Data Architect

Job Title: Data Architect – Banking Applications (Cloud Modernization)
Location: Hybrid (Oakville Office)
Employment Type: Full-Time
Overview
We are seeking a seasoned Data Architect to lead the modernization of our information architecture across financial platforms. This role focuses on designing scalable, compliant, and cloud-ready data frameworks using Microsoft Azure and Databricks, enabling improved analytics, regulatory reporting, and operational resilience. The architect will bridge business strategy and technical design, ensuring regulatory alignment with financial data governance standards.
Key Responsibilities

• Define and maintain end-to-end data architecture leveraging Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Lake Storage, Azure Data Factory, and Databricks Lakehouse Platform.
• Assess legacy financial and risk data environments to architect modern, cloud-native solutions supporting core business processes and compliance reporting.
• Design conceptual, logical, and physical data models that enable efficient access, lineage tracking, and security classification of financial data.
• Establish data governance frameworks integrating Databricks Unity Catalog and IBM CP4D for metadata, lineage, and audit trail management.
• Create scalable ETL/ELT architectures supporting ingestion from transactional, regulatory, and analytical sources.
• Collaborate with data scientists, analysts, and compliance teams to align structures for AML, PII, and PCI data handling.
• Document architecture standards, data dictionaries, and design blueprints ensuring consistency across the enterprise.
• Provide guidance and mentorship to engineers and modelers, promoting best practices in architecture governance, optimization, and DevOps for data platforms.

Required Technical Skills

• Expertise in data modeling, data warehousing, and data lakehouse design for financial transactions, risk, and regulatory datasets.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Azure (Synapse, Data Lake, Data Factory, Purview), Databricks (Delta Lake, SQL, MLflow).
• Strong SQL, Python, and Spark development abilities with CI/CD and infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, ARM, Bicep templates).
• Experience implementing governance frameworks and ensuring compliance with OSFI, PCI, and privacy standards.
• Working knowledge of integration and orchestration tools such as Azure Event Hub, Kafka, Informatica, or dbt.
• Certification preferred: Azure Solutions Architect or Databricks Data Engineer Associate.

Soft Skills

• Strong communication and stakeholder management to articulate architectural decisions clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Collaborative approach when leading cross-functional projects with engineering, analytics, and governance teams.
• Strategic vision aligning cloud data architecture with business objectives and compliance obligations.
• Leadership and mentorship capabilities fostering technical advancement and data culture maturity.
• Analytical and problem-solving skills, capable of designing solutions for large-scale transformation and high regulatory scrutiny environments.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or Information Systems.
• 7+ years of data architecture experience in financial services or other regulated industries.
• Proven experience delivering large-scale data modernization or cloud migration initiatives focusing on compliance and data analytics.