Data Engineer

About our business

JLA has been providing critical assets and services to a range of businesses and sectors including Care Homes, Hospitals, Schools, and Hotels for over 50 years. These assets and services are crucial in supporting customers with their Laundry, Catering, Heating, Fire Safety, Infection Control, and Air Conditioning. The company offers a unique, all-inclusive package called Total Care, this rental model allows customers to make a single monthly payment, to receive brand new equipment, and have maintenance costs taken care of.

Role overview

The Data Engineer will work within the data team to assist in the design, implementation, and maintenance of our Azure-based data warehouses. The data engineer will be involved in all aspects of the data warehouse, covering integration to new data sources, design and creation of new data pipelines as well as the optimization and maintenance of existing ones. They will also support other areas of the business with their data needs as well as working closely with our engineering teams to deliver scalable, high-performance data solutions.

Key tasks

• Azure Data Warehouse Development: Lead the design, development, and maintenance of enterprise-level data warehouses using Azure based data warehouse technologies such as Azure Data Factory, Analysis Services, SQL server and Azure Synapse.
• Data Pipeline Creation: Build and optimize ETL/ELT data pipelines using Azure Data Factory, Databricks, or similar services to ensure data is properly ingested, transformed, and loaded into the data warehouse.
• Data Integration: Integrate data from multiple sources including internal databases, third-party systems, and APIs into the Azure environment, ensuring data consistency and quality.
• Optimization: Continuously monitor and optimize the performance of Azure-based data warehouses, ensuring the infrastructure is both cost-effective and scalable.
• Collaboration: Work closely with data scientists, analysts, and other stakeholders to understand their data needs and ensure the availability of accurate, high-quality data.
• Security & Compliance: Implement data security, privacy, and governance policies in accordance with best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Automation: Develop scripts, automation workflows, and processes to streamline data ingestion, transformation, and loading activities.
• Documentation: Maintain clear, detailed documentation of all data engineering processes, architectures, and workflows.

Criteria

• Strong proficiency in SQL for data manipulation, querying, and optimization.
• Experience with Azure Data Factory, Azure Databricks, Azure Synapse Analytics, and other Azure data services.
• Familiarity with Azure Blob Storage, Azure Data Lake, and data lake architectures.
• Experience working with data modelling, normalization, and star schema design for data warehouses.
• Proficient in scripting languages such as Python, Shell, or PowerShell for automation tasks.
• Knowledge of CI/CD practices and tools for data engineering pipelines.
• Solid understanding of cloud-native data architectures and distributed systems.
• Familiar with data science concepts and tools.

Experience

• Minimum 5+ years of hands-on experience in data engineering or a related role, with a strong emphasis on Azure data platforms.
• Proven experience in building, optimizing, and maintaining large-scale Azure-based data warehouses (e.g., Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure SQL Data Warehouse).
• Proven experience in integrating and extracting data from external systems.

Personal qualities

• Ability to troubleshoot and resolve performance bottlenecks within data pipelines and Azure-based solutions.
• Experience in cost optimization strategies within Azure environments.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to convey technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Strong attention to detail, organization, and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Collaborative team player but with the ability to work alone on tasks.

Qualifications

• Degree: BSc in Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Certifications: Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Engineer Associate, or similar Azure-related certifications.

We will need you to have a full UK driving licence as the role involves UK travel.

When you join the JLA family, you'll also gain access to an extensive benefits package. We care about our people and take your well-being seriously, which is why we offer a range of supportive tools for health and wellbeing, financial guidance, and legal advice. Our Employee Assistance Programme, 24/7 Wellness and Lifestyle App plus a dedicated team of Mental Health First Aiders are there to support you through life's challenges. We also offer up to 8 counselling sessions, which can be in-person or remote, providing you with the support and flexibility to suit your own personal needs. You can reach any fitness goals with our free onsite gym at head office along with a range of other gym membership discounts available.

To offer financial support, we not only provide life assurance coverage, company sick pay, and a company pension scheme, we offer a range of added benefits such as free office parking, eye care vouchers, a cycle-to-work scheme, and exclusive discounts through our staff benefits hub.

We really pride ourselves in offering a healthy work-life balance and believe it is important to have time away to recharge which is why we provide 25 days of annual leave plus bank holidays, flexible working options, and enhanced family leave policies.

We are a company that appreciates you and invests in your success and even have a Colleague Recognition Scheme to celebrate your achievements. We're dedicated to your growth, offering support in career development and training. We value your referrals, and through our Refer a Friend scheme.