Lead Data Engineer

Job Description Summary

The Role

We are looking for an experienced, innovative, and highly motivated Lead Data Engineer to join the development of IQVIA’s next-generation data platform designed to unify, govern, and activate data across the enterprise.

In this role, you will serve as a technical leader responsible for shaping the engineering direction of the platform, influencing architecture decisions across multiple squads, and driving the adoption of scalable, secure, and high-performing data solutions. You will work closely with Product Owners, Architects, Managers, and Engineers to define long-term strategies and ensure consistent execution across the platform.

You will play a key role in solving complex enterprise data challenges, transforming fragmented data into a trusted ecosystem that enables advanced analytics, AI-powered capabilities, and business innovation. Beyond solution delivery, you will establish engineering best practices, mentor senior engineers, and drive technical excellence across the organization.

The Team

The Product Build is a vital part of our Global Infrastructure and Operations (GIO), focused on developing interoperable and secure data solutions that form the backbone of our data platform. The squad is dedicated to building the fundamental components that enable seamless data ingestion, sharing, governance, and consistent consumption across the platform.

Within Product Build, we foster a culture of autonomy, collaboration, and technical excellence, empowering engineers to thrive within self-organizing teams. Our work centers on supporting scalable, efficient, and secure data flows while addressing the evolving needs of modern healthcare data ecosystems.

As a Lead Data Engineer, you will influence technical decisions beyond your immediate team, helping shape platform-wide engineering practices, architectural standards, and long-term technology strategy.

Core Responsibilities

• Lead the design and implementation of enterprise-scale data engineering solutions processing large volumes of commercial and healthcare data.
• Define and influence platform architecture, engineering patterns, and technical standards across multiple teams.
• Drive technical strategy and roadmap execution in partnership with Product Management and Architecture teams.
• Provide hands-on technical leadership for complex initiatives and critical platform capabilities.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to create scalable, reusable, and maintainable data services.
• Mentor Senior Data Engineers and contribute to the growth of engineering talent across the organization.
• Establish and promote best practices for software engineering, data engineering, testing, security, and operational excellence.
• Lead architecture reviews, design discussions, and technical decision-making processes.
• Identify and resolve cross-team technical dependencies and risks.
• Drive performance optimization, scalability improvements, and platform reliability initiatives.
• Champion automation, observability, and engineering productivity improvements.
• Contribute to strategic technology evaluations and adoption decisions.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree in IT, Software Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, or a related field.

Technical Skills and Knowledge

• 8+ years of experience in data engineering
• 6+ years of experience with SQL and Python
• Deep expertise in Databricks, Snowflake, Apache Spark, and modern cloud-based data platforms
• Strong understanding of distributed data systems and large-scale data architectures
• Advanced knowledge of Apache Iceberg and modern open table formats
• Extensive experience designing enterprise-scale ETL/ELT solutions
• Experience defining data architecture standards and governance frameworks
• Expertise in data warehousing, data modeling, data quality, and data integration
• Strong experience with CI/CD automation processes and tools (GitLab)
• Experience operating data platforms at scale in Azure cloud environments
• Knowledge of platform observability, monitoring, reliability engineering, and performance tuning

Additional / Nice to Have

• Familiarity with AI-powered productivity tools (Copilot/Cursor) and their practical use in software engineering workflows.
• Experience driving technical strategy in a product-led organization.
• Knowledge of Cloudera Data Platform.
• Experience with database design and modeling methodologies (Kimball, Inmon, Data Vault).
• Prior experience with healthcare or pharmaceutical data.
• Strong understanding of software architecture, algorithms, design patterns, and distributed systems.
• Experience processing very large data volumes (multi-terabyte and petabyte-scale environments).
• Experience mentoring engineers and leading technical communities of practice.

Personal Skills

• Exceptional analytical, problem-solving, and troubleshooting skills.
• Strong leadership and influencing skills without direct authority.
• Excellent collaboration, communication, and stakeholder management abilities.
• Ability to present complex technical concepts to both technical and executive audiences.
• Experience working with global teams and navigating cross-cultural collaboration.
• Proven ability to align technical decisions with business objectives.
• Growth mindset with a passion for mentoring and developing engineering talent.
• Strong ownership mentality and commitment to engineering excellence.

IQVIA is a leading global provider of clinical research services, commercial insights and healthcare intelligence to the life sciences and healthcare industries. We create intelligent connections to accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments to help improve patient outcomes and population health worldwide. Learn more at https://jobs.iqvia.com

IQVIA is committed to integrity in our hiring process and maintains a zero tolerance policy for candidate fraud. All information and credentials submitted in your application must be truthful and complete. Any false statements, misrepresentations, or material omissions during the recruitment process will result in immediate disqualification of your application, or termination of employment if discovered later, in accordance with applicable law. We appreciate your honesty and professionalism.