Data Engineering Director

Position Purpose and Objectives:

The Data Engineering Director is a technical leadership role responsible for defining and executing the enterprise data engineering strategy at United Power. This position oversees the design, implementation, and maintenance of modern data platforms, ensures the secure, scalable, and efficient flow of structured and unstructured data across the organization. This position will lead a team of data engineers and collaborate with business and IT stakeholders to define data requirements that support operational and strategic goals

As a member of the IT Leadership Team, this position reports to the Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO). This position manages a team of data professionals and works collaboratively with colleagues, fostering a spirit of cooperation and inclusion in the workplace.

This may be a hybrid position, eligible to work a combination of onsite and remote work, subject to the United Power hybrid work agreement. On-site work may require the incumbent to report to any United Power location with little notice, depending on business need and projects.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities:

As a member of the IT Leadership Team collaborate with the other team members to:

· Demonstrate and champion the valued behaviors: be generous, accountable, and reliable; have integrity; create connection; inspire confidence in people and solutions; be curious; and strive for excellence.

· Actively champion ITIL based change, problem resolution, and incident management processes and procedures.

· Promote the philosophy and practice that everyone in IT has a role in cybersecurity, privacy, and data governance.

· Build highly effective and engaged teams.

· Adopt a risk mitigation approach to IT strategy and tactical operations.

· Provide 24x7 technical support for critical issues.

· Ensure that the CIO and other key stakeholders are informed and kept up to date on any critical issues.

· Ensure that the entire IT organization understands how our activities support the core operations of the business: operate, and expand the electrical system, and bill for the electric services.

· Promote the goal of empowering employees to effectively use the technologies available.

Key Responsibilities:

Data Architecture Design and Integration:

· Lead the design, implementation, and integration of data architecture, including data warehousing, data lakes, and data pipelines to efficiently store and manage large volumes of data for use throughout the organization.

· Augment data engineering capacity by directly contributing to technical tasks and providing backup support for data engineers.

Data Quality Management:

· Establish data quality metrics and monitoring systems to identify and address data quality issues, ensuring data accuracy and consistency across the organization.

Data Strategy Development:

· Develop and implement a comprehensive data engineering strategy, defining standards and best practices to ensure data quality and compliance with regulations. Work with the organization’s leaders to establish the vision for managing structured and unstructured data as a business asset.

Business Alignment:

· Collaborate with business stakeholders to understand their data needs, translate business requirements into technical solutions, and ensure data solutions meet business requirements.

Technology Evaluation and Selection:

· Lead and participate in the evaluation and selection of appropriate tools, technologies, and platforms to support evolving data needs.

Vendor management:

· Manage relationships with key data engineering technology vendors, negotiating contracts in collaboration with the Legal department, and ensuring the delivery of quality products and services.

· Evaluate new vendors to enhance the organization’s technical capabilities.

· Work with key business vendors to integrate data feeds as necessary.

Compliance and Risk Management:

· Ensure data engineering & analytics practices comply with all relevant data privacy regulations and industry standards and collaborate with the cybersecurity & infrastructure teams to create policies and controls for the appropriate protection of information assets.

Talent, Team Leadership and Management

· Lead and mentor a high-performing team of technical professionals.

· Foster a culture of dedication, intrinsic motivation, ongoing learning, collaboration, innovation, and accountability within the team.

· Apply a forward fill philosophy to talent management.

· Creates, expands and maintains professional and productive working relationships with peers and stakeholders. Works collaboratively with colleagues and fosters a spirit of cooperation and inclusion in the workplace.

· Perform other duties as may be requested or assigned to fulfill the needs of United Power in the interest of good management practice.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

· Model intrinsic motivation and persists in applying knowledge, skills, and behaviors to achieve goals and address obstacles.

· Extremely high level of customer service ethic, Show empathy for data users.

· Possess exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal. Ability to determine the technical skill level of the information recipient, and to formulate and tailor communications accordingly.

