DIRECTOR - DATA & AI ENGINEERING LEAD

Job Title: Director - Data & AI Engineering Lead

Pre-identified Resource

Introduction to role:

Are you ready to lead the charge in transforming data and AI capabilities at AstraZeneca? We are seeking a seasoned Data & AI Engineering Lead to join our Data Analytics and AI (DA&AI) organization. In this pivotal role, you will be instrumental in shaping and delivering next-generation data platforms, data mesh, and AI capabilities that drive our digital transformation. Your expertise will be essential in building robust data infrastructure that supports enterprise-scale data platforms and AI analytics deployment, fueling intelligent operations across the business.

Accountabilities:

Technical & AI Leadership

• Lead and mentor a cross-functional team of data and AI engineers to deliver scalable, AI-ready data products and pipelines.

• Define and implement best practices for data engineering, data pipeline orchestration, and ELT/ETL development lifecycle management.

• Guide the development of solutions that integrate data engineering with machine learning, foundational models, and semantic enrichment.

Data Engineering Supported by Advanced Technology

• Architect and develop data pipelines using platforms including DBT, Apache Airflow, and Snowflake, optimized to support both analytics and AI/ML workloads.

• Design infrastructures that facilitate automated feature engineering, metadata tracking, and real-time model inference.

• Experience with AI-assisted coding (e.g., Github Copilot).

• Enable large-scale data ingestion, preparation, and transformation to support AI use cases such as forecasting, natural language querying/processing (NLQ/P), and intelligent automation.

• Experience with using AI to optimize existing data engineering practices (e.g., Data Ops and self-healing pipelines).

Governance and Metadata Management

• Have a mentality to enforce to data governance and compliance practices that ensure trust, transparency, and explainability in AI outputs.

• Lead and scale enterprise metadata frameworks using tools like Collibra, aligning with FAIR data principles and AI ethics guidelines.

• Establish traceability across data lineage, model lineage, and business outcomes.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as a trusted technical advisor to business leaders across enabling functions (e.g., Finance, M&A, GBS), helping translate strategic goals into data solutions supported by intelligent systems.

• Lead delivery across multiple workstreams, ensuring measurable benchmarks and adoption of both analytics and artificial intelligence solutions.

Essential Skills/Experience:

• 12+ years of hands-on experience in data engineering and AI-enabling infrastructure, with expertise in: data warehousing, data modeling, data engineering.

• 5+ years working with DBT, Airflow, Snowflake. Deep understanding of Snowflake Cortex AI features.

• 2+ years working with or supporting AI/ML teams in building production-ready pipelines and infrastructure.

• Good communication skills with a demonstrable ability to influence both technical and non-technical partners.

• Experience in implementing data products by applying data mesh principles.

• Experience working across enabling business units such as Finance, HR, and M&A.

Academic Qualifications:

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, or related field with relevant industrial experience.

Desirable Skills/Experience:

• Proficiency in Python, especially in libraries like Pandas, NumPy, and Scikit-learn for data and ML workflows.

• Exposure to ML lifecycle tools such as SageMaker, MLflow, Azure ML, or Databricks.

• Exposure to foundational AI models (e.g., LLMs), vector databases, and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) methodologies.

• Knowledge of data cataloguing tools such as Collibra, semantic data models, ontologies, and business glossary tools.

At AstraZeneca, we are driven by a passion to impact lives through technology. Our work directly influences the development of life-changing medicines. We empower our teams to perform at their peak by combining cutting-edge science with leading digital technology platforms. Join us at this crucial stage of our journey as we become a digital and data-led enterprise. With the investment to succeed, we are driving cross-company change to disrupt the entire industry. Here you can innovate, take ownership, and explore new solutions in a dynamic environment that encourages lifelong learning.

Ready to make a difference? Apply now to join our team!

Date Posted

26-Nov-2025

Closing Date

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity.  We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills.  We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.  We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics.  We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.