Senior Data Engineer

Ardent Eagle Solutions (AES) is seeking an experienced Senior Data Engineer to support the Small Business Administration (SBA), Office of Inspector General (OIG), Technology Solutions Division. This position is responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining modern Azure-based cloud data architecture supporting fraud analytics, machine learning, and investigative operations. The successful candidate will develop scalable ELT/ETL pipelines, optimize cloud data environments, and build sustainable architecture supporting advanced analytics initiatives.

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is an independent and objective oversight office created by the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended. The Small Business Administration (SBA) OIG provides auditing, investigative, and other oversight services to support and assist SBA in achieving its statutory mission to maintain and strengthen the Nation’s economy by protecting the interests of and assisting small businesses and helping families and businesses to recover from disasters. OIG utilizes large volumes of data to perform its auditing and investigative mission sourced from within SBA, other federal agencies, and the private sector. To facilitate the work of OIG audits and investigations, OIG has created the Technology Solutions Division (TSD).

• Design, develop, implement, and maintain secure, scalable Azure-based data architecture.
• Develop and maintain cloud-native ELT/ETL pipelines utilizing Azure Synapse Analytics and Azure Machine Learning.
• Design modern, code-first data engineering solutions utilizing Python SDKs, REST APIs, CLI tools, and Infrastructure-as-Code methodologies.
• Build, optimize, and maintain cloud data lakes and warehouse environments.
• Implement robust error handling, logging, validation, and monitoring across production data pipelines.
• Manage source control and CI/CD practices supporting data engineering assets.
• Optimize ingestion, processing, transformation, and storage of structured and unstructured datasets including Parquet and related formats.
• Develop reusable Python-based data engineering solutions utilizing Pandas and modern data processing frameworks.
• Create self-service capabilities supporting analyst access to enterprise datasets.
• Collaborate closely with Data Scientists to optimize infrastructure supporting machine learning workloads.
• Develop data dictionaries, entity relationship diagrams, pipeline documentation, and standard operating procedures.
• Expand cloud environments through onboarding of new datasets and services.
• Evaluate emerging AI-assisted development tools and data engineering technologies.
• Recommend architectural improvements that improve scalability, reliability, security, and cost efficiency.

Minimum Qualifications

Candidates must possess:

• Five (5)+ years administering SQL databases and performing advanced SQL/T-SQL development.
• Five (5)+ years designing, implementing, and maintaining cloud-based ELT/ETL solutions.
• Three (3)+ years utilizing Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics and Azure Machine Learning.
• Three (3)+ years developing Python-based data engineering solutions utilizing Pandas.
• Experience designing modern cloud-based data architectures.
• Experience implementing scalable data pipelines supporting machine learning workloads.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience utilizing PySpark or Polars.
• Experience implementing Infrastructure-as-Code.
• Experience developing reusable modular Python code.
• Experience with Azure Data Lake Storage.
• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines.
• Experience utilizing Git source control.
• Experience with REST APIs and Azure SDKs.
• Experience with AI coding assistants and Large Language Model integration.
• Experience supporting federal agencies or Inspector General organizations.

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Data Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related technical discipline.

Equivalent professional experience may be considered where applicab

Preferred Certifications

• Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Engineer Associate (DP-203)
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate

$135,000 - $205,000 annually

Actual compensation will be determined by experience, qualifications, location, and contract award.

• 100% Remote (United States)
• Standard operating hours between 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM local time, Monday through Friday.
• Telework is authorized.
• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Ability to successfully obtain and maintain a Public Trust determination.

At Ardent Eagle Solutions, we offer a comprehensive benefits package to our employees and their families:

• Medical/Dental/Vision Coverage
• Matching 401(k) Plan
• Continuing Education Assistance
• Paid Time Off

This job description is intended to describe the general scope of work and level of work that is needed to perform while on task with Ardent Eagle Solutions. Other duties may be assigned. Selected candidates may undergo a government security investigation and must fulfill eligibility criteria for accessing classified information. US citizenship may be a prerequisite for certain roles.

Ardent Eagle Solutions is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to disability or protected veteran status.