Lead Data Engineer

JobsCloseBy Editorial Insights

NBCUniversal is seeking a Lead Data Engineer for the Media Group Decision Sciences, onsite in Brentford, ENG. You will lead a high performing team of Data Quality Engineers and Analysts, own data quality monitors, automate pipelines, and collaborate with software engineering and analytics to deliver observable, reliable data across large volumes of structured and unstructured data. The role emphasizes GitOps, automation, and a you build it you run it culture. Key qualifications include 5+ years in data engineering or data quality, strong leadership, experience with infrastructure as code and CI/CD, Apache Airflow, and programming in Python, Java, Scala or R, plus Spark. To apply, showcase tangible data quality improvements, cross functional delivery, and stakeholder influence; highlight interest in ML, Gen AI, and large scale video assets; tailor your CV to NBCU data quality pillars and prepare for an in-person interview.

Company Description

NBCUniversal is one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies. We create world-class content, which we distribute across our portfolio of film, television, and streaming, and bring to life through our global theme park destinations, consumer products, and experiences. We own and operate leading entertainment and news brands, including NBC, NBC News, NBC Sports, Telemundo, NBC Local Stations, Bravo, and Peacock, our premium ad-supported streaming service. We produce and distribute premier filmed entertainment and programming through our powerhouse film and television studios, including Universal Pictures, DreamWorks Animation, and Focus Features, and the four global television studios under the Universal Studio Group banner, and operate industry-leading theme parks and experiences around the world through Universal Destinations & Experiences, including Universal Orlando Resort, home to Universal Epic Universe, and Universal Studios Hollywood. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation. Visit www.nbcuniversal.com for more information.

Our impact is rooted in improving the communities where our employees, customers, and audiences live and work. We have a rich tradition of giving back and ensuring our employees have the opportunity to serve their communities. We champion an inclusive culture and strive to attract and develop a talented workforce to create and deliver a wide range of content reflecting our world.

Job Description

The Media Group at NBCU supports a powerhouse collection of consumer-first brands including Peacock, NBC, Bravo, NBC Sports, and NBCU International. With unequalled scale, our teams make the most out of every opportunity to collaborate and learn from one another. We’re always looking for ways to innovate faster, accelerate our growth and consistently offer the very best in consumer experience. But most of all, we’re backed by a culture of respect. We embrace authenticity and inspire people to thrive.

As part of the Media Group Decision Sciences team, the Lead Data Engineer will be responsible for overseeing a critical function that bridges data management with operational excellence. The role requires strong cross-functional collaboration skills to effectively engage with software engineering, and data analytics to deliver robust and effective data quality solutions.
In this role, the Lead Data Engineer will share responsibilities in the development and operation of Data Quality monitors, automation of data quality pipelines reporting of data quality to the business, as well as support ongoing operations related to the Media Group data ecosystem. The candidate will act as a liaison between data engineering and other teams, advocating for data-driven decision making and best operational practices.
 
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Help manage a high-performance team of Data Quality Engineers & Analysts.
• Contribute to and lead the team in design, build, testing, scaling and maintaining Data Quality monitors built in-house as well as 3rd party products, according to business and technical requirements.
• Evaluate and select appropriate technologies and tools for data quality monitoring, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and industry best practices
• Help Data Engineering organization deliver observable, reliable and secure data quality monitors, embracing “you build it you run it” mentality, and focus on automation and GitOps.
• Continually work on improving the codebase and have active participation and oversight in all aspects of the team, including agile ceremonies.
• Take an active role in story definition, assisting business stakeholders with acceptance criteria.
• Work with Data Engineering Directors to share and contribute to the broader technical vision.
• Develop and champion best practices, striving towards excellence and raising the bar within the department.
• Research methods of data anomaly detection using broad range of techniques, including statistical and Machine Learning

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications

• 5+ years relevant experience in Data Engineering, Software Development, or Data Quality 
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to lead and mentor a team of data engineers
• Experience in using techniques such as infrastructure as code and CI/CD
• Experience with graph-based data workflows using Apache Airflow
• Programming skills in one or more of the following: Python, Java, Scala, R and experience in writing reusable/efficient code to automate analysis and data processes
• Experience in processing large volumes of data using parallelism techniques/tooling, such as Apache Spark
• Experience in processing structured and unstructured data into a form suitable for analysis and reporting with integration with a variety of data metric providers ranging from advertising, web analytics, and consumer devices
• Experience in basic Machine Learning techniques is a big plus
• Experience in basic Generative AI or natural language processing also a big plus
• Strong interest in ML / AI / Gen AI is important for this role
• Experience with working in large scale SQL
• Understanding of pillars of Data Quality: Completeness, Timeliness, Validity, Uniqueness, Consistency, Accuracy (or similar)
• Bachelors’ degree with a specialization in Computer Science, Engineering, Physics, other quantitative field or equivalent industry experience.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with large-scale video assets
• Ability to work effectively across functions, disciplines, and levels
• Team-oriented and collaborative approach with a demonstrated aptitude, enthusiasm and willingness to learn new methods, tools, practices and skills
• Ability to recognize discordant views and take part in constructive dialogue to resolve them
• Pride and ownership in your work and confident representation of your team to other parts of NBCUniversal

Additional Information

As part of our selection process, external candidates may be required to attend an in-person interview with an NBCUniversal employee at one of our locations prior to a hiring decision. NBCUniversal's policy is to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender identity or expression, age, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, veteran status, membership in the uniformed services, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law.

If you are a qualified individual with a disability or a disabled veteran and require support throughout the application and/or recruitment process as a result of your disability, you have the right to request a reasonable accommodation. You can submit your request to [email protected].