pipelines, APIs, data models, integration logic, and operational procedures.
• Communicate complex technical concepts in understandable terms to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Data Science, GIS, Engineering, or a related field.
• Five or more years of progressively responsible experience in data engineering, data integration, ETL/ELT development, API integration, or a related role.
• Demonstrated experience designing and maintaining production data pipelines or enterprise integrations.
• Proven experience with Python, SQL, relational databases, and version-controlled development workflows.
• Experience working with modern data engineering tools and practices, including orchestration, automated testing, CI/CD, documentation, and production support.
• Experience working directly with stakeholders to understand business processes, data needs, and system constraints.
• Dedication to making Philadelphia municipal government more robust, efficient, equitable, and data-informed.

Qualifications

• Equivalent work experience may be considered.
• Must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire.
• Effective May 22, 2023, vaccinations are no longer required for new employees in non-medical, non-emergency or patient facing positions.

Skills and Abilities

• Clear and concise written and verbal communication.
• Strong documentation habits and ability to explain technical decisions.
• Creative problem-solving and critical thinking.
• Ability to work with data from diverse domains and systems.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and workflows simultaneously.
• Ability to guide technical implementation in a collaborative team environment.
• Ability to identify opportunities for standardization, reuse, automation, and continuous improvement.
• Service-oriented approach to working with departments and stakeholders.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health coverage for employees and their eligible dependents.
• Wellness program offering eligibility into the discounted medical plan.
• Paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays.
• Generous retirement savings options.
• Pay off student loans faster through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
• Free Commute on SEPTA starting September 1, 2023.
• Unlock Tuition Discounts and Scholarships through partnerships with over a dozen colleges and universities.

Pay

Salary Not to Exceed: $100,000
Starting salary to be determined based on experience and qualifications.