Lead Automation & Data Engineer
Build the Digital Backbone of a Growing Business
The Opportunity
My client are a profitable company targeting significant revenue growth while maintaining operational excellence and margin expansion. Currently, many of their processes are manual and labour-intensive, which limits scalability and introduces delivery risk.
They're investing in automation and ERP integration to streamline operations, reduce overhead, and enable seamless data flows across the enterprise. Their vision is to automate core back-office processes, integrate systems for scalability, and position themselves as a digitally enabled leader in their sector.
This is a hands-on technical leadership role where you'll own the entire automation and data platform from design through to deployment, with direct visibility to senior leadership. You'll combine technical build capability with strategic influence, driving measurable efficiency gains and operational resilience.
What You'll Build
Automation Delivery
- Develop and implement automation solutions for core back-office processes including order matching, job completion, and invoice processing
- Build and optimize RPA bots, AI-OCR workflows, and API integrations for straight-through processing
- Own technical assets such as scripts, libraries, and run-books, ensuring robust exception handling
- Partner with Operations and Finance to embed new workflows and drive adoption
Data Integration & Warehousing
- Own the design and build of our operational data stack (ingestion → transformation → warehousing) to support automation, analytics, and reporting
- Develop robust, reusable data pipelines (API, flat-file, EDI) from supplier portals and internal systems (ERP, finance, CRM, operations) into a central warehouse (e.g., Snowflake/BigQuery/Redshift)
- Implement transformation and modelling layers (e.g., dbt) with well-documented, tested datasets (staging, marts) that map to key business domains (orders, jobs, invoices, suppliers, credit control)
- Establish data quality and observability (validations, SLAs, lineage, alerting) to ensure "first-time-right" data for downstream automations and dashboards
Systems Integration & ERP
- Define and execute ERP integration strategy to support scalability and future acquisitions
- Rationalize applications and consolidate data flows for operational efficiency
- Implement API-first architecture for master data management and financial controls
- Ensure compliance with security, audit, and governance standards during integration
Change Enablement
- Drive adoption of new processes through training, phased rollouts, and governance frameworks
- Collaborate with Operations, Finance, and IT to embed digital solutions into business workflows
Governance
- Establish governance structures for automation and ERP projects, ensuring compliance with security and audit standards
- Monitor progress against roadmap milestones and report to senior leadership
Key Success Factors
Your performance will be measured against:
- Automation Coverage: Degree of process automation achieved across key workflows
- Process Efficiency: Reduction in cycle times and manual interventions
- System Integration: Successful consolidation of systems and seamless data flow
- Data Quality: Improvement in data accuracy, completeness, and timeliness
- Adoption & Engagement: Level of user adoption and satisfaction with new processes
- Cost Efficiency: Impact on operational costs and scalability
Required Skills & Experience
Essential:
- Expertise in RPA platforms (UiPath, Blue Prism) and Python scripting
- Experience with AI-OCR and API integration
- Experience with ERP systems (ENWIS, SAP, Oracle, or similar), data migration, and application rationalization
- Strong background in process automation and digital transformation
- Ability to lead change and influence cross-functional teams
- Strategic mindset with capability to balance tactical delivery and long-term scalability
