Staff Engineer - Planning Systems

Title: Staff Engineer - Planning Systems

Reports To: Manager - Engineering

Location: Pittsburgh, PA

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Get to Know the Role:

We are seeking a Staff Engineer to join our Merchandise Planning and Allocation (MP&A) Engineering team. This is a Technical Lead / Architect position. We are looking for someone that has a strong technical background in Enterprise Retail Systems and modern Data Flow [cloud/data] architectures. This candidate will lead the MPA team in Solution and Integration architecture for key initiatives while contributing individually with builds and support. This is a blended role, evenly split between architectural/leadership and hands-on development.

What You Will Do:

• Serve as the primary technical authority for the MP&A team.
• Lead the design and architecture of MP&A applications: MFP, Allocation, and Assortment Planning.
• Define and implement integration strategies for the MPA team across key initiatives in Assortment Planning, Merchandise Financial Planning (MFP), Fulfillment, and enterprise systems including Core Merchandising, WMS, Production & Sourcing, and Data Platforms.
• Ensure scalability, security, and high performance across all MP&A solutions.
• Partner with business users, functional leads, and vendors to translate requirements into effective technical solutions and troubleshoot any issues
• Establish and promote best practices in coding, testing, integration, and version control (Bitbucket/Git).
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineers and analysts on the team.
• Own the end-to-end engineering lifecycle: design, development, QA/SIT/UAT, performance testing, and deployment.
• Provide Level 3 production support, including root cause analysis and permanent fixes.
• Drive technical solutions across MP&A applications, writing performant code in SQL, PL/SQL, Python, Java, Shell and others as needed to support integrations, features, and enhancements on underlying databases like Oracle, PostgreSQL or Big Query.
• Build and maintain ETL data pipelines and other automation processes, adapting to evolving business needs and technologies.
• Tackle diverse technical challenges across systems and applications, learning new tools or technologies as needed to deliver robust solutions.

What you will bring:

• 10+ years of IT experience in retail systems, with a strong preference for Planning & Allocation. Having a retail IT background is a must.
• Proven experience in technical architecture for enterprise retail solutions.
• Strong understanding of the retail application ecosystem and their relationships (e.g., Core Merchandising, Planning, Allocation/Fulfillment, PLM, WMS).
• Proven track record of leading technical teams, including cross-functional groups and vendor partners.
• Hands-on integration experience between retail applications, data warehouses, and external SaaS-based applications.
• Strong technical proficiency with retail data models and databases (Oracle, PostgreSQL).
• Expert-level SQL skills.
• Hands-on coding ability in languages like Python , PL/SQL, Java, or Linux Shell scripting.
• Hands-on experience development with modern integration architectures like dataflow pipelines, preferably with Apache Airflow or similar orchestration frameworks.
• Solid understanding of integration patterns (batch, APIs, and real-time).
• Proficiency with Agile/DevOps tools (JIRA, Confluence, Bitbucket/Git).
• Excellent communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills
• Experience with cloud platforms and data warehouses like BigQuery or Snow Flake.
• Knowledge of batch scheduling tools like Control-M, plus
• Specific experience with Blue Yonder/JDA applications (Fulfillment, Enterprise Planning, Assortment Planning), plus
• Familiarity with Core Merchandising (RMS/Island Pacific), WMS, or OMS systems, plus

Perks:

• Generous employee discount
• Summer Fridays
• Casual dress code
• Hybrid schedule
• FOMO events (Exciting company-wide events)

Pay/Benefits Information:

• Actual starting pay is determined by various factors, including but not limited to relevant experience and location.
• Subject to eligibility requirements, associates may receive health care benefits (including medical, vision, and dental); wellness benefits; 401(k) retirement benefits; life and disability insurance; employee stock purchase program; paid time off; paid sick leave; and parental leave and benefits.
• Paid Time Off, paid sick leave, and holiday pay vary by job level and type, job location, employment classification (part-time or full-time / exempt or non-exempt), and years of service. For additional information, please click here.
• AEO may also provide discretionary bonuses and other incentives at its discretion.

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