Lead Data Platform Engineer

Job Location: hybrid in Bucharest Recruitment process: HR screening 2 X Technical Discussion Role description: Our client is modernizing its complete application landscape - moving from classic fat clients toward containerized web, mobile, and event-driven integration workloads, running on a new GCP-based DevOps Platform with a central managed GitLab at its core. As Lead Data Platform Engineer, you build and lead a new Data Platform team in Bucharest and Ulm from the ground up. You shape the technical vision and architecture for this multi-year transformation, set the technical direction, and make data quality and governance built-in properties of how the organization runs its Enterprise Data & Analytics Platform.  Tasks: Several years of hands-on experience as a Lead Data Platform Engineer, Principal Data Engineer, or Tech Lead, with end-to-end ownership of building and operating an Enterprise Data & Analytics Platform on a public cloud Deep technical expertise in the Google Cloud Data Stack (BigQuery, Dataflow, Managed Airflow, Dataplex, Pub/Sub, Cloud DLP), or comparable solid experience with modern data platforms on AWS/Azure Proven track record designing and operating scalable Lakehouse architectures, with consistent use of Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform), modern data transformation frameworks (e.g., dbt Core), and CI/CD practices Solid knowledge of integrating hybrid data landscapes and diverse source systems, including SAP (S/4HANA, CDC, ODP/CDS) and high-volume streaming workloads Experience implementing Data-as-a-Product and self-service concepts using modern governance solutions (e.g., Collibra), along with robust security and compliance standards (e.g., VPC Service Controls, Policy Tags, GoBD) Strong architectural judgment to balance speed, scalability, governance, vendor lock-in, and total cost of ownership Experience in technical leadership and coaching of data engineers across all seniority levels, and in establishing clear quality standards (code reviews, RFCs, Architecture Decision Records) Excellent stakeholder communication — equally comfortable in C-level presentations and hands-on code reviews with developers Business-fluent English, plus very good German or Romanian What You Will Drive With Us Shape and own the technical vision, target architecture, and ongoing development of our new GCP-based Enterprise Data & Analytics Platform, anchored on Data-as-a-Product principles of self-service, data quality, and governance Develop robust integration and data architectures to merge complex, heterogeneous data sources from SAP, e-commerce, and corporate systems Own the technical excellence of the platform — availability, performance, security, scalability, and cost efficiency Take technical leadership of the new Data Platform team in Bucharest and Ulm, shaping how architectural decisions are made, data models are developed, and technical standards are set Work closely with the Head of Data & AI on strategic and technical decisions, translating platform strategy into concrete technical roadmaps Partner with business departments to ensure data products solve real business problems Drive the cultural shift from traditional DWH structures to agile, domain-oriented data product teams built on a strong, centrally provided platform What We Offer A greenfield opportunity to shape a new GCP Data & Analytics Platform from day one, for a major European retailer High visibility, short decision-making paths, and direct impact on the data and technology landscape of the entire organization The chance to build, grow, and shape an international data platform team Modern technologies, challenging architectural work, and an environment where technical excellence is genuinely valued Flexible working model (desk sharing and mobile working)