At Guild, we believe talent is everywhere and that opportunity should be too. We continue to have our home and headquarters in Denver, but we have embraced a distributed model of working to reach the best talent in the United States. While some roles may require proximity to our Denver office, roles based outside of our Denver office can sit in any of the following 32 states: AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KS, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, NC, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI and Washington D.C. Please only apply if you are able to live and work full-time in one of the states listed above. State locations and specifics are subject to change as our hiring requirements shift.
If you are an Internal Candidate, please apply via our Internal Job Board.
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To thrive as a company and meet our impact goals, we must cultivate a culture of high-performance. We know managers are often the single-largest driver of employee satisfaction and growth, and our talent is our biggest asset. Because of that, we’ve identified consistent expectations for all of Guild’s people managers — helping you know what to expect from your experience here.
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As a Principal Data Engineer, you will lead technical strategy and execution for our robust, scalable, and modern data ecosystem. You'll collaborate cross-functionally with data analysts, engineering teams, and business stakeholders to architect sophisticated data solutions powering analytics, operational insights, and innovative products.
This high-impact role is designed for an experienced technical leader who excels in strategic thinking, long-term planning, and driving the maturity of data systems and practices. Your deep understanding of data infrastructure, business context, and modern data tooling will help position Guild's data engineering capabilities for future growth and innovation.
What You Bring- 12+ years of data engineering or relevant experience, with demonstrated leadership in complex technical environments.
- Expert-level SQL skills, including advanced performance optimization, query tuning, complex CTEs, window functions, and data orchestration.
- Advanced proficiency in Python for sophisticated pipeline development, automation, API integrations, and scalable, maintainable code design.
- Data Trust is important to us, so significant experience implementing Change Data Capture (CDC) at scale is a must
- Extensive hands-on expertise with Databricks architecture and optimization, specifically around Unity Catalog, Medallion Architecture, MLFlow, and the Databricks MCP Platform
- Extensive hands-on expertise with Snowflake architecture and optimization, advanced dbt modeling strategies, and comprehensive integration using Fivetran.
- Strong command of infrastructure as code (Terraform), Unix/Linux environments, and version control (Git).
- Deep expertise in relational databases (Postgres, MySQL, AuroraDB) and substantial experience with NoSQL databases like DynamoDB.
- Advanced understanding of data modeling, warehousing methodologies, and modern ETL/ELT frameworks.
- Proven track record aligning technical designs to strategic business objectives and commercial outcomes.
- Experience leading technical initiatives within agile, high-growth environments utilizing modern data stack tools.
- In-depth knowledge of data governance, privacy, compliance standards, and regulatory frameworks.
- Expert understanding of CI/CD, continuous delivery, automated testing, and change management best practices.
- Lead the architecture, design, and development of sophisticated, highly scalable data pipelines leveraging tools such as Fivetran, dbt, AWS Glue, Airflow, custom Python applications, Snowflake, Databricks, and cloud storage solutions (e.g., S3)
- Provide technical leadership in integrating and transforming complex data sets from diverse sources including AuroraDB, Snowflake, Postgres, MySQL, and DynamoDB.
- Drive collaboration with analytics, engineering, and commercial stakeholders to design and refine data models and marts that empower high-impact decision-making.
- Champion and implement rigorous data quality, validation, observability, and reliability standards across data workflows.
- Mentor and upskill team members, influencing the development of Guild’s data engineering practices and standards.
- Serve as a trusted advisor, guiding enterprise-wide data strategy, prototyping key data initiatives, and ensuring alignment of data engineering practices with long-term business and technical objectives.
We are committed to equal pay for equal work and believe in compensation transparency. This role offers a competitive total compensation package, including a base salary of $180,600 - $250,000, variable compensation and stock options. Compensation offered will be based on a combination of factors such as experience, competencies, and internal equity.
Guild is America’s leading talent development company, partnering with the country’s most innovative employers, including Chipotle, Target, Walgreens, JPMorgan Chase, Hilton, PepsiCo, Tyson, and more, to build the talent needed for today and a resilient workforce for tomorrow. Guild helps employers identify, develop, and mobilize internal talent — enabling workers to gain skills for in-demand roles and helping companies stay agile. By connecting employees to real-world learning, coaching, and career support, and providing companies with actionable talent insights, Guild transforms overlooked talent into high-impact contributors and positions companies for long-term, sustainable growth. For more information, visit https://www.guild.com.
Guild is female-founded and a certified B Corp. The company has been named to the TIME100 Most Influential Companies of 2022 list, CNBC Disruptor50 list three years in a row, Inc. Best Led Companies list, Fast Co. World Changing Ideas list and the B Lab Best for the World list among many others.
Guild is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let your recruiter know. We currently offer the following benefits:
- Access to low-cost, high-quality health care options through Cigna and Kaiser (due to coverage limitations, Kaiser is currently only available in CA & CO)
- Access to a 401k to help save for the future
- Vacation policy to rest and recharge
- 8 days of fully-paid sick leave, to take the time to heal and or recover
- Family-friendly benefits, including 12 weeks of parental leave for non-birthing parents and 18-20 weeks for birthing parents; 4-week ramp-up period for when employees return from a leave of 6 weeks or more; as well as employer-paid short-term and long-term disability, employer-sponsored life insurance, fertility and caregiving benefits.
- Well-rounded wellness benefits including free and low cost mental health resources and financial wellbeing support services
- Education benefits and tuition assistance to help your future development and growth
I understand that I am applying for employment with Guild and am being asked to provide information in connection with my application. I further understand that Guild gathers this information through a third-party service provider and that Guild may use other service providers to assist in the application process. Guild may share my information with such third-party service providers in connection with my application and for the start of employment.
I understand and agree to Guild's use of my information in accordance with Guild's Privacy Policy and, for applicants that are residents of the State of California, Guild's Applicant Privacy Notice and California Notice at Collection.
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