Senior Data Engineer

District Partners is engaged on this exclusive search for a Senior Data Engineer to join the product group of a leading financial services organization following a major acquisition. This is a long-term contract role (12–24 months, renewed every 6 months) based in Richmond, VA, requiring 2–3 days per week onsite. The Senior Data Engineer will design and deliver large-scale data pipelines and cloud-native platforms, leveraging Java, Apache Spark, and AWS to support mission-critical product initiatives. This is a hands-on, high-visibility role that requires live coding skills and deep technical expertise across Spark and AWS. What You’ll Do: • Architect and implement data pipelines using Java and Apache Spark (batch and streaming). • Build and optimize cloud-native infrastructure in AWS (EMR, S3, Glue, Redshift, Lambda, etc.). • Write, refactor, and optimize efficient code; live coding and scripting will be part of the interview and daily work. • Partner with product, data science, and platform teams to deliver secure, scalable solutions. • Drive engineering standards, performance improvements, and technical innovation across the team. Required Experience: • 7–8 years of professional data engineering experience. • Strong Java coding ability (must be able to write Spark jobs in Java under interview conditions). • Deep Spark expertise, including joins, accumulators, broadcast variables, and performance tuning. • Hands-on AWS pipeline experience (not just through platform/infrastructure engineers). • Strong SQL skills with experience in data reconciliation and validation. • Excellent communication skills to clearly explain technical decisions in real time. Location: Richmond, VA (Hybrid – 2–3 days per week onsite) Employment Type: 12–24 month contract (renewed every 6 months) Compensation: $70/hr (1099) Visa/Work Status: Open to H1B consultants already on valid visas (no new sponsorship)