{"id":3185760,"url":"https://alion.io/job/walker-sands-lead-data-engineer","title":"Lead Data Engineer","company":{"id":687576,"name":"Walker Sands","domain":"walkersands.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/walkersands","size_band":null,"is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":null},"role":"Data Science","role_family":"Data Science","seniority":"lead","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"remote","remote_scope":"stated_countries","remote_scope_basis":"board_field","remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Chicago, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":["US"],"hiring_countries_total":1,"salary":{"min":155000,"max":175000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":175000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":7,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"AI Agents","optional":false},{"name":"ChatGPT","optional":false},{"name":"Claude","optional":false},{"name":"dbt","optional":false},{"name":"Fivetran","optional":false},{"name":"Gemini","optional":false},{"name":"LLM","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Snowflake","optional":false},{"name":"SQL","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:57:09Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-23","last_verified_at":"2026-10-27T08:38:16Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":3,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":3},"description":"Walker Sands is one of the fastest-growing integrated B2B marketing agencies in the world. We are looking for a Lead Data Engineer to help fuel that continued growth. The starting salary for this role is expected to be between $155,000 and $175,000 per year.\nWalker Sands is seeking a Lead Data Engineer to join our DATA practice (Data, Analytics, Technology and AI) and help lead the data infrastructure behind our client reporting, measurement, internal operations, and AI-driven work.\nThis is a hands-on role, but not a heads-down one. Reporting to the SVP, DATA, you'll lead key technical parts of our data stack and be a strategic partner on where it goes next: what to build, what to buy, what to fix, and what actually matters to the business. You don't need a lot of direction and are comfortable working through ambiguity.\nThe role grows as you do. Near term, you'll work alongside our team and external partners to extend and strengthen the platform. Over time, you'll take on more of the technical ownership and help lead what comes next. And as the practice scales, you'll build and lead a small data support team handling tier 1 and tier 2 triage.\nWhat You Will Do (Responsibilities): \nData Engineering\nBuild and maintain pipelines and dbt models in Snowflake that are tested, documented, and trusted\nIntegrate data from paid media, web analytics, SEO, CRM, and business systems using tools like Fivetran or Airbyte and direct APIs\nFind and fix breaks at the root, before an account team or client finds them\nMaintain data governance: access controls, privacy, and consent requirements\nStructure and document data so AI agents can use it reliable: clear semantic layers, consistent definitions, and metadata that tells an agent what a table or metric actually means\nBuild governed access patterns for agentic tools (scoped, read-only, permission aware) so agents only query the data they're allowed to, and their answers can be traced back to the source\nStrategy + Partnership\nWork with the SVP, DATA on architecture, roadmap, and build-vs-buy-vs-partner decisions\nTranslate business and client needs into data designs that hold up, and push back when a request won't\nMake data usable for analysts, reporting, and AI-driven tools through well-modeled, well-governed layers\nTeam Leadership\nBuild and lead a small data support team handling tier 1 and tier 2 triage, including the playbooks and escalation paths behind it\nEventually build out the team as needed for various functions to drive better accuracy, performance and data tools for the business\nWhat You Bring (Requirements):\nYou've spent 7+ years in data engineering, enough of it in lean environments where you owned real things without much hand-holding. You can go deep on a broken pipeline in the morning and talk through a roadmap tradeoff in the afternoon, and you're good at both. You are a clear communicator, and work to understand needs beyond the technical with empathy and a ‘here’s what’s possible’ mindset.\nYou find problems, fix them, document them, and explain them without making them more complicated than they need to be.\n7+ years in data or analytics engineering, including time as the lead or senior technical owner on a production data platform\nDeep, hands-on Snowflake experience\nStrong dbt, advanced SQL, and working Python\nExperience integrating SaaS and marketing APIs (ad platforms, GA4, Salesforce, HubSpot) through ELT tools and custom pipelines\nA track record of shaping technical direction, not just executing tickets\nClear communication with technical and non-technical people alike\nStrong Pluses\nAgency or B2B marketing data background\nData governance and privacy experience (role-based access, masking, consent data)\nExperience making data usable for AI and LLM-driven tools\nExperience leading or mentoring others\nComfortable using AI like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and bringing new ways of working within the data and privacy guardrails of the business\n\nWhat We Offer (Compensation + Benefits):\nStarting Salary: $155,000 - $175,000\nBase salary is only a part of the total rewards package. Placement on the salary scale will be determined by a variety of factors to ensure internal equity.\nStarting salaries are not inclusive of a full range of compensation for this role and are instead meant to reflect the expected beginning salary for a new hire. Merit-based increases can be earned after time in role.\nBonus Potential: This role will be eligible for a bonus based on company performance.\nGrowth Opportunities: Clear career paths, mentorship programs, and learning events to help you grow professionally.\nFlexible PTO and Hybrid Work: Take time as needed for vacations, mental health, or personal days. Includes 8 paid holidays, half-day summer Fridays, and a week off between Christmas and New Year.\nHealth Coverage: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans. Mental health resources, pet insurance, and more.\n Retirement Savings: Employer-matched 401(k) and access to financial planning services.\nAdditional Protection: Life insurance, disability coverage, and other benefits that provide added financial security.\n Employee Assistance Program (EAP): Free, confidential support for you and your household, including counseling, mental health resources, and help navigating life’s everyday challenges.\nFamily Support: Paid leave for new parents and caregivers, plus policies for fertility treatment, pregnancy loss, adoption challenges, and more.\nPerformance & Coaching: Regular performance reviews, clear goal-setting, and ongoing coaching to help you understand expectations, grow your skills, and make progress in your career.\nMilestone Sabbatical: Celebrate five years with a two-week sabbatical and a $2,000 gift.\nCommunity & Belonging: Employee resource groups, volunteer opportunities, and programs designed to build connection across the agency.\nCulture: Our agency offers an award-winning culture. Read more on our website here!\nWe strongly encourage people of color, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and non-binary people, veterans, parents, and individuals with disabilities to apply. As an equal opportunity employer Walker Sands is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and welcomes everyone to our team.\nIn your application, please feel free to note which pronouns you use (For example - she/her/hers, he/him/his, they/them/theirs, etc).\nIf you need reasonable accommodation at any point in the application or interview process, please let us know.","description_format":"text","description_chars":6494,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":7,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity","Growth opportunities","Hybrid work","Life insurance"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Media & Entertainment","Sales & Marketing","Creative Agencies"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-23T23:38:03Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":86,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":1,"age_days":3,"expected_fill_days":47,"reasons":["conf:1","win:early"],"computed_at":"2026-10-27T05:46:45Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":175000,"is_top_pay":false},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/walker-sands-lead-data-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/walker-sands-lead-data-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-27T12:02:17Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":14343,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-28T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":687576},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=687576"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fwalker-sands-lead-data-engineer"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fwalker-sands-lead-data-engineer"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fwalker-sands-lead-data-engineer"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/walker-sands-lead-data-engineer\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fwalker-sands-lead-data-engineer"}]}