At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead data product delivery to optimise public cloud spend and enhance financial reporting.
- Company: Join the Home Office Digital team, a leader in data engineering.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, generous leave, and a Civil Service pension.
- Other info: Hybrid working model with excellent career growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on cloud cost optimisation while developing your skills.
- Qualifications: Strong data engineering skills with experience in SQL, Python, and cloud platforms.
The predicted salary is between 80237 - 99620 £ per year.
Location: Croydon (hybrid with 60% office attendance)
Salary: £80,237 plus skills allowance of up to £19,483
Advert Close: Monday 6th April
In the Central FinOps Team, you will lead delivery of data products that enable the Home Office to understand, govern and optimise public cloud spend across AWS and Azure, supporting showback/chargeback and cost optimisation outcomes. You will own the end to end approach for ingesting, normalising and enriching cloud billing and usage data, with a strong focus on CUR (including CUR2) and FOCUS datasets as foundational sources for departmental reporting. You will ensure the organisation can confidently interpret cloud billing behaviour, including the application of commitment based discounts and commercial mechanisms, and translate this into trusted, reusable data assets.
You will work closely with finance and engineering stakeholders to ensure outputs meet operational needs (including exportable, finance ready reporting) and improve the quality of the standing data that underpins allocation and recharge. A key part of the role is enabling consistent access to insight through dashboards and datasets, including those built in AWS QuickSight using AWS and Azure billing data enriched with organisational context (e.g. cost centres and portfolios). You will also help set minimum standards and requirements for FinOps capability across the hub and spoke model.
Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. Where this is the case, employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in the office.
Principal Data Engineers lead multi-functional delivery teams to deliver robust data services for their department, other government departments and private sector partners. Through technical direction and leadership, you will create and nurture an environment that emphasises motivation, empowerment, teamwork, continuous improvement and a passion for providing service. You will work with other members of the data community to set the enterprise data strategy and standards and agree implementation and governance.
Main Responsibilities
- Providing technical direction and leadership within the Data Platform team to maximise its effectiveness and inspire best practice for data products and services.
- Developing capabilities in tools and techniques to analyse large/big data-sets and from multiple/complex sources that will enable broader Data Science models and algorithms to uncover insights, trends, and patterns in the data.
- Leading in defining our data strategy and roadmap influenced by future technology changes and implemented through best practice and governance.
- Managing stakeholders at all levels, including facilitating discussions around complex topics and managing performance expectations.
- Initiating and facilitating partnership with other technical and non-technical departments and outside of government to champion data engineering and help them understand how data solutions can benefit them while ensuring easy and effective access to data resources.
- Building the data engineering capability through coaching and mentoring other Data Engineers.
- Effectively leading and managing multiple teams, helping them deliver technical products and projects in data analysis, solution design and end user reporting.
- Promoting and monitoring continuous professional and personal development within an organisation and team.
- Interpreting requirements and presenting complex ideas and recommendations that inform wider decisions in a clear way, to technical and non-technical audiences and senior customers.
Strong expertise in data engineering and analytical tooling used to process and analyse large-scale cloud cost and usage data, including SQL (Presto/Trino via Athena), PostgreSQL, and Python. This includes hands-on experience working with AWS Cost and Usage Reports (CUR v1/v2), FOCUS files, and semi-structured data formats such as JSON, Parquet and Iceberg, ensuring accuracy and consistency in financial reporting and analysis.
An excellent in-depth understanding of cloud data platforms and billing data models, particularly across AWS and Azure, including how usage, pricing, amortisation and allocation are represented. This includes deep knowledge of cloud provider billing intricacies, commitment-based discounts and incentives (e.g. Savings Plans, Reserved Instances, Azure Reservations, enterprise agreements), how they are applied in practice, and the known quirks and edge cases that affect cost transparency and optimisation.
Proven ability to advise on and set best practice for data engineering, automation and reliability, including version controlled development (Git/GitLab or equivalent SVE) and automated, repeatable pipelines. This includes designing and maintaining robust processes for cost ingestion, enrichment, validation and analysis, using services such as AWS Lambda, Step Functions, DynamoDB and Glue, and ensuring FinOps data products are auditable, resilient and fit for decision-making at scale.
Why work for us…
Find out more information at: Benefits - Home Office Careers, but some of the primary ones are:
- A Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 28.97%.
- In-year reward scheme for one-off or sustained exceptional personal or team achievements.
- 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
- 8 days of public holidays, plus 1 additional privilege day.
Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office.
Sign-up on our website to receive emails with information about careers at the Home Office.
Principal Data Engineer in Croydon employer: UK Home Office
Join a forward-thinking team in Liverpool, Sheffield, or Salford as a Senior Interaction Designer, where your passion for creating accessible services will be valued. With a strong emphasis on employee growth, you will have the opportunity to mentor junior designers while enjoying a supportive work culture that prioritises collaboration and innovation. Benefit from a competitive salary, generous leave, and a Civil Service Pension, all while contributing to meaningful government projects that enhance user experience.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Data Engineer in Croydon
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to current employees at the Home Office or in similar roles on LinkedIn. A friendly chat can give you insider info and might just get your foot in the door.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for the interview by brushing up on your technical skills. Make sure you can confidently discuss data engineering concepts, especially around AWS and Azure billing. Practice explaining complex ideas simply!
✨Tip Number 3
Showcase your leadership skills! Be ready to share examples of how you've led teams or projects in the past. The Home Office values motivation and teamwork, so highlight your experience in fostering those environments.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, you’ll receive updates about your application status directly from us.
We think you need these skills to ace Principal Data Engineer in Croydon
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV:Make sure your CV is tailored to the Principal Data Engineer role. Highlight your experience with data engineering, cloud platforms, and any relevant tools like SQL and Python. We want to see how your skills align with what we're looking for!
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter:Your cover letter is your chance to shine! Use it to explain why you're passionate about data engineering and how you can contribute to our team. Be sure to mention specific projects or experiences that relate to the job description.
Showcase Your Technical Skills:In your application, don't forget to showcase your technical expertise. Mention your hands-on experience with AWS Cost and Usage Reports, data ingestion processes, and any automation tools you've used. We love seeing candidates who are technically savvy!
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply through our website for a smooth application process. It’s the best way to ensure your application gets to us directly. Plus, you’ll find all the details you need about the role and our team there!
How to prepare for a job interview at UK Home Office
✨Know Your Data Inside Out
As a Principal Data Engineer, you'll be expected to have a deep understanding of cloud billing data models, especially for AWS and Azure. Brush up on your knowledge of Cost and Usage Reports (CUR) and be ready to discuss how commitment-based discounts work. This will show that you’re not just familiar with the tools, but you can also apply them effectively.
✨Showcase Your Leadership Skills
This role involves leading multi-functional teams, so be prepared to share examples of how you've inspired and motivated others in previous positions. Think about specific instances where you’ve facilitated discussions around complex topics or managed performance expectations. Highlighting these experiences will demonstrate your capability to lead effectively.
✨Prepare for Technical Questions
Expect to face technical questions related to data engineering, SQL, and Python. Review your experience with big data tools and techniques, and be ready to explain how you've used them to uncover insights from large datasets. Practising coding problems or discussing past projects can help you articulate your thought process during the interview.
✨Understand Stakeholder Management
Since managing stakeholders is a key part of this role, think about how you’ve successfully communicated complex ideas to both technical and non-technical audiences. Prepare examples that illustrate your ability to build partnerships and champion data solutions across departments. This will show that you can bridge the gap between technical and non-technical teams.
