Data Engineer Manager

ABOUT SQUARCLE / THE TEAM

Squarcle is a growing strategy, operations and digital consultancy dedicated to driving the performance of our clients. We are people-oriented and proud of our people-first culture. Unlike many consultancies, Squarcle is equally dedicated to delivery as it is to design.

Squarcle consultants work across both project delivery, business and product development:

Delivery: Squarcle Technology and Digital consultants work to supply solutions to the client’s changing business needs. The scope of engagements is highly variable and can include core strategy development, large-scale implementation, process optimisation, change management, data analysis, data modelling, solution development and innovative technology introduction.

Business development: Squarcle places an emphasis on leading sector thinking in the development of the latest ideas. This can include producing white papers and internal research on relevant changes occurring in the sector and the impact on the general economy. 

Product Development: Squarcle is passionate about investing in and developing its own products. This can include conceptualising, designing, and creating cutting-edge products that align with the business's strategic vision, meet customer needs, and drive sustainable growth in the market.

Consultants will have the opportunity to work across four broad subject areas:

1. Strategy: Strategy consultants provide clients with guidance in various spheres of business, including corporate strategy, business transformation, and digital and innovation capabilities.
2. Operations: Operations consultants provide clients with guidance about business process optimisations to improve operational business capabilities.
3. Data and Digital: Data and digital consultants specify and implement technological, data and digital solutions with the client to realise the value of their data.
4. Human Capital: Human capital consultants provide clients with solutions for change management and aid with any organisational changes that may affect the employees.

Squarcle is committed to equality and diversity, and we aim to build a diverse, dedicated, and high-performing team of subject matter experts to help our clients achieve supply chain and operational excellence.

JOB OVERVIEW / INTRODUCTION

The Manager (Data Engineering) is a key technical leadership role, applying knowledge and expertise to solve complex digital challenges on client and internal projects, and enabling the delivery of high-quality technical solutions. Managers will have performance manager (PM) responsibilities for lower grades, including individuals outside of the Digital team, but will also provide mentoring and technical guidance to the wider Digital team. Managers may also be expected to act as engagement managers (EMs) on client-facing projects, acting as the face of Squarcle to clients and ensuring that our data-driven insights translate into tangible business value.

PRIMARY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The primary duties of the Manager are to:

• Provide technical leadership and guidance on data engineering and analytics projects (client and internal), including clear direction, task oversight, and fostering a collaborative and productive work environment.
• Lead the design and delivery of data platforms and pipelines (ETL/ELT), including ingestion, transformation, modelling, and serving layers, ensuring solutions are scalable, performant and cost-effective.
• Translate complex client requirements into implementable technical specifications and architectures, balancing delivery constraints, security requirements, and long-term maintainability.
• Own and assure engineering quality: define standards for version control, CI/CD, automated testing, deployment, monitoring, and operational readiness for data solutions.
• Serve as a technical authority on projects, with the ability to step into a Technical Assessor role to ensure the quality, integrity, security and compliance of our solutions.
• Work with stakeholders to define data products and success measures (KPIs, SLAs for freshness/availability), and ensure adoption through clear documentation and enablement.
• Utilise analytical tools and methods to extract insights from large datasets and communicate actionable recommendations; where required, create or oversee dashboards and reporting artefacts.
• Clearly and effectively communicate complex technical concepts, analytical findings, and strategic recommendations to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with clients, acting as a trusted advisor and the primary point of contact for project-related and technical matters. Working with senior clients to ensure buy-in for digital deliverables.
• Mentor and support junior members of the Digital team, contributing to their professional growth and technical development.
• Act as a Performance Manager for assigned team members, conducting performance reviews and supporting their career progression within the organisation.
• Act as the Engagement Manager (when required) on client projects, leading the day-to-day delivery, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest standard.
• Support business development activities (when required), including contributing to proposals, developing collateral, and identifying new opportunities within existing client accounts.

