Lead Data Engineer

As part of the development of our Digital Services function, we are strengthening internal digital capability within the Data Team. These roles are central to building sustainable in-house expertise that supports the design, development, and delivery of digital solutions across the transport network.

A key focus of this campaign is creating new opportunities, and as a result, we are recruiting Lead Data Engineers. This is a pivotal role within the organisation.

In this role, you will work as part of a collaborative team, partnering with stakeholders across the business to understand user needs and deliver data products that create real organisational value. Alongside developing new capabilities, you will help ensure our existing data services remain reliable, performant and fit for purpose.

This is an opportunity to shape how data is used across one of the UK's largest and most complex transport organisations, contributing to safer, smoother and more reliable journeys for road users.

This is a hybrid role, requiring two days per week in the office, based at any National Highways office location.

• Deliver the Data as a Service (DaaS) roadmap by onboarding enterprise data, improving trust in data and expanding the organisation's analytical and reporting capabilities.
• Design, build and enhance data pipelines, integrations and reusable data assets that bring together transactional, asset, traffic, event and business data within the DaaS platform.
• Collaborate closely with stakeholders at all levels across the organisation to understand analytical and reporting needs, develop user stories and deliver trusted data products that support operational and strategic decision-making. Enable consumers through enterprise solutions such as: Databricks, Power BI and ThoughtSpot.
• Embed data governance, quality and assurance across the full data lifecycle, ensuring compliance with organisational policy, responsible use of AI and metadata management. Governance is enabled through Unity Catalog.
• Support the operation and continuous improvement of production data pipelines, data products and platform capabilities, improving reliability, performance, cost efficiency and user experience.
• Promote data engineering best practice, reuse and consistent engineering approaches, helping teams make effective use of enterprise data capabilities across the organisation.

• Experience building and deploying data pipelines and data integration solutions within a collaborative delivery environment, applying engineering standards, automation, testing and governance practices throughout the development lifecycle.
• Experience analysing source systems and complex datasets, bringing together data from multiple sources and applying data modelling or related design techniques to create reusable data assets that support analytics, reporting and business outcomes.
• Experience working with scripting Command-Line Interface (CLI), Python and SQL with enterprise data platforms and cloud-based data ecosystems (Azure Cloud, Databricks, Azure Data Factory, Unity Catalog preferred).
• Experience communicating effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders, managing expectations, taking ownership of delivery outcomes and influencing decisions, improvements or ways of working through technical expertise and collaboration.
• Experience operating and improving production data pipelines and data products, including monitoring, diagnosing and resolving incidents, root cause analysis, performance and cost optimisation and service reliability.

Here at National Highways, we manage and improve England’s motorways and major A roads, helping our customers have safer, smoother and more reliable journeys. Our priorities are safety, customers and delivery, and at the core of this, are our values of passion, integrity, safety, teamwork and ownership.

The Digital Services Directorate is helping to reshape the way National Highways operates by delivering digital, data, and technology services across all areas, from frontline to back office, in a modern and efficient manner. Our vision is to develop integrated information and technology that empowers our colleagues and provides real-time information to our customers, as well as integrating with intelligent vehicle and transport systems as they evolve, to enhance journey safety and reliability.

External candidates will be offered a starting salary at the lower end of the pay scale, while current employees will be appointed in accordance with our established pay policy.

We are committed to creating a diverse environment and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Why you should join us

At National Highways we believe in a connected country. We are passionate about creating a culture where colleagues feel connected, included and enjoy greater wellbeing to achieve this. We’re proud that as an organisation we are continually striving to do better and actively encourage and support our colleagues to do the same with their careers.

So, if you put safety first, take ownership of your work, show passion for what you do, work effectively in a team, and demonstrate integrity in how you do it – then you’ll be a great fit for our organisation.

A connected and sustainable working approach has been adopted across National Highways. For some roles, this means being able to work in a hybrid way spending up to 60% of time working from a remote location such as home.

Please wait until the interview stage before asking us about flexibility, and we will explore what is possible.

Our benefits package

• Our total reward package includes basic salary, the potential for a performance related bonus
• Contributory pension scheme with employer contribution of up to 10%
• Annual Leave starting at 26 days (plus Bank Holidays) rising by 1 day each year up to 31 days (plus Bank Holidays)
• Flexible hours and an approach driven by connected and sustainable working which includes hybrid working
• Life assurance of 4 times annual salary
• Health and wellbeing support, including an Employee Assistance Programme, available 24/7 365 days and network of mental health first aiders. Plus access to a wellbeing app to enhance your self-care 24/7, Occupational health service and flu vaccines
• A cycle to work scheme for the purchase of a bicycle and equipment for healthy, low carbon travel
• Significant investment in your career development, through learning and development, talent management, coaching, mentoring and on job experience

And we are

• Family friendly with enhanced maternity leave and pay, paternity leave (15 days), shared parental leave, adoption leave. Plus access to financial support for holiday play schemes and paid special leave (up to 5 days pa), eg for caring responsibilities
• Money friendly with access to a discounts platform including over 3000 discounts for supermarkets, eating out, leisure, holidays. Alongside a financial wellbeing programme
• Community friendly – offering paid leave to volunteer, 3 days basic/year

If you are successful, it is key to know all offers of employment are subject to satisfactory completion of our pre-employment checks which include:

• Right to work check
• 3 year employment history references
• DBS criminal record check
• Social media and adverse journalism check
• Driving licence check (if applicable)
• Fit to work questionnaire (for all), followed by a medical check (if applicable)
• Qualifications and/or professional membership check (if applicable)

And finally

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