At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the development of a scalable data integration platform using GCP and Apache Airflow.
- Company: Join a forward-thinking tech company focused on innovation and collaboration.
- Benefits: Competitive pay, flexible working options, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Dynamic work culture with a focus on continuous improvement and team inclusivity.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by shaping the future of data integration technology.
- Qualifications: Experience in leading technical teams and building ETL pipelines in cloud environments.
The predicted salary is between 63000 - 77000 £ per year.
Read the overview of this opportunity to understand what skills, including relevant soft skills and software package proficiencies, are required.
Role purpose: Lead the engineering delivery and technical direction for a scalable, multi-tenant data integration platform on Google Cloud Platform (GCP). The platform uses Apache Airflow to orchestrate ETL pipelines and enables reliable movement of data from source systems through the platform into downstream vendor systems. You'll guide the team in building high-quality ETLs, improving automation and deployment pipelines, and implementing end-to-end data lineage with clear, visual traceability of data movement.
Key responsibilities:
- Technical leadership & delivery: Own the technical roadmap for the platform, aligning engineering outcomes to business priorities and operational resilience. Lead solution design for new integrations and platform capabilities, balancing pace with long-term maintainability. Set engineering standards (coding, testing, documentation, observability, security) and ensure consistent adoption across the team. Provide hands-on contribution where needed (critical ETLs, framework components, design spikes, performance fixes).
- ETL orchestration & data movement: Design and develop robust ETL pipelines orchestrated in Apache Airflow, including scheduling strategies, dependency management, retries, backfills, and processing. Establish patterns for onboarding new source systems and delivering data to downstream vendor systems with strong reliability and traceability. Drive data quality controls (validation, reconciliation, exception handling) and operational runbooks.
- Platform engineering (multi-tenancy & scalability): Evolve the multi-tenant architecture: tenant isolation, configuration management, metadata-driven pipelines, and scalable runtime patterns. Optimise for performance, cost, and reliability across environments (dev/test/prod), including capacity planning and operational SLAs.
- Automation, CI/CD and release engineering: Improve build and deployment automation for both platform services and Airflow DAGs (versioning, packaging, promotions, approvals). Implement CI/CD best practices: automated testing, static analysis, security scanning, and controlled rollout/rollback strategies. Reduce manual toil by investing in self-service onboarding, templates, and engineering enablement tooling.
- Data lineage & observability: Implement end-to-end data lineage (source – platform – vendor), including metadata capture and a visual representation that supports auditability and faster incident resolution. Enhance observability across pipelines and services: logging, metrics, alerting, and dashboards; drive measurable improvements in MTTR and change failure rate.
- Stakeholder management & ways of working: Partner with product owners, data owners, architects, vendors, and governance teams to shape requirements and manage delivery expectations. Lead agile ceremonies and engineering planning; remove blockers and maintain delivery momentum. Mentor engineers through code reviews, design reviews, and structured coaching; foster a culture of continuous improvement.
Required experience & skills:
- Proven experience as a Technical Lead / Lead Engineer delivering data engineering or integration platforms in cloud environments.
- Strong hands-on experience building production-grade ETL/ELT pipelines and orchestration with Apache Airflow.
- Solid experience on Google Cloud Platform, such as: Data services (e.g., BigQuery, Cloud Storage, Pub/Sub, Dataflow) and/or container platforms (e.g., GKE, Cloud Run).
- Strong software engineering foundations: Python, APIs, configuration management, testing strategy, and performance tuning.
- CI/CD expertise (pipeline tooling, release controls, automated quality gates) and Infrastructure-as-Code experience (e.g., Terraform).
- Experience designing for reliability: retries, idempotency, dead-letter patterns, backpressure handling, and operational resilience.
- Ability to translate complex technical topics for mixed audiences and drive alignment across teams.
Desirable (nice to have):
- Experience implementing or integrating data lineage/metadata management tooling (e.g., Data Catalog-style metadata, OpenLineage, DataHub, etc.).
- Experience with multi-tenant platforms (tenant isolation models, metadata-driven frameworks).
- Knowledge of data governance concepts (data quality, auditability, retention, access controls).
- Experience integrating with external vendor systems and managing vendor technical dependencies.
Success measures (what good looks like):
- Faster, safer delivery of new integrations via improved automation and CI/CD.
- Measurable improvement in pipeline reliability and operational outcomes (reduced incidents, faster recovery).
- Clear, trusted end-to-end lineage view for key datasets and integrations.
- Consistent engineering standards and a team that's growing capability and confidence over time.
Working style: A pragmatic, hands-on technical leader who enjoys getting things done, raises engineering standards without slowing delivery, and builds an inclusive team environment where different viewpoints improve outcomes.
Technical Lead in Sheffield employer: Confidential
As a leading employer in the data centre operations sector, we offer an exceptional work environment that prioritises employee growth and development. Our collaborative culture fosters innovation and accountability, while our commitment to safety and operational excellence ensures that you will be part of a team that values your contributions. With opportunities for international travel and the chance to lead critical operations across the EMEA region, this role provides a unique platform for impactful leadership and career advancement.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Technical Lead in Sheffield
✨Get Involved in Open-Source Projects
Diving into open-source projects is a brilliant way to showcase your skills and connect with other developers in the community. Not only will you beef up your GitHub profile but you might also catch the eye of someone at Confidential who values hands-on experience over just theory.
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✨Showcase Your Work Online
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We think you need these skills to ace Technical Lead in Sheffield
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Tech Skills:Make sure your CV highlights your tech stack and any programming languages you’re proficient in. Include specifics about any frameworks or technologies you’ve worked with; they can make you stand out in the sea of applicants. It’s all about showing that you have the chops we need at Confidential!
Portfolio 2.0:Since you’re applying for a temporary gig, it’s super important to showcase a portfolio that highlights your best projects. Include links to GitHub or any personal projects that demonstrate what you can do in a real-world environment. This gives us a taste of your style and your problem-solving approach!
Keep It Brief and Relevant:With a temporary position, we want to see your ability to hit the ground running. Be concise in your CV and cover letter; stick to experiences that directly relate to the role. Highlight any previous temporary roles or freelance gigs that show your adaptability and quick learning!
Tailor Your Cover Letter:Don’t just send a generic cover letter. Personalise it for Technical Lead at Confidential! Mention why this temporary role excites you and how you see yourself contributing in the short run. Show us what you've got and why you're the one for this quick turn-around!
How to prepare for a job interview at Confidential
✨Nail the Technical Skills
For a software engineering role, you'll likely face technical questions or coding tasks during your interview. Brush up on the relevant programming languages and frameworks that Confidential uses, and don’t forget to practice some coding challenges on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank. Showing your coding prowess can really make you stand out!
✨Prepare for System Design Questions
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✨Demonstrate Your Adaptability
Since this is a temporary role, you'll want to emphasise your ability to hit the ground running. Highlight experiences where you quickly adapted to new technologies or teams. Let’s make it clear to the interviewers at Confidential that you can learn on the job and deliver results in a short timeframe!
✨Show Off Your Portfolio
Make sure to have a portfolio or GitHub ready showcasing your projects. Having tangible evidence of what you've done—be it personal projects, contributions to open-source, or previous work—can convey how capable you are. Tailor this for what might interest Confidential, so it's relevant and sparks conversation during your interview.
