Lead Ab Initio Data Engineer

Lead Data Engineer (Ab Initio / AWS / Data Pipelines)

Location: Reston, VA (Hybrid – onsite roughly once every 1–2 months)

Duration: 12-Month Contract

About the Role

We’re looking for a Lead Data Engineer to build and optimize cloud-based data pipelines supporting large-scale AI and analytics initiatives. You’ll lead the design and implementation of data integration solutions using Ab Initio and AWS services , helping modernize how enterprise data is moved, transformed, and leveraged for AI/ML applications.

What You’ll Do

• Design, develop, and maintain ETL/ELT data pipelines using Ab Initio .

• Move structured and unstructured data from on-prem to AWS cloud for AI and analytics workloads.

• Work with AWS services such as S3, Athena, Kendra, and Aurora to ensure scalable data storage and access.

• Collaborate with architects, data scientists, and developers to deliver reliable and performant data solutions.

• Apply best practices for data quality, performance, reliability, and automation .

• Lead technical design reviews, mentor engineers, and ensure compliance with enterprise standards.

What We’re Looking For

• 8+ years of data engineering experience, including leading or mentoring teams.

• Proven expertise with Ab Initio development (required).

• Hands-on experience building data pipelines in AWS environments .

• Strong knowledge of ETL/ELT processes, data modeling, and SQL/NoSQL databases .

• Programming skills in SQL, Python, or similar languages .

• Excellent communication and problem-solving skills with the ability to collaborate across functions.

Nice to Have

• Experience supporting AI/ML or data-driven applications .

• Familiarity with data lake, data warehouse, and big data technologies .

• AWS certifications or cloud data engineering credentials.