Navy Federal Credit Union · 6 hours ago
Data Architect
Vienna, VA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
$130K/yr - $180K/yr
5+ years expNavy Federal Credit Union is a prominent financial institution dedicated to serving the military community, and they are seeking a Data Architect to support their Enterprise Data & Information Management organization. This role involves architecting and designing data strategies that enable data analytics initiatives, focusing on cloud data solutions and the development of data models and ETL/ELT pipelines.
AssociationFinancial ServicesNon Profit
No H1B
Responsibilities
Translate business requirements into scalable, enterprise‑grade technical designs
Provide technical leadership and guidance to ensure adherence to best practices, architectural standards, and security protocols
Lead the design and architecture of Azure‑based data solutions that align with organizational data capability needs
Define and optimize data integration patterns (batch, streaming, API‑based) for performance and cost
Lead architecture discussions, conduct design reviews, and mentor technical teams
Create and maintain end‑to‑end data architecture blueprints, covering conceptual, logical, and physical layers
Develop and maintain logical and physical data models that support scalable, secure, and high‑quality data solutions in Azure, partnering with data engineers, analysts and business stakeholders to ensure optimal structures for analytics, reporting, operations, and AI
Establish and enforce data modeling standards, metadata and lineage practices, and master/reference data management principles
Provide thought leadership in designing and optimizing an Analytical Semantic Layer (ASL)
Develop architecture strategies grounded in modern data architecture principles including Data Products, Data Mesh, Data Fabric, and Domain‑Driven Design
Build frameworks to monitor data quality and resolve integrity issues
Collaborate with cross‑functional teams—including data scientists, data engineers, application developers, and business partners—to translate business needs into data architecture blueprints, design patterns, and frameworks
Evaluate existing systems and compute environments to identify opportunities for performance, reliability, and cost optimization
Stay current on industry trends, emerging technologies, and advancements in cloud data platforms to drive continuous innovation
Collaborate with internal and external partners on discovery and fit‑gap analyses to recommend appropriate tools, platforms, and services for data analytics, ML, and AI solutions
Mentor team members and promote a culture of continuous learning and development
Develop and maintain the enterprise data strategy and multi‑year roadmap
Identify opportunities for optimization, automation, and innovation across data platforms and processes
Qualification
Required
5 to 7 years of data architecture and design experience, cloud technologies and cloud data solutions experience
Bachelor's degree in computer science, information technology, or a related field
Extensive experience as a Data Architect, with a strong focus on Enterprise Data Lake (Azure, AWS etc.), Data Warehouse (Azure Synapse, Snowflake etc.), and Data Hubs (Azure Cosmos DB, MongoDB etc.)
Experience in data modeling (Erwin, Hackolade, DB Artisan or similar), data quality solution (Ataccama, or similar), data governance solution (Unity Catalog, Alation, Azure Purview or similar)
In-depth knowledge and hands-on experience in designing, implementing, and managing cloud-based data analytics, ML. AI solutions using Azure
Extensive experience in enabling and shaping up data architecture of complex data ecosystems to adopt modern data architecture paradigms like Data Products, Data Mesh, Data Fabric and Domain Driven Design
Strong experience in data/information modelling (canonical, conceptual and logical data models and data flow charts) at enterprise level, modelling governance and good exposure to data modelling tools and best practices
A highly capable communicator, both written and verbal, adept in engaging, collaborating, and influencing people across different business units and at all levels of financial service organizations
Strong knowledge and experience in designing and architecting cloud-based data analytics, ML and AI solutions
Experience in cloud data architecture and services, including Azure Data Lake, Synapse Analytics, Databricks, Azure SQL Data Warehouse, Cosmos DB, Azure Blob Storage, Azure Data Factory, and Azure Functions
Successful in driving architectural change that transforms and optimizes complex businesses preferably in financial industry
Proficiency in SQL, NoSQL, structured and unstructured data
Well experienced with Relational Data Modeling (3NF and Dimensional Modeling) techniques; familiarity with NoSQL modeling preferred
Extensive experience with Data Architecture, Database Design including Data Quality and Master Data Management (MDM) tools, processes, and governance. Experience with ETL and ELT techniques and deep understanding of information architecture including data quality, data governance, data lineage, metadata management and data security
Strong understanding of big data technologies, data warehousing concepts, and data integration patterns
Solid understanding of DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and infrastructure-as-code concepts
Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to translate business requirements into technical solutions
Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and communicate complex concepts to technical and non-technical stakeholders
Preferred
Master's degree in computer science, information technology, or a related field
Experience with Lakehouse architecture and Unity Catalog–based governance
Knowledge of ML/AI data preparation and feature store design
Experience working in highly regulated industries (finance, healthcare, retail, etc.)
Strong communication, leadership, and architectural documentation skills
Experience with data analytics and use of data analytics tools like Power BI and Tableau
Experience as a Sr data architect, with a strong focus on Azure Cloud data platform
Benefits
Highly competitive pay
Generous benefits and perks
Company
Navy Federal Credit Union
Since 1933, Navy Federal has grown from seven members to over 4 million members. And since that time, their vision statement has remained
10001+ employees
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageLeadership Team
Dietrich Kuhlmann
President & CEO
Kara Cardona
Chief Operating Officer
Recent News
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