Principal Data Engineer

About The Role
Hippo is recruiting for a Principal Data Engineer to join our Hippo Herd. Principal Data Engineers work in multi-disciplinary teams that build, support & maintain User-Centred digital solutions that offer real value and work for everyone.
Hippo’s Principal Data Engineers are experts in their field. You will act as a principal consultant providing technical expertise in data engineering practices both internally and to our clients. You will drive the team's technical deliverables, maintain client relationships and be passionate about developing and upskilling others.
Please note, we are looking for candidates who are looking for growth at this level (principal), therefore the advertised salary band is the lower end of our full banding for this level of position, allowing for progression in the role.
Your role in nutshell:
Act as a technical SME within the Hippo engineering community to produce and ensure user-centred software is developed based on business requirements and following best practice
Work collaboratively with colleagues to explore, design and deliver solutions to client problems
Maintain client relationships and troubleshoot issues through collaboration
Design and manage software development and deployment pipelines resolving issues and potential bottlenecks before they occur
Continuously reviews and prioritises the delivery teams workload and can anticipate the need for realignment with evolving operational prioritise and complex work-streams and assignments
Be a strong communicator and presenter, presenting prototypes, solutions and progress to internal/external stakeholders in a clear concise manner
Build great relationships with your team and stakeholders, identifying and ensuring that challenges are overcome
Lead in the recruitment of other engineers, and support other consultants in their professional development
Ensure Hippo’s Data and Engineering communities contribute to Hippo’s business at a strategic level
Lead on new business opportunities, writing technical bids and proposals
Promote Hippo’s Data Herd externally (for example through writing Blogs, Workshops, Seminars or Conferences)
Skills and experience that you need
Excellent experience delivering in Python and experience with at least one other core language
Excellent experience of SQL and relational databases. NoSQL databases is also desirable.
Solid experience of at least one Cloud provider such as AWS, Azure or GCP.
Solid experience of working with Snowflake and dbt.
Strong experience of working with different data formats, e.g., CSV, JSON and XML
Building reliable Data Pipelines
Experience in Data Modelling is highly desirable.
Broader knowledge of IT — e.g., Security and Networking
Working in an Agile Environment
Test-Driven Development and/or Behaviour Driven Development
Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)
Experience of operating as a technical leader on complex projects and able to manage stakeholder expectations and influencing decisions
Coaching and guiding others on the best way to achieve an optimal solution
Excellent verbal/written communication skills, able to articulate in both technical/non-technical terms depending on audience
Technical leadership and/or mentoring
Define working procedures and methodologies for the team
What makes us great
As well as a competitive salary which we’re transparent about from the outset, you can also expect a range of benefits: Contributory pension scheme (Hippo 6% with employee contributions of 2%)
25 days holiday plus UK public holidays
Perkbox access for a wide range of discounts
Critical illness cover
Life assurance and death in service cover
Volunteer days
Cycle-to-work scheme for the avid cyclists
Salary sacrifice electric vehicles scheme
Season ticket loans
Financial and general wellbeing sessions
Flexible benefits scheme with options of: private health cover
private dental cover
additional company pension contributions
additional holidays (up to an extra 2 days)
wellbeing contribution
charity contributions
tree planting

Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at Hippo
At Hippo, we’re dedicated to creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace that works for everyone. We understand that having a diverse team unlocks our capacity for innovation, creativity and problem solving. Only by building a community of diverse perspectives, cultures and socio-economic backgrounds can we create an environment where all can contribute and thrive.
We actively encourage applications from underrepresented groups including women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+, neurodivergent and people with disabilities. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process that reflects our workplace culture. We are a registered Disability Confident Employer, Mindful Employer, Endometriosis Friendly Employer and a member of the Armed Forces Covenant. Hippo continually strives to remove barriers, provide accommodations and offer reasonable adjustments to ensure equity throughout our practices.
Hi, we’re Hippo. At Hippo, we design with empathy and build for impact. We do this by combining data-informed evidence, human-centred design and software engineering. We're a digital services partner who is genuinely invested in helping our clients thrive as modern organisations. Our delivery methodology is truly agile, from concept to reality, supporting innovation and continuous improvement to achieve your desired outcomes.
We firmly believe that technology should serve humanity, not the other way around. We take a human-centred approach to everything we do because we understand that complex problems require a service design approach. This means understanding how users behave and ensuring our solutions work for them in the real world.
Our combination of data, design, and engineering delivers bespoke digital services that make a positive and meaningful impact on organisations and society. We're confident in our abilities, authentic in our approach, and passionate about what we do. If you're looking for a digital services partner that can deliver real results, let us help you build for the future and make a lasting impact.
Hippo locations
We are headquartered in Leeds and located across the UK in Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham, London and Bristol. We're on the lookout for top talent nationwide, so don't let location hold you back from applying. We welcome candidates from all over the UK who possess the flexibility to work from any of our locations. Plus, we offer a generous relocation support package of up to £8k to help make your move a smooth one. It's worth noting that, given the dynamic nature of our business, you may be required to work on-site at client locations or from your own home.

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