· Demonstrated proficiency in data programming languages and concepts, such as Python, SQL, and Azure DevOps.

· Demonstrated proficiency in data management tools, such as Azure Data Factory, SSIS, Oracle, Databricks, Azure Synapse, Microsoft SQL Server, and Microsoft Fabric.

· Hands-on experience in designing and implementing data architectures, including data warehousing, data lakes, statistical analysis, machine learning, and data visualization techniques.

· Hands on experience in data modeling, data cleansing, and data transformation techniques.

· Strong understanding of data management principles, data governance, and data quality best practices.

· Demonstrated strong passion for learning, growth, and development of self and others.

· Demonstrated strong and effective leadership, planning, project management, as well as the ability to develop a keen understanding of business process.

· Demonstrated strategic thinking, advanced analytical and critical thinking skills, decision making.

· Ability to organize and drive own and team’s daily activities based on broad directives, with ability to meet multiple deadlines, and effectively handle multiple tasks.

· Ability to create, expand, and maintain relationships with peers and stakeholders. Ability to exercise diplomacy and professionally resolve conflict.

· Ability to work both independently and collaboratively as a member of a team.

· Demonstrated knowledge of relevant regulations.

Supervision Received and Exercised:

Receives broad guidance and direction from Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO). Supervises, coaches, develops Data Engineers. Provides ongoing feedback to direct reports and conducts formal performance reviews.

Education, Training and Experience:

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in a field related to information/computer science, data science, or related field;

AND at least ten (10) years’ experience in information technology

INCLUDING a minimum of five (5) years’ of data engineering experience

AND a minimum of three (3) years’ experience leading or managing an information technology team.

Equivalency may be demonstrated through a combination of training and progressively responsible experience that resulted in the required specialized knowledge and abilities to perform the assigned work in lieu of a degree.

Problem Solving:

Ability to lead or participate in the diagnosis and resolution of complex technical problems and determine root cause.

Critically apply insights and knowledge of data engineering to solve problems and manage risk.

Discretion/Latitude:

Works independently and as a member of the IT Leadership Team, based on general and specific direction and department priorities. Day-to-day work is self-initiated and self-directed based on priorities established by the CIO.

Impact:

This position significantly contributes to that experience, and United Power’s ability to deliver services to our members. This role is critical to the goal of delivering a reliable and high- performance infrastructure.

Liaison:

Works with employees, external vendors.

Essential Physical & Mental Requirements:

· Majority of time requires sitting, bending at neck, waist, legs, and arms; twisting body; and changing positions at will. Occasional driving, standing, walking, stooping, bending, kneeling, reaching and stooping.

· Lift and carry five to forty pounds (5-40 lbs.) occasionally.

· Requires repetitive motions with hands and fingers such as keyboarding, use of telephones, cell phones, etc.

· Requires close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and the ability to focus.

· Noise level in work environment is moderate. Work requires close attention to detail and accuracy and is varied in nature with regular interruptions. Work is subject to irregular hours.

Working Conditions:

Office setting ninety-five percent (95%) of the time. Five percent (5%) of the time may need to work in a support role while outdoors, in a warehouse or maintenance environment (dust, uneven surfaces and all types of weather and temperature variations).

In addition to a competitive salary, we offer a generous benefits package that includes an employee retirement plan, 401K with match, paid holidays, vacation & sick leave, medical, dental, vision, short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance. For a full list of benefits, please visit our careers page at https://www.unitedpower.com/careers.

We are interested in every qualified candidate who is eligible to work in the United States. However, this position is not eligible for visa sponsorship.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer

Not to discriminate on the basis of Race/Color/Creed/Religion/Sex(including Gender Identity, Pregnancy, Sexual Orientation)/Marital Status/ Age (40 or older)/National Origin /Veteran or Military Status/Disability/Medical Condition/ Unemployment Status or any other characteristics prohibited by Federal, State and/or local laws.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $134,900.00 - $161,955.00 per year

Benefits:

Schedule:

Work Location: In person