DATA ENGINEERING AND BIG DATA
TALENT SOLUTIONS
Processing Big Data has become crucial to countless businesses. Those who decide to pursue a career within Big Data face complex development challenges, too tough for relational database systems. After all, there is no Data Science without Data Engineers.
Whilst businesses may have vast quantities of data at the ready, it holds no real value unless it can be stored, harnessed and utilised. It’s estimated that most UK companies have at least 100 terabytes of data stored which could be used for various purposes around the business, as well as newly accessible hard-to-process sources such as web data, image data, and social media data.
This is where those who work in Data Engineering become extremely valuable, as they develop Data Platforms that allow this kind of volume to be processed and used by Data Scientists and analysts across the business.
WHY
HARNHAM?
Our esteemed position as a global leader in data recruitment stems from our deep expertise in Big Data and Data Engineering, supported by hundreds of dedicated specialists located across the United States, Europe, and the United Kingdom.
Our extensive network enables us to deliver exceptional recruitment services, expertly matching our clients with top-tier Data Engineering talent.
We acknowledge the distinct challenges and requirements of each organization's data infrastructure.
Therefore, our recruitment strategies are meticulously tailored, emphasizing a thorough understanding of and alignment with your specific business objectives and data technological needs.
OUR
SERVICES
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Permanent and Contract Recruitment: We offer both permanent and contract recruitment solutions, adapting flexibly to support the dynamic requirements of your Big Data and Data Engineering projects.
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Executive Search: Our executive search service focuses on identifying and securing top-tier leaders in the Data Engineering domain who can advance your strategic goals and technological advancements.
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Industry-Specific Expertise: Our operations span multiple industries, providing specialized recruitment solutions tailored to the distinctive challenges and opportunities of your sector.
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Contact us today to discover how our custom talent solutions can bolster your organization's Data Engineering prowess.
JOBS
LATEST
OPPORTUNITIES
Harnham are a specialist Data & AI recruitment business with teams that only focus on niche areas.
Full Stack Product Engineer
Leeds
£70000 - £95000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentLeeds, West Yorkshire
To Apply for this Job Click Here
FULL STACK PRODUCT ENGINEER
£90,000 + BENEFITS
UK REMOTE
Looking for a role where you can shape the future of a growing SaaS platform, work across the product lifecycle, and help solve real challenges for design and product teams?
THE COMPANY:
I’m working with a SaaS platform that focuses on documentation, governance, and collaboration for design systems. This is a great opportunity to be part of a start up/scale up in a high growth period.
THE ROLE:
This is a hands-on product engineering role where you’ll contribute to everything from ideation to release. You’ll collaborate closely with designers and PMs in small, autonomous squads to build features that help teams scale their design systems.
- Work on projects like:
- Managing and exporting design tokens
- Building analytics tools to track adoption of design systems
- Creating state management tools for components across platforms
- Contribute to roadmap planning, process improvements, and product strategy
- Collaborate across the product lifecycle: ideation, planning, building, QA, release
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
A successful Fullstack Engineer will have the following:
- Strong experience with JavaScript + React
- Backend development experience (APIs, devops basics)
- A product-focused mindset with attention to solving user problems
- Ruby on Rails
- AWS / cloud infrastructure knowledge
- Experience applying AI solutions to user problems
- An interest in design systems or design tooling
THE BENEFITS:
You will receive a salary up to £90,000 depending on experience, plus a competitive benefits package.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please register your interest by sending your CV to Molly Bird via the apply link on this page.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Senior Full Stack Product Engineer
Manchester
£95000 - £110000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentManchester, Greater Manchester
To Apply for this Job Click Here
FULL STACK PRODUCT ENGINEER
£110,000 + BENEFITS
UK REMOTE
Looking for a role where you can shape the future of a growing SaaS platform, work across the product lifecycle, and help solve real challenges for design and product teams?
THE COMPANY:
I’m working with a SaaS platform that focuses on documentation, governance, and collaboration for design systems. This is a great opportunity to be part of a start up/scale up in a high growth period.
THE ROLE:
This is a hands-on product engineering role where you’ll contribute to everything from ideation to release. You’ll collaborate closely with designers and PMs in small, autonomous squads to build features that help teams scale their design systems.
