Lead Data Engineer

Lead Data Engineer Location: Chennai | Department: Data Engineering / Data Platform | Reports To: Data Engineering Manager About the Role We are looking for an experienced Lead Data Engineer to drive the design, development, and management of our data infrastructure while leading a team of 4 engineers. This role combines strong hands-on technical expertise with people management and delivery ownership and requires someone comfortable using modern AI-assisted ("vibe coding") tools to rapidly build and ship data products, while maintaining the infrastructure that powers them. Key Responsibilities Technical Leadership & Development • Architect, build, and optimize scalable data pipelines using Databricks, PySpark, and Python • Write and review complex SQL queries for data transformation, validation, and performance tuning • Design and maintain data models and ETL/ELT workflows across Databricks environments • Support or lead development of ML models/pipelines for data products (feature engineering, model training, deployment, and monitoring) • Build data product applications using AI-assisted "vibe coding" tools (Claude Code, Cursor, or similar) to rapidly prototype, develop, and ship internal tools, dashboards, and data-driven applications • Establish and enforce best practices for code quality, version control, and CI/CD using Git • Champion the adoption of AI-assisted development tools across the team to improve developer velocity, code review efficiency, and documentation • Conduct code reviews, architecture reviews, and technical design sessions Infrastructure & Platform Ownership • Own and maintain the infrastructure underlying data products — compute clusters, transactional databases, job orchestration, environments, deployment pipelines, and monitoring • Ensure data pipeline reliability, observability, and cost optimization across Databricks • Manage access controls, environment configuration, and platform scaling for data product apps • Troubleshoot infrastructure issues end-to-end (compute, storage, networking, connectivity) Team & People Management • Lead, mentor, and grow a team of 4 engineers, providing technical guidance and career development support • Conduct 1:1s, performance reviews, and skill-development planning for team members • Foster a culture of continuous learning and rapid upskilling in response to evolving tech/business needs • Encourage and enable the team to adopt new tools and frameworks quickly Delivery & Process Management • Own sprint planning, backlog grooming, and sprint retrospectives for the team (Agile/Scrum) • Break down business requirements into well-scoped technical tasks and user stories • Track sprint velocity, manage blockers, and ensure timely delivery of data engineering initiatives • Coordinate with cross-functional stakeholders (analytics, product, business teams) to align priorities Required Skills & Experience • 8+ years of experience in data engineering, with at least 2+ years in a technical leadership or team lead role • Strong hands-on expertise in Databricks (notebooks, clusters, job orchestration, Delta Lake) • Proficiency in PySpark and Python for large-scale data processing • Advanced SQL skills (query optimization, stored procedures, performance tuning) • Experience with Microsoft SQL Server (T-SQL, database design, troubleshooting) • Experience with OCR data extraction (Azure Document Intelligence, AWS Textract) • Solid understanding of Git workflows (branching strategies, PR reviews, merge conflict resolution) • Hands-on experience building applications using AI coding tools / vibe coding (Claude Code, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, or similar) • Experience maintaining and troubleshooting infrastructure supporting data products (compute, orchestration, deployment) • Working knowledge of Machine Learning concepts and lifecycle (model training, deployment, monitoring) • Proven experience running Agile sprint planning, backlog management, and team ceremonies • Experience managing and mentoring a small engineering team (3-5 members) • Demonstrated ability to quickly learn and adopt new technologies in response to business needs Preferred Qualifications • Experience with cloud platforms (Azure preferred, Databricks stack) • Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines (Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, etc.) • Experience with data governance frameworks and data quality tools • Bachelor's/Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field Soft Skills • Strong communication skills to bridge technical and non-technical stakeholders • Ability to balance hands-on coding with people management responsibilities • High adaptability — comfortable navigating ambiguity and fast-changing tech/business priorities • Problem-solving mindset with a focus on scalable, maintainable solutions