Director, Data Engineering

Our Company

Explore how you can contribute at AmeriLife.

For over 50 years, AmeriLife has been a leader in the development, marketing and distribution of annuity, life and health insurance solutions for those planning for and living in retirement.

Associates get satisfaction from knowing they provide agents, marketers and carrier partners the support needed to succeed in a rapidly evolving industry.

Job Summary

We are seeking an accomplished Director of Data Engineering to lead AmeriLife's enterprise Data Engineering organization and serve as the technical leader for our Databricks platform.

This individual will lead the design, development, modernization, and operation of enterprise-scale data platforms while driving engineering excellence across our cloud-native data ecosystem. You will be responsible for establishing engineering standards, mentoring high-performing teams, modernizing legacy platforms, and delivering trusted, scalable data products that power analytics, machine learning, and AI across the enterprise.

This role requires a hands-on technology leader who combines deep Databricks expertise with strong leadership, architectural thinking, and a passion for building modern engineering organizations.

Job Description

What You'll Do

Lead Enterprise Data Engineering

• Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing Data Engineering organization.
• Establish engineering standards, development practices, coding standards, and delivery frameworks.
• Foster a culture of ownership, innovation, automation, and continuous improvement.
• Develop future engineering leaders through coaching and mentorship.

Lead the Enterprise Databricks Platform

• Serve as the organization's technical leader and subject matter expert for the Databricks Lakehouse Platform.
• Define enterprise standards and best practices for Databricks development.
• Lead adoption of new Databricks capabilities including Unity Catalog, Lakeflow, Delta Lake, AI/ML, Workflows, and performance optimization.
• Establish reusable engineering frameworks that accelerate delivery across the organization.
• Partner with Databricks product teams and strategic partners to continuously evolve the platform.

Modernize Enterprise Data Platforms

• Lead migration of legacy ETL workloads to modern Databricks ELT architectures.
• Design scalable, resilient, and cloud-native data pipelines.
• Drive automation across ingestion, transformation, orchestration, deployment, monitoring, and recovery.
• Optimize performance, scalability, reliability, and cloud cost management.

Deliver Trusted Enterprise Data Products

• Build reliable data pipelines supporting analytics, AI, operational reporting, and executive decision making.
• Collaborate with Data Architecture to implement enterprise information models and integration patterns.
• Partner with Data Governance & Trust to embed governance, metadata, lineage, and quality into engineering solutions.
• Enable reusable enterprise data products that reduce duplication and accelerate delivery.

Engineering Excellence

• Establish CI/CD, automated testing, infrastructure as code, and DevOps best practices.
• Improve platform observability, monitoring, and operational excellence.
• Lead root cause analysis and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Define engineering KPIs and continuously improve delivery performance.

What You Bring

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field.
• Master's degree preferred.
• 10+ years of enterprise Data Engineering experience.
• 5+ years leading Data Engineering teams within large enterprise environments.
• Expert-level experience designing and implementing enterprise solutions using the Databricks Lakehouse Platform.
• Deep expertise in Apache Spark, Delta Lake, SQL, Python, PySpark, and distributed data processing.
• Strong knowledge of Unity Catalog, Delta Live Tables (Lakeflow), Databricks Workflows, notebooks, cluster optimization, and platform administration.
• Proven experience modernizing enterprise data platforms and migrating legacy ETL solutions.
• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines, Git-based development, Infrastructure as Code, and DevOps practices.
• Strong understanding of Medallion Architecture, dimensional modeling, and modern enterprise data architectures.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Databricks Certified Data Engineer Professional certification.
• Experience with Azure cloud services and enterprise security.
• Experience with Data Vault 2.0.
• Knowledge of AI, machine learning, and enterprise analytics platforms.
• Insurance or Financial Services industry experience.
• Experience leading enterprise-scale modernization initiatives.

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic and visionary technology leader.
• Strong enterprise architecture mindset.
• Passion for engineering excellence.
• Exceptional people leadership and coaching skills.
• Business-first decision making.
• Customer-centric mindset.
• High accountability and execution discipline.
• Continuous learner who embraces emerging technologies.

Compensation

• Salary Range: $195,000 to $210,000
• This role may be eligible for a discretionary annual bonus.
• Salary offers will vary commensurate with experience, education, skills, and training

What AmeriLife Offers

A comprehensive benefits package that includes PTO, medical, dental, vision, retirement savings, disability insurance, and life insurance.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and value diversity at all levels of the organization. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran or military status, or any other protected characteristic under applicable federal, state, or local law. We are committed to providing an inclusive, equitable, and respectful workplace where all employees can thrive.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Statement

We are committed to full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and all applicable state and local disability laws. Reasonable accommodations are available to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities throughout the application and employment process. Requests for accommodation will be handled confidentially. If you require assistance or accommodation during the application process, please contact us at [email protected].

Pay Transparency Statement

We are committed to pay transparency and equity, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Compensation for this role will be determined based on skills, qualifications, experience, and market factors. Where required by law, the pay range for this position will be disclosed in the job posting or provided upon request. Additional compensation information, such as benefits, bonuses, and commissions, will be provided as required by law. We do not discriminate or retaliate against employees or applicants for inquiring about, discussing, or disclosing their pay or the pay of another employee or applicant, as protected under applicable law. Pay ranges are available upon request.

Background Screening Statement

Employment offers are contingent upon the successful completion of a background screening, which may include employment verification, education verification, criminal history check, and other job-related inquiries, as permitted by law. All screenings are conducted in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws, and information collected will be kept confidential. If any adverse decision is made based on the results, applicants will be notified and given an opportunity to respond.