Database Architect — Oracle & PostgreSQL, Cloud Migration

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Database Architect - Oracle & PostgreSQL, Cloud Migration based in Canada.

This is a senior, hands-on architecture role owning the data tier across complex enterprise cloud migration and modernization programs.

You will guide organizations from business-critical, legacy Oracle environments toward scalable, supportable PostgreSQL platforms in the cloud.

The role combines deep database expertise with cloud architecture, migration strategy, performance engineering, and operational readiness.

You will make critical decisions around modernization, conversion, coexistence, cutover, rollback, security, resilience, and cost optimization.

Working directly with enterprise architects, executives, developers, and delivery teams, you will translate technical trade-offs into clear business outcomes.

You will also help strengthen delivery capabilities through reusable architectures, migration playbooks, automation, mentoring, and AI-assisted engineering practices.

This opportunity is ideal for a technical leader who wants genuine architectural ownership while remaining close to implementation and problem-solving.

Accountabilities

• Data Architecture Ownership: Own the end-to-end data-tier architecture for enterprise migration and modernization programs, covering current-state assessments, target-state design, migration strategy, sequencing, risks, effort, and delivery outcomes.
• Migration Strategy: Design and lead Oracle-to-PostgreSQL migrations, including schema conversion, PL/SQL-to-PL/pgSQL approaches, data type and collation differences, query rewrites, performance validation, and production readiness.
• Architecture Decisions: Evaluate and defend critical technical choices such as conversion versus rewrite versus retirement, managed versus self-managed database services, phased coexistence versus single cutover, and performance versus cost trade-offs.
• Cutover & Recovery: Design low-downtime migration approaches using CDC replication, dual-run strategies, output comparisons, rehearsals, go/no-go criteria, and realistic rollback plans.
• Performance Engineering: Personally investigate database performance issues using execution plans, traces, statistics, SQL diagnostics, and system-level analysis to determine whether bottlenecks originate in SQL, schemas, infrastructure, configuration, storage, or application behavior.
• Cloud Database Architecture: Design database infrastructure covering sizing, high availability, failover, backup and recovery, patching, version management, encryption, key management, observability, and cost optimization.
• Operational Readiness: Define the operating model transferred to managed services, including runbooks, monitoring, alerting, escalation procedures, health checks, and operational standards.
• Client Advisory: Serve as the senior technical authority in client engagements, leading architecture workshops, communicating with technical and executive stakeholders, and clearly explaining complex trade-offs and risks.
• Pre-Sales & Planning: Support proposals, statements of work, estimates, and delivery planning by defining database workstreams, sizing effort, and identifying assumptions and risks that could affect project outcomes.
• Reusable Delivery Assets: Develop reference architectures, migration playbooks, conversion patterns, assessment tools, and automation that improve consistency and accelerate future engagements.
• AI-Assisted Engineering: Incorporate agentic and AI-enabled workflows into technical delivery to accelerate schema and stored-procedure conversion, testing, log and execution-plan analysis, and documentation while validating AI-generated output carefully.
• Technical Leadership: Review database architecture and engineering work, mentor engineers at different levels, establish technical standards, and document architectural decisions and the reasoning behind them.

Requirements

• Database Experience: 10+ years of experience in database engineering, administration, data platforms, or related disciplines, including several years in an architect or principal-level position with design authority over business-critical systems.
• Oracle Expertise: Deep hands-on knowledge of Oracle and PL/SQL, including packages, procedures, functions, triggers, cursors, sequences, dynamic SQL, partitioning, RMAN, Data Guard, AWR, ASH, execution plans, optimizer statistics, and SQL tuning.
• PostgreSQL Expertise: Strong production experience with PostgreSQL and PL/pgSQL, including EXPLAIN ANALYZE, indexing, partitioning, autovacuum, bloat management, connection pooling, replication, WAL, PITR, and production extensions such as pg_stat_statements, pg_repack, postgres_fdw, and pgaudit.
• Dual-Platform Depth: Proven expertise in both Oracle and PostgreSQL is essential; significant depth in only one database platform will not be sufficient.
• Migration Track Record: Demonstrated experience architecting Oracle-to-PostgreSQL migrations through production, with the ability to explain architectural decisions, challenges encountered, lessons learned, and improvements made.
• Cloud Architecture: Strong cloud infrastructure knowledge, ideally within AWS, including RDS, Aurora PostgreSQL, RDS for Oracle or Oracle on EC2, VPC networking, IAM, KMS, Secrets Manager, CloudWatch, and Performance Insights.
• Automation & Infrastructure as Code: Experience with Terraform or CloudFormation and scripting with Python, Bash, PowerShell, or comparable technologies.
• Application Understanding: Ability to read and understand application code and database access patterns and collaborate effectively with developers and solution architects.
• AI & Modern Tooling: Practical experience using agentic AI tools within technical delivery workflows, combined with sound judgment around appropriate use, validation, and limitations.
• Communication: Strong executive communication skills, with the ability to lead architecture sessions, document technical decisions, and explain complex trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders.
• Migration Tooling: Experience with tools such as AWS Schema Conversion Tool, AWS DMS, ora2pg, or comparable technologies, including an understanding of their limitations and appropriate use cases.
• Additional Technical Exposure: Experience with Microsoft SQL Server or other relational databases, hybrid or private cloud environments, database observability, and database change-management tools such as Liquibase or Flyway is an advantage.
• Operational Experience: Exposure to managed services, 24/7 operations, incident response, SLA-driven environments, post-incident reviews, or production accountability is preferred.
• Consulting Background: Experience in consulting or managed services with North American enterprise customers, including project scoping and estimation, is a plus.
• Application Migration: Experience working with .NET teams and technologies such as ADO.NET or Entity Framework during data-tier migrations is beneficial.
• Security & Compliance: Familiarity with encryption, auditing, data residency, SOC 2, PCI, public-sector requirements, or other regulated environments is preferred.
• Certifications: Relevant certifications such as Oracle OCP, AWS Database Specialty, or AWS Solutions Architect Professional are welcome but are not a substitute for demonstrated migration and architecture experience.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation: CAD $160,000-$180,000 per year.
• Retirement savings: RRSP matching program.
• Remote-first environment: Work remotely with flexibility around location.
• Flexible schedule: Flexible working hours designed to support work-life balance.
• Paid parental leave: Parental leave options to support employees and families.
• Health & dental: Employer-paid health and dental premiums.
• Mental health support: Access to counselling and mental wellness resources.
• Health spending account: $500 annual Health Care Spending Account.
• Technology: Access to modern tools and the latest technology.
• Employee discounts: Access to Perkopolis discount programs.
• Recognition: Peer recognition and rewards programs.
• Career development: Opportunities to work on complex enterprise cloud transformation initiatives, expand technical expertise, and mentor other engineers.
• Inclusive workplace: Commitment to equal opportunity and accommodations throughout the recruitment and selection process.