Job Description & Details
This is a heavy-hitting architecture and data engineering role that demands someone who can actually design resilient systems, not just draw diagrams. You will be acting as the technical anchor for major cloud migrations and large-scale data pipelines on AWS, requiring deep expertise across both infrastructure and application code.
What You'll Actually Be Doing
Expect to spend your days designing reusable ingestion patterns for batch and streaming workloads, while keeping a close eye on pipeline health and data quality. You'll juggle hands-on Terraform scripting, CI/CD pipeline optimization, and code reviews, alongside leading technical planning for complex cross-functional features. Half your time will likely go into building bulletproof AWS architectures using Glue, S3, and Lambda, while the other half involves unblocking junior devs, refining user stories with product owners, and making sure your systems align with the AWS Well-Architected Framework.
The Core Tech Stack
AWS is the absolute bedrock here—you need to know Glue, Lambda, S3, Step Functions, and CloudWatch inside and out, backed by Terraform for infrastructure as code. On the software side, strong Java with Spring Boot or Python is non-negotiable for building scalable microservices and data pipelines. Experience with Amazon Redshift, Docker, and robust CI/CD automation tools like Jenkins or Bitbucket will separate a mediocre candidate from someone who can walk in and immediately start shipping.
Interview Expectations
When you sit down with the engineering team, expect them to test your production scars by asking how you would handle a scenario where a high-throughput AWS Glue streaming job silently drops data due to schema drift upstream. They are secretly looking to see if you have systematic monitoring and dead-letter queue patterns in place, or if you just rely on hope and console logs. You'll also likely be grilled on architectural trade-offs when designing multi-region serverless workflows with strict latency requirements, where the interviewer wants to understand your practical intuition around cost optimization and cold starts rather than textbook definitions.
Application Advice
Your resume needs to heavily front-load your hands-on AWS architecture and data pipeline credentials, specifically calling out large-scale migrations and infrastructure-as-code achievements using Terraform. Don't just list skills like Java, Python, and AWS Glue; tie them to business outcomes like reducing pipeline latency or cutting cloud infrastructure costs. Make sure your AWS Certified Solutions Architect credential is right at the top, and explicitly highlight your experience mentoring junior developers to show you can handle the leadership aspects of this role.