Lead Data Architect

Job Title: Lead Data Architect
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Type: Contract-to-Hire (6 months)
Salary Range: 180-220K per year
Work Model: On-Site (4 days a week on-site; one day remote)
Security Clearance: Active Secret clearance required to start; Top Secret clearance preferred

System One is looking for a Lead Data Architect with a Secret clearance for a long-term project in Arlington, VA. This is a hybrid role, 4 days onsite and one day remote.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the trusted advisor to the BCDAO and DS leadership on data architecture, technical options, risks, and trade-offs.
• Own the technical vision, strategy, standards, and roadmap for the DS data platform, including data warehouse, data lake, lakehouse, analytics, and AI/ML solutions.
• Lead implementation of the data platform through the data engineering team, providing direction, design reviews, proof-of-concept work, and troubleshooting.
• Architect secure data management and movement across security domains, including unclassified, Secret, and Top Secret environments, in coordination with cybersecurity and cross-domain teams.
• Lead data integration and ETL/ELT design across diverse and disparate source systems, and drive migration of legacy on-premises and IaaS solutions to Azure PaaS and SaaS services.
• Establish data governance, data quality, metadata, lineage, and access control practices that drive data standardization across DS and prepare data for analytics and AI/ML use.
• Embed security and compliance requirements into the architecture, including identity, network isolation, encryption, auditability, and automated compliance controls.
• Evaluate solutions for reliability, performance, scalability, resilience, maintainability, and cost, and document key designs and architecture decisions.

Requirements

• Active Secret clearance required to start; Top Secret clearance preferred
• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, information systems, engineering, data management, or another technical discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in data architecture, data engineering, data warehousing, BI, or data platform delivery, including 3+ years in an architect or technical lead role.
• Extensive hands-on experience architecting and delivering Microsoft Azure data solutions, including Azure Data Factory, ADLS Gen2, Synapse Analytics, Databricks, and Azure SQL.
• Expert knowledge of data architecture, integration, ETL/ELT, data modeling, data warehousing, and data lifecycle management.
• Experience with classified/restricted environments and data management across Unclassified, Secret, and Top Secret domains, including cross-domain solution (CDS) concepts.
• Proven experience owning a data platform roadmap, leading implementation, and driving cloud migration/modernization.
• Demonstrated ability to advise senior executives and lead technical teams.
• Experience supporting U.S. federal, law enforcement, diplomatic, or national security missions, particularly in Azure Government or classified Azure environments.
• Experience designing data platforms that support AI/ML, advanced analytics, or real-time data processing.
• Experience with Microsoft Purview, Event Hubs, Cosmos DB, Power BI, Azure DevOps/CI/CD, and infrastructure as code.
• Experience with data platform monitoring, performance optimization, disaster recovery, and cloud cost management.
• Familiarity with AWS data services and multi-cloud architectures.
• Relevant certifications such as Azure Solutions Architect Expert or DAMA CDMP.

System One, and its subsidiaries including Mountain Ltd., are leaders in delivering outsourced services and workforce solutions across North America. We help clients get work done more efficiently and economically, without compromising quality. System One not only serves as a valued partner for our clients, but we offer eligible employees health and welfare benefits coverage options including medical, dental, vision, spending accounts, life insurance, voluntary plans, as well as participation in a 401(k) plan.
System One is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, family care or medical leave status, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.
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