- Work on projects like:
- Managing and exporting design tokens
- Building analytics tools to track adoption of design systems
- Creating state management tools for components across platforms
- Contribute to roadmap planning, process improvements, and product strategy
- Collaborate across the product lifecycle: ideation, planning, building, QA, release
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
A successful Fullstack Engineer will have the following:
- Strong experience with JavaScript + React
- Backend development experience (APIs, devops basics)
- A product-focused mindset with attention to solving user problems
- Ruby on Rails
- AWS / cloud infrastructure knowledge
- Experience applying AI solutions to user problems
- An interest in design systems or design tooling
THE BENEFITS:
You will receive a salary up to £110,000 depending on experience, plus a competitive benefits package.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please register your interest by sending your CV to Molly Bird via the apply link on this page.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Fullstack Product Engineer
Newcastle upon Tyne
£80000 - £110000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentNewcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Job Title: Product Engineer
Location: Remote
Salary: £72,000 – £110,000 + stock options
I’m working with a fast-growing SaaS scale-up software organisation.
They’re looking for a Principal Product Engineer who thrives in a collaborative, product-focused environment. You’ll be part of a cross-functional squad (PM, designer, engineers, data) and involved throughout the product lifecycle – from ideation to release.
Tech Stack
- Frontend: React (core), Storybook, some legacy Marionette (Backbone.js).
- Backend: Ruby on Rails (relative flex on this).
- Infrastructure: AWS (serverless functions with Lambda, cloud hosting)..
Interview Process
- Tech + product chat (30m): exploration of experience and product mindset.
- Coding exercise (1h15m): React-based technical task.
- Product engineering exercise (1h): problem-solving + approach to building.
- Values interview with founders (1h).
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Azure Data Engineer
London
£80000 - £100000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentLondon
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Data Engineer – Azure Specialist
London – 5 Days a Week
£80,000 – £100,000 + 10% Bonus
Company
Our client is a well-established insurance group, recognised for its commitment to innovation and technology-driven transformation. They are seeking a skilled Data Engineer (Azure Specialist) to join their high-performing technology team. This is a fantastic opportunity to work on mission-critical projects with visibility across the entire business, while shaping the group’s data strategy and infrastructure for the future.
Responsibilities
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Design, develop, and own robust, high-performance data pipelines and APIs.
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Build scalable data infrastructure using Azure technologies, SQL, and dbt.
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Assemble and manage large, complex datasets to meet business requirements.
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Define and document cloud solution architectures, technical designs, and testing processes.
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Take ownership of data quality and drive opportunities for continuous improvement.
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Partner with stakeholders across the organisation to support business intelligence and data science initiatives.
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Troubleshoot and resolve data management issues while contributing to architectural decision-making.
Experience Needed
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Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.
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Proven expertise in Azure cloud services, including Infrastructure as Code deployment and CI/CD pipelines (GitHub / Azure DevOps).
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Strong experience in SQL, data warehousing, ETL design, and best practices.
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Proficiency in Python for data engineering tasks.
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Analytical skills to work with structured and unstructured datasets.
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Excellent communication skills with the ability to explain technical solutions to both technical and business stakeholders.
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Azure cloud certification is highly desirable.
Benefits
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Opportunity to work with cutting-edge Azure technologies on high-impact projects.
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Be part of a collaborative, supportive, and forward-thinking technology team within the insurance sector.
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Excellent career development opportunities with exposure to business-wide initiatives.
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Competitive salary and benefits package (details available upon application).
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Azure Architect/IT operations Manager
Amsterdam
€90000 - €100000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentAmsterdam, North Holland
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Job Description: IT Operations Manager
Position: Azure Data Architect/IT operations manager
Location: Amsterdam
Employment Type: [Full-time/Contract]
About the Role
This company are looking for an experienced hire they need an IT operations manager who is very broad on infrastructure, has some leadership experience has also worked as an architect.
The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in Microsoft’s Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF), enterprise-scale landing zone design, and the ability to navigate the complexities of large-scale, multi-region environments.
Key Responsibilities
- Architect and implement enterprise-scale Azure data landing zones that support global operations, ensuring scalability, performance, and security across multiple regions.
- Collaborate with global business and IT stakeholders to design data platforms aligned to corporate strategy and industry best practices.
- Define and enforce governance, compliance, and security standards (e.g., RBAC, encryption, data residency, privacy regulations).
- Establish repeatable frameworks and patterns for data ingestion, transformation, storage, and analytics in large-scale environments.
- Partner with engineering teams to deliver end-to-end data solutions using Azure services (Data Lake, Synapse, Databricks, Data Factory, Purview, Event Hubs, Azure SQL).
