Data Engineer

• Establish and maintain data quality checks, validation processes, and governance standards.
• Ensure consistent documentation across data sources, pipelines, and models.
• Build scalable pipelines that ingest, normalise, and transform data from multiple internal systems into a unified, central data store.
• Develop clean, well-structured data models ready for analysis and reporting.
• Build APIs and data delivery mechanisms that provide fast, reliable access to analytics, insights, and reports.
• Partner with Data Analysts to ensure data is easily consumable for reporting and decision-making.
• Develop ingestion APIs and solutions for importing external or client data into databases.
• Own and maintain Data Feeds, ensuring timely fixes and high reliability.
• Improve data accessibility, query performance, and database efficiency.
• Work closely with Engineering to align on best practices and architectural improvements.
• Model and analyse the impact of potential product or engineering roadmap items to support prioritisation and decision-making.
• Design and operate modern, scalable data infrastructure in AWS (or an equivalent cloud platform).
• Apply software engineering and DevOps best practices including CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, monitoring, and automation.

• Lead and implement Data Receipt Agreements with vendors through cross-functional collaboration
• Program and configure import procedures for data ingestion using SAS, Workbench, or alternative technologies
• Design and execute reconciliation checks to ensure accurate data transfer
• Program offline listings and custom reports to provide actionable insights
• Aggregate data across multiple sources and manage external data effectively
• Handle missing values, raw data files, data structures, and SAS dataset operations
• Review and analyze data outputs to provide insights to study teams and clients
• Ensure first-time quality on all deliverables
• Manage electronic data timelines and coordinate with project teams
• Lead programming teams to successful study completion within timelines and budget
• Deploy and manage data management technology (Workbench, SAS, R, etc.)
• Maintain comprehensive study documentation in accordance with SOPs, guidelines, and work instructions
• Ensure traceability and regulatory compliance across all activities
• Document deviations and communicate them to project teams
• Participate in creating standards through tools (SAS macros, libraries, processes)
• Develop and implement project-specific tools and templates
• Improve efficiencies through standardized project structures and naming conventions
• Support business development and bid defense meetings

Senior Clinical Data Engineer

• Manage Projects & Technology
• Lead and implement Data Receipt Agreements with vendors in collaboration with cross-functional teams
• Program and establish import procedures for data ingestion using SAS or alternative technologies (e.g., Workbench)
• Design and implement reconciliation checks to ensure accurate data transfer
• Program offline listings and custom reports to provide valuable insights on external data
• Aggregate data across all sources and manage data structures, missing values, and programming errors
• Review data outputs and provide strategic insights to study teams and clients
• Ensure first-time quality on all deliverables
• Negotiate electronic data timelines and ensure adherence through active project management
• Monitor project resourcing, identify scope changes, and resolve technical issues
• Coordinate and lead programming teams to successful project completion within timelines and budget
• Manage deployment of data management technology for offline listing creation
• Act as SME and technology owner for data management offline listing platforms
• Maintain comprehensive supporting documentation in accordance with SOPs, Guidelines, and Work Instructions
• Ensure traceability and regulatory compliance across all study activities
• Document deviations and communicate them to project teams
• Support Initiatives & Continuous Improvement
• Participate in creating standards through tools (SAS macros), libraries, and processes
• Develop and implement project-specific tools and improvements
• Lead or drive global initiatives related to processes and new technologies
• Mentor staff and provide relevant training
• Assist project teams in problem resolution and technical support
• Maintain and expand regulatory knowledge within the clinical research industry
• Serve as point of contact for clients and internal stakeholders on electronic data matters
• Participate in bid defense meetings
• Independently contribute ideas on technology and data engineering to support business development

Principal Clinical Data Engineer

• Design and implement cloud‑based data architecture components that align with enterprise architecture guidelines and business requirements
• Contribute to the evolution of data architecture by improving existing patterns, pipelines, and platform components
• Support “as‑is” and “to‑be” architecture documentation for data platforms and integrations
• Design, build, and maintain robust data pipelines in cloud data platforms such as Snowflake or Databricks
• Develop and optimize SQL‑based data transformations to deliver curated, analytics‑ready datasets
• Ensure data pipelines are reliable, performant, and maintainable through effective error handling, monitoring, and logging
• Build and maintain data solutions on the cloud, preferably AWS
• Provision and manage data infrastructure using Infrastructure as Code tools such as CloudFormation or Terraform
• Design and support business‑critical storage and compute environments following industry best practices
• Manage complex technical issues related to data platforms and pipelines
• Develop and enhance data applications and services by analyzing requirements and implementing effective solutions
• Build and maintain APIs using Python to support data access, ingestion, and integration with other systems
• Contribute to continuous improvement of data software through refactoring and performance optimization
• Work hands‑on with relational databases , including PostgreSQL and Microsoft SQL Server
• Design and maintain logical and physical data models that support analytics, reporting, and operational workloads
• Install, configure, and test complex database environments to ensure they meet functional and performance requirements
• Manage key components of the data management system, including data quality, consistency, and integrity
• Apply organizational data standards, governance practices, and compliance requirements in day‑to‑day development
• Elicit and analyze complex business and technical requirements through workshops, document analysis, and stakeholder discussions
• Translate business needs into practical, scalable data engineering solutions
• Collaborate closely with analysts, data scientists, and software engineers to deliver end‑to‑end data solutions
• Support information security practices by identifying and helping remediate vulnerabilities and data‑related risks
• Ensure delivered solutions comply with organizational policies, procedures, and relevant regulatory requirements
• Create and maintain high‑quality technical documentation for data pipelines, platforms, and integrations
• Share knowledge and best practices within the team through documentation and peer collaboration

Data Engineering Lead

• Design, maintain, and document data pipelines and products while ensuring data quality and alignment with operational sources
• Oversee database performance, security, and access, while monitoring usage, archiving historical data, and identifying design improvements
• Develop and uphold coding, naming, change control, and extraction/loading standards
• Provide statistical and reporting support to the Business Intelligence team
• Support data lakehouse operations, delivering key projects, including data migrations, on time
• Partner with IT and business teams to manage relationships and ensure effective service delivery
• Actively manage personal learning, development, and growth while contributing to complex problem-solving

Senior Data Engineer

• Designs, builds, and maintains complex data processing systems
• Ensures data integrity and optimizes pipelines for efficiency and scalability
• Troubleshoots complex data issues and conducts quality checks
• Mentors junior team members and fosters collective growth
• Maintains clear documentation for data solutions
• Identifies optimization opportunities and plans implementation
• Delivers new solutions or expands existing solutions based on received briefs
• Takes responsibility for security in PII data, code management, and deployment
• Proactively identifies improvements for dashboards across the business
• Engages with projects, providing support in modeling feasibility and blockers
• Conducts quality checks and ensures technical implementations meet standards
• Independently owns small-scale projects and delivers them by meeting success criteria and deadlines.

Data Engineer jobs in South Africa

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Data Engineer

Senior Clinical Data Engineer

Principal Clinical Data Engineer

Data Engineering Lead

Senior Data Engineer

Freelance Data Engineer