Cloud Data Engineer — Snowflake BigQuery Migration

Role Overview We are seeking an experienced Senior Data Engineer / Data Migration Architect to lead large-scale enterprise data platform modernization initiatives on Google Cloud. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of migrating large-scale data warehouses (hundreds of terabytes) to BigQuery, designing high-performance data architectures, and delivering production-grade analytics platforms. Experience migrating from Snowflake to BigQuery is highly preferred; candidates with migration experience from other platforms must demonstrate strong exposure to Snowflake through other engagements. Key Responsibilities Data Platform Modernization & Migration - Lead the assessment, design, and execution of large-scale data warehouse migrations to BigQuery, including environments exceeding hundreds of terabytes of data. - Define migration strategies, data models, governance frameworks, and performance optimization approaches. - Drive modernization initiatives that improve scalability, reliability, cost efficiency, and operational excellence. - Collaborate with stakeholders to ensure seamless migration with minimal business disruption. Data Engineering & Architecture - Design, develop, and maintain high-performance data pipelines supporting both batch and streaming workloads. - Architect secure, scalable, and highly available data lakes and data warehouse solutions on Google Cloud Platform. - Establish enterprise-grade data processing frameworks, integration patterns, and governance standards. - Ensure data quality, observability, lineage, and operational reliability across the data ecosystem. BigQuery Engineering & Optimization - Serve as the technical expert for BigQuery architecture, performance optimization, and best practices. - Implement advanced SQL optimization techniques to improve query performance and reduce operational costs. - Design efficient partitioning, clustering, storage, and workload management strategies. - Optimize data processing pipelines for performance, scalability, and cost efficiency. Cloud Architecture & Delivery Leadership - Design and implement enterprise cloud architectures aligned with business and technical requirements. - Lead customer-facing projects from solution design through implementation and production deployment. - Provide technical leadership, mentoring, and architectural guidance to engineering teams. - Support client workshops, architecture reviews, and strategic roadmap discussions. DevOps, Automation & Platform Engineering - Automate infrastructure provisioning and platform deployment using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices. - Design and maintain CI/CD pipelines supporting data platform development and deployment. - Implement monitoring, alerting, testing, and operational automation capabilities. - Promote DevOps best practices across development and operations teams. Cross-Functional Collaboration - Partner closely with Data Scientists, Data Analysts, Software Engineers, and Business Stakeholders to deliver end-to-end data solutions. - Support advanced analytics, machine learning, and data-driven decision-making initiatives. - Translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions and actionable delivery plans. Mandatory Qualifications - Minimum 5 years of experience designing, developing, and delivering high-performance data pipelines for both streaming and batch processing workloads. - Proven experience migrating large-scale enterprise data warehouses to BigQuery, preferably from Snowflake. - Experience with data warehouse environments measured in hundreds of terabytes. - Strong expertise in BigQuery architecture, administration, optimization, and operations. - Demonstrated experience building and maintaining secure, reliable, and scalable data lakes and data warehouses on Google Cloud Platform. - Proven ability to design enterprise cloud solutions and lead customer projects through successful delivery. - Hands-on experience with infrastructure automation, DevOps practices, and CI/CD implementation. - Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer certification. - Fluent English communication skills, both written and verbal. Preferred Qualifications - Fluent German language skills. - Experience in technical consulting and customer-facing advisory roles. - Advanced SQL tuning expertise focused on performance optimization and cost efficiency. - Experience designing and implementing streaming data pipelines with a strong understanding of event delivery semantics and distributed processing concepts. - Proven experience building production-grade, internet-scale Big Data solutions using managed cloud services. - Hands-on experience with Snowflake architectures and migration methodologies. - Experience with Ab Initio is considered an advantage. - Strong collaboration experience with Data Scientists, Data Analysts, and Software Engineering teams in enterprise environments. Preferred Technical Expertise - Google Cloud Platform (GCP) - BigQuery - Data Lake and Data Warehouse Architecture - Snowflake - Data Migration & Modernization Programs - Streaming Data Platforms - Infrastructure as Code (IaC) - CI/CD and DevOps Tooling - SQL Performance Tuning - Data Governance, Security, and Compliance - Enterprise Data Architecture - Analytics and Machine Learning Enablement Originally posted on Himalayas