- Lead data modernization initiatives, including cloud migrations from legacy and hybrid environments.
- Optimize for global scale and performance, including multi-region replication, disaster recovery, and cost management.
- Mentor teams and provide architectural leadership across multiple business units and time zones.
- Stay at the forefront of Azure innovations, driving adoption of new features and services to improve enterprise capabilities.
Qualifications
- 10+ years of experience in data architecture, with at least 5+ years building solutions on Azure.
- Leadership knowledge preferred
- Proven experience designing and deploying Azure Landing Zones at enterprise scale.
- Hands-on expertise with Azure Data Services: Data Lake, Synapse, Databricks, Data Factory, Event Hub, Azure SQL/MI, and Purview.
- Strong knowledge of global-scale architecture, including data residency, sovereignty, and compliance (GDPR, HIPAA, etc.).
- Experience managing large, multi-region cloud environments in a global enterprise.
- Proficiency with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform/Bicep/ARM) and DevOps practices for data platform deployment.
- Demonstrated ability to influence senior stakeholders and communicate complex technical concepts clearly.
- Preferred certifications: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, Azure Data Engineer Associate, Azure Security Engineer Associate.
Why Join Us
- Play a strategic role in shaping a global Azure data platform at enterprise scale.
- Work with cutting-edge cloud, data, and AI technologies in a complex, international environment.
- Collaborate with a diverse team across multiple regions, impacting business decisions worldwide.
- Competitive compensation, global career growth opportunities, and a culture of innovation.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Lead Data Engineer – Working with Azure & Unstructured Data
Amsterdam
€90000 - €91000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentAmsterdam, North Holland
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Lead Data Engineer – Azure (Hands-On & Team Leadership)
One Year fixed term contract – to go permanent
Based in Amsterdam
Hands on/Management focused role
Our client, is a well-established company operating in the legal space, they are seeking a Lead Data Engineer to take a dual role: driving hands-on technical excellence while managing a talented team of data engineers. This is a unique opportunity to shape the company’s data strategy, deliver high-impact Azure-based solutions, and mentor a team in a collaborative environment.
Role Overview:
The Lead Data Engineer will:
- Build and maintain scalable data pipelines, data lakes, and warehouses on Microsoft Azure.
- Work hands-on with Azure Data Factory, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Databricks, and Data Lake Storage.
- Lead, mentor, and manage a team of data engineers, balancing leadership with practical, hands-on contributions.
- Collaborate with stakeholders, data scientists, and analysts to translate business needs into robust, efficient data solutions.
- Drive best practices in data modelling, governance, security, and performance optimisation.
Key Responsibilities
- Design, develop, and maintain end-to-end ETL/ELT pipelines in Azure.
- Ensure high data quality, integrity, and performance across all pipelines and storage solutions.
- Guide the team in adopting modern data engineering practices and cloud-native solutions.
- Balance hands-on development with strategic planning and team mentorship.
- Implement monitoring, testing, and automation for data solutions using Azure DevOps or similar CI/CD tools.
Candidate Requirements
- Proven experience as a Data Engineer with at least some team leadership experience.
- Must have experience working with Unstructured data
- Strong hands-on expertise in Azure cloud services: Data Factory, Synapse, Databricks, Data Lake Storage.
- Proficiency in SQL and at least one programming language (Python, Scala, or similar).
- Experience building data pipelines, warehouses, and large-scale analytics solutions.
- Strong problem-solving skills and ability to balance hands-on work with team management.
- Excellent communication skills and ability to mentor and grow team members.
Desirable Skills
- Familiarity with streaming solutions (Event Hubs, Kafka).
- Experience with machine learning pipelines or advanced analytics.
- Knowledge of data security, compliance, and governance frameworks.
- Familiarity with CI/CD in Azure DevOps for automated data workflows.
What’s on Offer
- Competitive salary and benefits.
- Flexible / hybrid working options.
- Opportunity to lead and influence data strategy at scale.
- Work in a collaborative environment where you can be both hands-on and strategic.
If you are a Lead Data Engineer who thrives at the intersection of hands-on engineering and team leadership, this role is a perfect opportunity to make a significant impact.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Front End Engineer – Contract role
Amsterdam
€90000 - €91000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentAmsterdam, North Holland
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Contract Opportunity: Senior Frontend Engineer (B2C eCommerce)
Contract length: 6 months
Hourly rate: 70 euros per hour
This client, a leading digital commerce business, is seeking a highly skilled Senior Frontend Engineer to join their B2C team on a contract basis. This role offers the chance to work on a high-traffic eCommerce platform and contribute to building exceptional customer experiences.
