DescriptionData Engineer - Senior / Technical LeadIAMUS Consulting | Columbia, MD (Hybrid)IAMUS Consulting is seeking a
Senior Data Engineer / Technical Lead to support mission-critical cyber and network operations within the Department of War and Intelligence Community. In this role, you will design, build, and optimize data pipelines that transform complex, high-volume data into actionable intelligence supporting national security efforts.
This is more than a hands-on engineering role-you will also
lead technical direction, mentor team members, and help shape the future of data engineering across the program.What You'll Be Doing- Design and scale data ingestion pipelines for large, complex structured and unstructured data sets
- Integrate new data sources and enhance existing data flows for performance and reliability
- Lead efforts around data integrity, validation, monitoring, and troubleshooting
- Support mission partners by enabling timely, accurate, and accessible data for analysis
- Decompose and solve complex system and dataflow challenges across distributed environments
- Collaborate with engineers, analysts, and stakeholders across mission teams
- Provide technical leadership, mentorship, and guidance to junior and mid-level engineers
- Drive best practices across ETL development, data modeling, and system architecture
RequirementsRequired Qualifications- A current U.S. Government Security Clearance is not required at start. but the candidate should be "clearable". U.S. Citizenship required.
- 14+ years of experience in data engineering, software engineering, or related technical fields and a Bachelors in a related field. (Additional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree)
- Strong experience designing and building ETL pipelines and data ingestion frameworks
- Hands-on experience with Kafka, NiFi, and AWS (S3, SQS)
- Proficiency in Java with experience in unit and integration testing
- Solid understanding of data formats (JSON, XML, SQL schemas, compressed formats)
- Experience troubleshooting data pipelines, system performance, and dataflow issues
- DoD 8570 IAT II certification (or higher)
Preferred Qualifications- Familiarity with Python, with experience in unit and integration testing.
- Experience supporting cyber or network operations environments
- Familiarity with Agile development environments
- Experience with Kubernetes, Docker, or containerized deployments
- Exposure to Apache Airflow
- Strong documentation and communication skills
- Experience developing training materials or mentoring team members
Tech EnvironmentLanguages: Java, Python, SQL
Data & Streaming: Kafka, Apache NiFi
Cloud: AWS (S3, SQS, SNS)
Tools: GitLab, Maven, VSCode, IntelliJ
Other: YAML configuration, Linux (Bash), data modeling & ETL frameworks
Work LocationHybrid - Columbia, MD
Leadership OpportunityThis role includes
technical leadership responsibilities, including:
- Guiding data engineering strategy and architecture decisions
- Mentoring engineers and promoting best practices
- Driving innovation across data ingestion, processing, and analytics capabilities
- Supporting program growth and long-term technical vision
Compensation & BenefitsSalary range:
$133,000 - $238,000, depending on experience, clearance level, location, and contract requirements.
We offer a comprehensive benefits package, including:
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Life and disability insurance
- 401(k) and financial planning support
- Paid time off and holidays
- Professional development and tuition assistance
- Dependent care support
Ready to Make an Impact?If you're a
senior data engineer ready to lead, innovate, and contribute to mission-critical work, we'd love to connect.
