Principal Data Engineer

Job Description

Ever wondered what it feels like to be a Principal Data Engineer in Netcompany ?

Joining us as a Principal Data Engineer, you will lead a small, high-caliber team of Data Engineers within our Data Intelligence & AI practice, building the data foundations on which our clients’ analytics and AI ambitions depend. You will design and deliver cloud-native data lakes, lakehouses and medallion-architecture platforms on Azure, AWS or Databricks — engineered from day one to be AI-ready, governed and economically sustainable at scale.

This is a hands-on leadership role. You will stay close to the code and set the bar for engineering quality, while reshaping how the team delivers: embedding AI coding assistants and agentic workflows into everyday engineering practice to compress delivery cycles and raise the quality of what we ship. You will develop the engineers you lead into the next generation of technical leaders, and you will own client engagement delivery end-to-end — scope, commitments, risk and outcomes — as the accountable technical voice in front of the client.

As a Principal Data Engineer you will:

• Lead a small team of Cloud Data Management and Data Lake Engineers delivering client engagements — planning, prioritisation, code reviews and mentoring.
• Own delivery of your engagements end-to-end: scope, estimates, milestones, risks, quality and client communication.
• Design and build cloud-native data lakes and lakehouses (Delta Lake, Apache Iceberg) using medallion architecture on Azure, AWS or Databricks.
• Build and maintain robust ELT/ETL pipelines, data models, and data quality / observability controls, orchestrated with tools such as Apache Airflow, Prefect, Dagster or Databricks Workflows.
• Adopt and promote AI coding assistants and agentic workflows inside your team.
• Support the Data Analytics Lead on solution design, technical estimations and pre-sales activities; align with sector / account stakeholders.
• Collaborate with AI/ML, BI and application teams , ensuring your work serves analytics, AI and operational use cases.
• Apply engineering best practices: version control, CI/CD for data, IaC, DataOps, security and governance.

Qualifications

What would make you a fit for the role:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, Data Science or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in data engineering / cloud data management, including experience taking technical leadership of small teams or workstreams.
• Hands-on expertise with at least one major cloud data platform — Azure, AWS or Databricks — including data lake / lakehouse design and medallion architecture.
• Strong SQL and Python skills, plus solid experience with ELT/ETL, data modelling and Spark (or equivalent distributed processing).
• Hands-on experience with workflow orchestration and open table formats.
• Practical experience designing for performance, cost, security and data quality in cloud environments.
• Track record of delivering production data platform engagements, ideally cloud-native data lakes / lakehouses.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, and a coaching mindset for the engineers you lead.

Additional Information

Being a part of the Netcompany team, you will be provided with: 

• The opportunity to work in a modern environment & in a hybrid working model
• A seamless onboarding experience and a buddy to support you on your first steps
• A competitive compensation & benefits package
• Health and life insurance program 
• Meal and commuting allowance
• Well-being activities (on premises)
• Continuous learning opportunities using the most modern methods (unlimited access to Udemy for Business, ad-hoc trainings)
• A personalized development plan for targeted career growth

If you are looking forward to be part of a diverse environment, and have the opportunity to work alongside well-experienced professionals, on challenging, large-scale projects that directly impact millions of citizens around the globe, then this is the place to be!

By joining Netcompany in Athens, you will be part of a vivid team of 2,300+ tech professionals. When at the office, you'll have the flexibility to work from our three modern, sustainable, and state-of-the-art offices!

Please upload your CV in English via the Apply button. All applications will be treated as strictly confidential.

We ensure equal opportunities, treatment, and consideration to all candidates. Discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age, sexual orientation or marital status, physical or mental disability, or any other factor protected by applicable laws and regulations is prohibited. As part of the Netcompany culture, we respect human rights and focus on creating a positive workplace, where all employees are valued, and where diversity and inclusion are a vital part of our everyday working experience.

In the following link you may find our CV Submission privacy notice: https://netcompany.com/cv-submission-privacy-notice/

Company Description

Are you ready to shape the future technological landscape in Europe?

We are dedicated to responsible digitalisation, building innovative, inclusive solutions that drive meaningful impact. With over 8,900 professionals across Europe, we help EU institutions, public and private organisations thrive in a rapidly evolving digital world. Are you ready to shape the future through technology? Your journey starts here. Take a look at some of our impactful projects here: https://netcompany.com/cases/