The role
The successful candidate will be responsible for designing, developing, and optimising scalable, high-performing frontends using React, TypeScript, and AWS. Working within a cross-functional product team, the Senior Engineer will collaborate with designers, product managers, and backend engineers to deliver seamless customer journeys and ensure best practices in frontend development.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop and maintain modern, scalable web applications for a B2C eCommerce environment.
- Take ownership of frontend architecture, performance, and technical decision-making.
- Collaborate closely with product and design teams to enhance user experience.
- Ensure high-quality code through testing, reviews, and CI/CD practices.
- Contribute to ongoing improvements and modernisation of the technology stack.
Candidate Requirements
- Proven experience as a Senior Frontend Engineer, ideally within eCommerce/B2C environments.
- Strong technical expertise in React, TypeScript, and AWS.
- Solid understanding of frontend performance optimisation and scalable web architecture.
- Experience working with APIs, payment systems, and eCommerce integrations.
- Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively in collaborative teams.
Desirable Skills
- Experience with Next.js or server-side rendering (SSR).
- Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps tooling.
- Exposure to design systems or component libraries.
Contract Details
- Contract role – outside IR35 (where applicable).
- Initial duration: 6-12 months, with potential extensions.
- Competitive day rate, dependent on experience.
Remote-first position, with occasional on-site collaboration if required.
Why Apply?
This is an excellent opportunity for a Senior Frontend Engineer to make a real impact on a large-scale B2C platform used by millions of customers. The role offers the chance to shape technical decisions, work with modern technologies, and be part of a forward-thinking, collaborative engineering culture.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Principal Software Engineer – Data Platform
San Francisco
$230000 - $280000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentSan Francisco, California
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Principal Software Engineer – Data Platform
San Francisco, CA (Remote Eligible – US Only)
$230K-$280K base + equity
Are you ready to lead the design and build of a world-class data platform from the ground up?
A high-growth, product-led tech company is looking for a Principal Software Engineer to lead the build-out of a modern, scalable data platform from the ground up. If you’re excited about solving massive data challenges and shaping the infrastructure that supports real-time analytics and AI/ML at scale, this role is for you.
As the most senior technical IC on the Data Platform team, you’ll partner with leadership across Engineering, Product, Security, and Compliance to design a low-latency, cloud-native data architecture using best-in-class tools like Kafka, Iceberg, ClickHouse, Tinybird, and Snowflake.
Why this role?
- Join a growing Data Platform team
- Own the technical vision and architecture end-to-end
- Tackle petabyte-scale data challenges and real-time streaming use cases
- Work with a cutting-edge tech stack (Kafka, Iceberg, ClickHouse, Snowflake, etc.)
- Drive platform evolution to support AI/ML and company-wide analytics
What You’ll Do
- Design and build a next-gen data platform to power product and internal use cases
- Architect for batch + streaming, scalability, fault tolerance, and low latency
- Lead data modeling, warehousing, governance, and ingestion best practices
- Champion engineering excellence and mentor senior engineers
- Align technical decisions with long-term business strategy
- Optimize for performance, cost, and resiliency in a modern cloud environment
What We’re Looking For
- 8+ years of experience in data engineering or platform architecture
- 5+ years at the Principal Engineer level or equivalent
- Deep expertise with Kafka (and its ecosystem), streaming data systems
- Strong experience with ClickHouse, Iceberg, Snowflake, or similar tools
- Cloud-native architecture expertise (AWS, GCP, or Azure)
- Track record of designing data systems for compliance and governance
- Experience scaling systems to support petabyte-level workloads
- Excellent communication, collaboration, and leadership skills
- Bonus: Experience enabling AI/ML platforms or preparing for IPO-scale growth
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Staff Data Platform Engineer
San Francisco
$200000 - $245000
+ Data Engineering
PermanentSan Francisco, California
To Apply for this Job Click Here
Staff Data Platform Engineer
US Remote
$200-245k base + Equity
We’re working with a rapidly expanding consumer tech startup that recently raised $125M in Series D funding. As they continue to scale, they’re looking to hire a Staff Data Engineer to join their growing data team. If you have a strong foundation in software engineering, a collaborative mindset, and a passion for driving data strategy, this is the opportunity for you!