SECONDARY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The secondary duties of the Manager are:

• Contribute to the development of Squarcle's propositions and internal knowledge base by sharing insights from client engagements.
• Commit to continuous development by supporting the organisation of team events, training sessions and recruitment activities.
• Stay abreast of the latest technologies and their applications within the supply chain and Defence sectors.
• Champion an inclusive team culture where diverse contributions are recognised and valued.
• Carry out other duties as specified by Engagement Directors and Performance Managers.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

ESSENTIAL

• A degree-level qualification in a relevant technical discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• 5+ years’ experience delivering data solutions end-to-end, with a strong bias to data engineering while retaining the ability to lead analysis and stakeholder-facing outcomes.
• Strong SQL skills plus hands-on experience using at least one programming language commonly used for data engineering (e.g., Python).
• Proven experience designing, building and operating robust data pipelines (ETL/ELT), including ingestion patterns (APIs/files/CDC), transformation, and scheduling/orchestration.
• Experience delivering on modern data platforms (cloud or hybrid) with an understanding of lake/warehouse/Lakehouse concepts, security constraints, performance optimisation and cost management.
• Strong data modelling capability (dimensional and/or domain models), including approaches to master/reference data and designing datasets for downstream consumption (BI/analytics products).
• Demonstrable application of data quality and governance practices (e.g., defining quality rules, documentation, lineage, access controls), especially in security-conscious environments.
• Working knowledge of engineering best practices for data delivery (version control, code review, CI/CD, automated testing, monitoring/alerting, and operational support).
• Proven experience leading technical teams to deliver client outcomes, including planning, estimation, risk management, and stakeholder communication.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical topics and present data-driven recommendations to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience working within or consulting for the supply chain and/or Defence sectors (or other regulated/secure environments with similar delivery constraints).
• Successful candidates must be able to meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is a Security Check (SC)

DESIRABLE

• Chartered Membership within a related field.
• A recognised Project Management qualification (e.g., PRINCE2, APM, Agile, Scrum).
• Cloud data platform experience and/or certification (e.g., Microsoft Azure, AWS, GCP) relevant to modern data engineering.
• Experience with data engineering tooling such as Databricks, Microsoft Fabric/Synapse, Snowflake, Big Query or Redshift.
• Experience with transformation and modelling frameworks (e.g., dbt) and orchestration tools (e.g., Azure Data Factory, Airflow).
• Experience with DevOps practices for data platforms, including CI/CD pipelines and Infrastructure as Code (e.g., Azure DevOps/GitHub, Terraform/Bicep).
• Experience building and governing a Power BI semantic model (datasets, DAX measures, row-level security) and implementing metric/KPI definitions.
• Experience in a client-facing consulting environment, particularly with Supply Chain and/or Defence sectors.

What we offer

We believe great work deserves great rewards. Here’s what you can expect as part of the team:

• Generous leave package
  • 26 days of annual leave (including your birthday!) plus UK bank holidays — increasing to 27 days after three years, and 28 after seven years
  • You’ll also get five extra days for your five and 10-year anniversaries
  • Additional leave for members of the Reserve Forces and CFAV.
• Private medical insurance
  • Provided once you’ve completed your probation.
• Recognition and rewards
  • £1,000 referral bonus for successful hires
  • Performance-related awards
  • Milestone and life-event hampers to celebrate life’s big moments
• Development & learning
  • Annual training week abroad
  • Funding for qualifications that benefit both you and the business
• Travel & wellbeing
  • Cycle to work scheme
  • Discounted travel through funded railcards
• Pension
  • Our pension provider is NOW Pensions, pension contributions are 3% employer and 5% employee

We review our benefits regularly to ensure they stay competitive and meaningful - so this list may evolve as we grow.

Our working hours are 8:30 am – 5:30 pm (with an hour for lunch), Monday – Friday.

Apply now and take the next step toward doing work that matters, with a team that’s shaping the future of supply chain consulting.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and obtain Security Check (SC) security clearance. Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you’ve been recruited for. If it isn’t obtained, or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining SC security clearance can be a lengthy process, and we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made if the necessary security clearance isn’t obtained within 6 months. If you hold dual citizenship or nationality from another country, please make us aware of this during the application phase. We’re unable to offer visa sponsorship.

Privacy Policy - Squarcle Consulting Ltd

We’re committed to creating a diverse environment. We embrace differences and hire based on merit, giving equal consideration to all applications, regardless of gender, background, and race.