Data Engineer Lead

How to Apply

A cover letter and resume are important submissions for the hiring team to get a sense of your experience. In the cover letter, in two pages or less, please let us know how this role aligns with your career aspirations and skill set. Submit both a cover letter and resume as one file (because of system limitations).Who We Are About the Center for Academic Innovation Through curricular innovation, tools for student success, and educational research and analytics, the University of Michigan Center for Academic Innovation is building the future of education.

Our vision is a future in which education connects and empowers learners everywhere to reach their full potential throughout their lives. To realize our vision, we make it our mission to collaborate across campus and around the world to create equitable, lifelong educational opportunities for learners everywhere.

About the Data and Business Intelligence Team The Data and Business Intelligence Team within the Center for Academic Innovation (CAI) at the University of Michigan drives CAI's data strategy, ensuring that data is used responsibly, ethically, and securely. Our team of data engineers, scientists, and analysts powers internal operations and the Michigan Online platform by leveraging data as our universal language for analytics, insights and decision-making.

We strive to democratize access to data while upholding strong standards for governance, security, and privacy. Through collaboration and communities of practice, we share innovations, learn from peers, and help foster a culture of data-informed decision-making across CAI and the broader campus.

For more information, please visit our website:
Academic Innovation.

Responsibilities
* Data Strategy & Architecture Ownership Evolve CAI's data architecture strategy to support reporting, analytics, AI/ML, and operational needs

Architect and oversee implementation of end-to-end data warehousing solutions integrating diverse institutional and platform data sources

Establish and enforce standards for dimensional modeling (e.g., Kimball methodology, Star and Snowflake schemas), pipeline design, documentation, and engineering best practices

Ensure cloud data platforms (e.g., Snowflake, Databricks) are optimized for scalability, reliability, cost efficiency, and long-term sustainability

Design and maintain complex ELT frameworks and scalable pipeline patterns

People Leadership & Team Development Directly manage and mentor Data Engineers and Senior Data Engineers, including performance management, coaching, hiring, and career development

Foster a culture of shared ownership, technical excellence, and continuous learning

Provide technical guidance and architectural oversight across projects, ensuring high-quality delivery and consistency

Plan for team growth and capability development to support CAI's long-term data vision

Governance, Risk & Compliance Establish and operationalize scalable data governance practices, including standards for data quality, metadata, lineage, and access controls

Ensure compliance with institutional and regulatory data privacy requirements (e.g., FERPA, GDPR) within a higher education environment

Promote strong data stewardship and responsible use of institutional and learner data Cross-Functional Leadership & Strategic Alignment Partner with Engineering, Online Learning, XR, and campus stakeholders to translate complex business and academic needs into cohesive data strategies and solutions

Lead discovery sessions with stakeholders and communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences

Align team priorities with CAI's strategic objectives and contribute to roadmap planning within the data domain

Oversee service delivery and stakeholder engagement to ensure responsive, high-impact data support

Innovation & Community Engagement Evaluate and thoughtfully incorporate emerging technologies, including AI-enabled tools, into engineering workflows and team practices

Co-lead or sponsor initiatives such as the BI + AI Community of Practice and Data Hours to strengthen campus-wide data literacy and collaboration

What You'll DoThe Center for Academic Innovation (CAI) at the University of Michigan is seeking a Lead Data Engineer to guide and scale our Data and Business Intelligence function. As we expand our Data, BI, and AI/ML capabilities to support innovative educational solutions, the Michigan Online platform and CAI internal operations, you will step into this newly created leadership…