The Role:
As a Staff Data Engineer, you’ll be a crucial part of the team, ensuring data is accessible, reliable, and actionable across the company. Working alongside engineers, data scientists, and business teams, you’ll help build scalable data platforms that drive key business initiatives and enable data-driven decision-making.
What You’ll Do:
- Collaborate with engineering, data science, and business teams to understand data needs and implement effective solutions aligned with business objectives.
- Design and build scalable data infrastructure and pipelines to handle high volumes of data as the company grows.
- Lead the design and optimization of data architecture, ensuring it’s secure, high-performing, and scalable.
- Improve and streamline data pipelines to provide fast, reliable access to high-quality data.
- Contribute to the design of reporting frameworks and analytics tools that empower teams to make data-driven decisions.
- Work with security teams to ensure data privacy and compliance standards are met.
- Mentor junior engineers, share expertise, and promote best practices across the team.
- Stay updated on new technologies and suggest improvements to enhance processes and tool efficiency.
You’re a Great Fit If:
- You have 7+ years of experience in data engineering.
- You’ve worked at a leading consumer tech company known for engineering excellence.
- You’re an expert in SQL, Python, and data platform development.
- Nice-to-have: Familiarity with AWS, Kubernetes, Redshift, Athena, S3, and Airflow.
- You have hands-on experience with complex data infrastructures and optimizing data pipelines.
- You’ve led large-scale data projects that had a significant impact on your organization.
- You thrive in collaborative environments and have strong communication skills.
- You have an ownership mindset and take responsibility for delivering results.
To Apply for this Job Click Here
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Industry Hub
HARNHAM
News & Blog
With over 10 years experience working solely in the Data & AI sector our consultants are able to offer detailed insights into the industry.
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Testimonials
Client and
candidate
testimonials
A trusted partner of professionals
across the globe.
We understand the challenges our
customers face and offer the
recruitment solutions needed to drive
business success through Data &
AI.
Candidate – Chief Data Officer
It was a real treat to work with Harnham. My recruiter consistently went above and beyond to ensure that I navigated through the recruitment process as smooth as possible. I had been in contact with other professional at Harnham in the past and I can attest that the level of professionalism is always top-notch.
Candidate /
Chief Data Officer
Candidate – Data Analyst
I’ve had a great experience with Harnham. The recruiter provided great advice and ensured that I understood everything, and even followed up with me after I started my new role to see how I was settling in. I would recommend Harnham as a great recruitment company for anyone looking for a role in data and analytics.
Candidate /
Data Analyst
Client – Director of Customer Data Science – Apparel
The team at Harnham have been outstanding in helping our company build a market-leading data science team. Harnham’s communication is great, and the recruiter’s take a consultative approach that’s really focused on provided value for both their clients and their candidates. They provide strong candidates that help us fill our roles with high achievers who are also a great fit for our culture.
Client /
Director of Customer Data Science – Apparel
Candidate – Senior Data Engineer
I've been a Senior Data Engineer for about 4-5 years and Harnham is one of the best recruitment agencies I worked with. There was a time when my offer fell through and the recruiter I was working with at Harnham jumped in to the rescue and scheduled interviews for me within a couple of days. Really good agency and some great people.
Candidate /
Senior Data Engineer
Client – Director of People Operations
We’ve been collaborating with Harnham to recruit some key positions for our company, and they have been incredible partners. They team has been great and efficient. They understood our needs perfectly and provided us very talented candidates. We'll keep collaborating with them in the future. Thank you for your excellent job!
Client /
Director of People Operations
Candidate – Market Research Analyst
Thanks to Harnham, I am now in a role that suits me. My recruiter was able to quickly identify the skills I had to offer and match me up with his client. It was a win-win for everyone. I was given great advice throughout the process, and I also appreciated the follow-ups that I received.
Candidate /
Market Research Analyst
Candidate – Digital Media and Analytics
I've recently got a short-term contract role through Harnham, and things couldn't have gone better! My recruiter was incredibly helpful throughout the entire process. They also provided incredible admin support so that I could focus on the actual job in hand, rather than having to spend too much time dealing with these matters.
Candidate /
Digital Media and Analytics
Client – Data Direction – Broadcast Media
I have worked with Harnham for over 2 years now as our main Analytics Recruiter partner and I am very pleased with the overall service and the people we have hired via Harnham. Harnham’s team is very good at understanding our recruitment needs and always come back with relevant and well scanned CVs, which saves me precious time.
