Lead Data Engineer

This role requires on-site presence at Asda House in Leeds for at least three days per week. We’re really looking forward to having you around! Are you ready to lead from the front and make a real impact with data? We’re on the lookout for a Lead Data Engineer to join our high-performing Data Team. In this pivotal role, you won’t just write code, you’ll shape the direction of our data engineering practice across multiple squads. As the most senior engineer in the team, you’ll combine deep technical expertise with strategic leadership. You’ll mentor and inspire a talented group of data engineers, guiding them through complex challenges and helping them grow. Your work will directly influence the design and delivery of robust, scalable data products that power decision-making across Asda. You’ll collaborate closely with Product Managers, Data Analysts, Visualisation Engineers, Data Architects, and other key stakeholders to ensure our data solutions are not only technically sound but also aligned with business goals. From championing best practices to driving innovation within our Agile community of practice, you’ll be at the heart of our data transformation journey.

If you’re passionate about building high-quality data systems, leading with purpose, and making a tangible difference in a fast-paced environment, this is your opportunity.

Your Role (Key Responsibilities)

• Provide technical mentorship and direction to data engineers, helping to elevate team capability and maintain engineering standards, but also maximise their potential and promote career growth.
• Foster a DevOps culture of “you build it, you run it, you own it”, promoting autonomy and ownership across the engineering organisation.
• Lead best practices in data engineering, code reviews, and development activities, ensuring the highest quality standards.
• Contribute to the Lead Engineer & Agile communities of practice.
• Ensure data quality and integrity.
• Work with structured, semi-structured and unstructured data with varying latencies, from batch through to real-time.
• Ensure engineering solutions comply with architectural frameworks and best practices defined by Data Architects.
• Collaborate with Product Managers and Data Analysts to ensure business requirements are translated into scalable, performant data solutions.
• Evaluate and recommend new technologies and tools to enhance data engineering capabilities.
• Balance hands-on engineering responsibilities with technical leadership to drive high-quality delivery.

About You (Experience & Qualifications)

• Proven experience building and maintaining high-quality, secure data solutions.
• Skilled in operating scalable and high-performance applications in production environments.
• Prepared to be tenacious and collaborate to drive the right solutions forward.
• Good understanding of Microsoft Azure tooling including Azure Databricks, preferably with hands-on experience.
• Strong understanding of data modelling and architectures (e.g. data vaults, data warehousing, data lakes etc.).
• Experience with Azure based solutions such as Azure Data Factory.
• Extensive experience with languages such as Python, SQL and, preferably, PySpark.
• Version control and best practices using Github.
• Experience in working with Agile frameworks such as Scrum, Kanban, Lean.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to clearly explain technical concepts to non-technical business stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience leading and mentoring data engineers.

If you have any questions about the role, then please email clare.tempest@asda.uk

Everything you’ll love

To ensure we balance moments where we know we need to collaborate together and the need for flexibility, Asda has a hybrid way of working with a minimum 3 days a week in one of our Home Offices. Over and above this, each area of Asda may have additional requirements which may require spending more days in the office, visiting suppliers, stores or depots. You will also get an excellent benefits package including:

• Discretionary company bonus
• Company pension up to 7% matched
• Company Car allowance of £5,700
• 15% colleague discount in store and online
• Free access to wellbeing services such as Wagestream, 24/7 virtual GP, counselling, health and dental cash plans and a 24/7 employee assistance helpline, alongside discounts across a range of services and activities, from airport parking, enhanced to theme parks and cinemas.
• Asda Allies Inclusion Networks – helping colleagues to make sure everybody is included and that our differences are recognised and celebrated
• Excellent parental leave policies, including maternity & adoption leave, paternity leave, shared parental leave, neonatal care leave, and support for those doing fertility treatments.

We want all colleagues to be able to bring their best and true selves to work, every day. Simply put, we want our colleagues to be Proud to be Asda and proud to be themselves.