Data Architect in Leeds

At Oakland, we help businesses unlock the power of their data. Whether it's data strategy, governance, engineering, analytics, or AI, we work with our clients to turn data into real, impactful results. Our team is made up of friendly, hands-on experts who love solving problems and making a difference. We don’t just advise - we roll up our sleeves and get stuck in, working alongside our clients every step of the way.

Founded in 1986 out of our Leeds HQ, we work with a diverse range of clients across all sorts of industries including Utilities, Telecommunications, Media, Financial Services, Public Sector, and many more! Our projects range from multi-year data transformations to specific, shorter-term assignments, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to diversify your skillset.

We meet high standards for social and environmental impact, transparency, and accountability. We believe businesses should be a force for good, so we make sure our decisions don’t just benefit the bottom line but also our people, communities, and the planet.

The role

As a Data Architect at Oakland, you will work closely with our clients to design innovative data solutions that address complex operational challenges and deliver meaningful business value. You will often act as the technical lead in the early stages of engagements, using your expertise to shape solution direction, define architectures, and guide the delivery of robust, working data platforms aligned to client needs.

Your work will span a diverse range of clients and problem spaces. At Oakland, we operate across Data Platforms, Data Management, Data Strategy, AI, and Analytics and Insight, so a strong understanding of these areas and how they come together in a cohesive architecture is important.

You will design end-to-end data solutions across a variety of technologies, working in both public cloud environments such as Azure and AWS, and hybrid cloud landscapes. You will apply strong data architecture principles to create solutions that are scalable, maintainable, and readily adoptable by client teams.

While the primary focus of the role is the design and delivery of client solutions, you will also have the opportunity to contribute to technical pre-sales, shape our internal offerings, and influence the evolution of Oakland’s data capabilities.

The person

We are looking for a Data Architect with experience designing modern, scalable data solutions to help organisations unlock the full value of their data. You will be a technologist at heart, with a genuine interest in unpicking complex business challenges and translating them into effective, pragmatic data solutions. You will bring structure to ambiguity, whether that is shaping enterprise-wide data models or diving into source systems to validate assumptions.

This is a hands-on, client-facing role. Some days you will work top-down, engaging stakeholders to understand business processes and data flows. Other days you will work bottom-up, analysing data with SQL to assess quality, conformance, and fitness for purpose.

You will be comfortable designing end-to-end data architectures spanning ingestion, storage, transformation, and consumption, and will have experience delivering these solutions in public or private cloud environments. You will also be a strong communicator, able to bring technical concepts to life for non-technical audiences through clear storytelling and visualisation. We value principled thinking, so you will always act in the client’s best interests, balancing ideal architecture with real-world constraints.

What you will be doing

• Designing scalable, secure, and cost-effective data architectures across cloud and hybrid environments
• Translating business requirements into conceptual, logical, and physical data models
• Defining data platform strategies, patterns, and standards
• Working closely with engineers, analysts, and stakeholders to ensure solutions are practical and deliver value
• Assessing data quality, lineage, and governance considerations across systems
• Supporting delivery teams with architectural guidance and oversight
• Communicating complex ideas clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences

Skills and Experience

As our projects vary, we are looking for a T-shaped individual, someone with depth in architecture and breadth across the wider data ecosystem. You do not need everything below, but experience in several areas is expected.

Core skills

• Ability to autonomously design and optimise conceptual, logical, and physical data models
• Experience designing complex cloud and hybrid-cloud data platforms, balancing performance, scalability, resilience, and cost
• Strong understanding of data governance, data management frameworks, and best practices such as data quality, lineage, and metadata
• Advanced SQL skills and experience working directly with source data
• Broad knowledge of data engineering principles and modern data architectures such as lakehouse, data mesh, and medallion architecture
• Experience producing high-level architectures and translating them into implementable designs
• Strong understanding of cloud-native architecture including security boundaries, networking, identity, and access control
• Awareness of infrastructure and deployment practices such as CI/CD, infrastructure as code, and DevOps principles
• Commercial awareness and the ability to make informed trade-offs between cost, performance, and maintainability

Nice to have:

• Experience with real-time or streaming architectures
• Exposure to data privacy and regulatory considerations such as GDPR
• Familiarity with BI and analytics consumption patterns

Technology Experience (Desirable):

• Azure-based data platforms such as Synapse, Data Factory, or Fabric
• Databricks
• Snowflake
• Dell Private Cloud or similar on-premise or hybrid platforms

Certifications (Desirable):

• Azure certifications such as AZ-305, DP-700, or AI-focused exams
• Snowflake SnowPro Core

What we are looking for:

• Someone who enjoys solving problems, not just designing systems
• A pragmatic architect who can balance idealism with delivery reality
• Strong stakeholder skills and the ability to influence decision-making
• A collaborative mindset, working effectively across multidisciplinary teams

Blended Working:

We operate a blended working model, with colleagues spending at least two days per week in the office, aligned to project team requirements. Occasional travel to client sites may also be required. This balance helps us stay connected, learn from each other, and build strong relationships - both within our team and with the businesses we support.

Benefits That Put You First

At Oakland, we believe in taking care of our people, both inside and outside of work. Here’s what you can expect when you join us:

• Health & Wellbeing – Enjoy Private Healthcare from day one for you and your household, including dental cover, physiotherapy, mental health support, and access to a range of wellbeing services to keep you feeling your best.
• Discretionary Bonus – Your hard work won’t go unnoticed. When we do well, you’ll do well.
• Generous Pension – We invest in your future with a 10% employer contribution, plus flexible options so you can adjust to your investment preferences.
• Giving Back – Support causes you care about with our Payroll Giving Scheme and Matched Charitable Giving program.
• Bike to Work Scheme – Save money, stay active, and enjoy tax savings on a new bike.
• Family-Friendly Policies – We support all paths to parenthood with: Enhanced Maternity Pay – 16 weeks full pay, 10 weeks half pay. Enhanced Paternity Pay – 2 weeks full pay, 2 weeks half pay. Adoption, Surrogacy & Shared Parental Leave. Fertility Treatment Support – Because your family matters.
• Time to Recharge – 25 days annual leave + bank holidays (and your allowance grows the longer you’re with us!).
• Learning & Development – We invest in you with: Personalised development plans tailored to your goals. Full support for certifications. Access to The Oakland Academy for a suite of learning materials. An annual Personal Learning Budget to upskill in ways that matter to you.
• Refer & Earn – Know someone great? If they join us, you’ll get a referral bonus as a thank you.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging at Oakland

At Oakland, we believe that diverse perspectives drive better outcomes - for our people, our clients, and our business. Our commitment to DEIB isn’t just about policies; it’s about creating a workplace where everyone feels heard, valued, and empowered to thrive. We are building a truly inclusive Oakland where you can be yourself - no matter your background, gender, age, race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic that makes you, you.

Fair & Inclusive Hiring – Every interviewer completes recruitment and unconscious bias training, and our hiring process is skills-based and structured to ensure fairness and consistency for all candidates. Support Throughout the Interview Process – If you require any reasonable accommodations to make your interview experience more accessible, our Talent team is here to help - just let us know.