Lead Data Engineer

The Disney Decision Science + Integration (DDSI) organization is responsible for supporting clients including the Disney Experiences segment which include Parks & Resorts both domestic and international, Consumer Products and Disney Signature Experiences as well as the Disney Entertainment segment including Studios Content (Disney Theatrical Group), General Entertainment Content, and ESPN and Sports Content.

We use technology, data analytics, optimization, statistical and econometric modeling to explore opportunities, shape business decisions and drive business value.

This position is part of the DDSI Data Engineering (DE) team supporting development and sustainment efforts across a portfolio of Park/Ticket Yield Management projects servicing multiple theme park locations (WDW, DLR, DLP, etc.). The position will function as a Lead Data Engineer working closely with partner DDSI teams through the planning, requirements, design, development, testing, deployment and sustainment phases of the project(s).

This is an in-office role located in Lake Buena Vista, FL.

What You’ll Do

You will plan and lead processes for a multi-site application supporting the Park/Ticket Yield Management portfolio. Responsibilities include project prioritization, data requirements, planning, estimating, design, development, testing, production rollout, and sustainment activities. You will also participate in weekly meetings, provide status updates, define and run sprints, collaborate with team members, lead design reviews, ensure compliance with standards, and perform hands-on development as needed.

As a Lead Data Engineer, you will provide technical leadership to the project and DE team. Ensure team members follow standards, assist with code reviews, and recommend changes to standards, tools, and techniques. You should be a strong communicator, influencer, and mentor within the DE and DDSI organization.

Required Qualifications & Skills 

• 7+ years overall experience in a software development capacity using a multi environment (Dev, QA, Prod, etc.) and DEVOP procedures for code deployment/promotion

• 2+ years using, designing and building relational databases (preferably Snowflake or PostgreSQL)

• 2+ years of experience leading and deploying code using a source control product such as GitLab/GitHub

• 2+ years of experience with job scheduling software like Apache Airflow, Amazon MWAA, GitLab Runners or UC4

• Multiple years of experience with ELT/ETL data pipeline development and maintenance

• Proven experience and expertise using SQL and Python

• Expertise with SQL Query performance tuning

• Experience leveraging containerization technologies such as Docker or Kubernetes

• Proven experience driving and influencing change within your department

• Experience developing and presenting PowerPoint content to leadership

• Experience with defining and estimating level-of-effort data engineering activities

• Experience with project and sprint planning

• Experience translating project scope into data engineering tasks

• Experience with assessing and recommending solutions to sophisticated data engineering problems in support of advanced analytic processes

• Experience collaborating with multiple project teams in a fast-paced environment

• Ability to communicate technical concepts and solutions to non-technical team members

Preferred Qualifications 

• Knowledgeable with Disney Parks attendance, reservations and/or products

• Experience with cloud-based technologies, preferably AWS EMR, EC2, and S3

• Experience with various Snowflake offerings such as Snowpark, Container Services, Zero-Copy Clones, and Snowpipe for S3

Required Education 

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Software, Electrical or Electronics Engineering, or comparable field of study and/or equivalent work experience

• Master's degree preferred in computer science, Information Systems, Software, Electrical or Electronics Engineering, or comparable field of study and/or equivalent work experience