Senior Principal Data Engineer Jobs in Chicago, IL

Role description

Senior Data Engineer

Lead I - Data Engineering

Who We Are:

Born digital, UST transforms lives through the power of technology. We walk alongside our clients and partners, embedding innovation and agility into everything they do. We help them create transformative experiences and human-centered solutions for a better world.

UST is a mission-driven group of 29,000+ practical problem solvers and creative thinkers in more than 30 countries. Our entrepreneurial teams are empowered to innovate, act nimbly, and create a lasting and sustainable impact for our clients, their customers, and the communities in which we live.

With us, you’ll create a boundless impact that transforms your career—and the lives of people across the world.

Visit us at UST.com.

You Are:

UST is searching for a highly skilled Senior Data Engineer with strong expertise in Python, PySpark, and AWS to design, build, and optimize scalable data pipelines and modern data platforms. The candidate will be responsible for delivering high-performance data solutions supporting analytics and business intelligence use cases in a cloud-native environment.

The opportunity:

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable ETL/ELT pipelines using Python and PySpark for batch and streaming workloads.

• Build and manage data lake / lakehouse architectures (Bronze/Silver/Gold layers) to support enterprise analytics.

• Optimize Spark jobs for performance, scalability, and cost efficiency using best practices.

• Work with AWS services such as S3, Glue, EMR, Lambda, and Step Functions to integrate and orchestrate data workflows.

• Implement data quality, validation, and monitoring frameworks to ensure data reliability and integrity.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams (Data, Platform, Application teams) to deliver end-to-end data solutions.

This position description identifies the responsibilities and tasks typically associated with the performance of the position. Other relevant essential functions may be required.

What you need:

• Core Experience

• 4+ years of experience in Data Engineering / Software Development.

• Strong proficiency in Python programming (data structures, OOP, design patterns).

• Hands-on experience in PySpark and Spark ecosystem including DataFrames, Spark SQL, and Spark Streaming.

• Data Engineering & Processing

• Experience in building large-scale ETL/ELT pipelines.

• Strong knowledge of data modeling and data lake architecture (Bronze/Silver/Gold).

• Expertise with file formats such as Parquet, Avro, JSON.

• Knowledge of data quality, validation, and governance practices.

• Cloud (AWS) Expertise

• Hands-on experience with:

• AWS Glue (ETL jobs, Data Catalog, workflows)

• Amazon EMR (cluster management, scaling, optimization)

• Amazon S3 (data lake design, partitioning, lifecycle)

• AWS Lambda (serverless integrations)

• Experience with orchestration tools:

• AWS Step Functions / Airflow (MWAA)

• Monitoring via CloudWatch (logs, metrics, s)

• Performance & Optimization

• Strong experience in Spark performance tuning and optimization.

• Handling large datasets with focus on efficiency and cost optimization.

• Development & DevOps

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines (CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy).

• Familiarity with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform/CloudFormation).

• Strong focus on testing and code quality (pytest, unit/integration testing, PEP 8 standards).

• Additional Skills

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder collaboration abilities.

• Ability to work independently and in Agile environments.

Compensation can differ depending on factors including but not limited to the specific office location, role, skill set, education, and level of experience. UST provides a reasonable range of compensation for roles that may be hired in various U.S. markets as set forth below.

Role Location: Illinois

Compensation Range: $70,000-$105,000

Benefits

Full-time, regular employees accrue a minimum of 10 days of paid vacation per year, receive 6 days of paid sick leave each year (pro-rated for new hires throughout the year), 10 paid holidays, and are eligible for paid bereavement leave and jury duty. They are eligible to participate in the Company’s 401(k) Retirement Plan with employer matching. They and their dependents residing in the US are eligible for medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as the following Company-paid Employee Only benefits: basic life insurance, accidental death and disability insurance, and short- and long-term disability benefits. Regular employees may purchase additional voluntary short-term disability benefits, and participate in a Health Savings Account (HSA) as well as a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) for healthcare, dependent child care, and/or commuting expenses as allowable under IRS guidelines. Benefits offerings vary in Puerto Rico.

Part-time employees receive 6 days of paid sick leave each year (pro-rated for new hires throughout the year) and are eligible to participate in the Company’s 401(k) Retirement Plan with employer matching.

Full-time temporary employees receive 6 days of paid sick leave each year (pro-rated for new hires throughout the year) and are eligible to participate in the Company’s 401(k) program with employer matching. They and their dependents residing in the US are eligible for medical, dental, and vision insurance.

Part-time temporary employees receive 6 days of paid sick leave each year (pro-rated for new hires throughout the year).

All US employees who work in a state or locality with more generous paid sick leave benefits than specified here will receive the benefit of those sick leave laws.

What we believe:

We proudly embrace the values that have shaped UST since day one. We build our culture of Humility, Humanity, and Integrity. These values inspire us to nurture a people-first, human centric culture that fosters diversity, prioritizes sustainable solutions, and keeps our people and clients at the forefront of all decisions.

Humility:

We will listen, learn, be empathetic and help selflessly in our interactions with everyone.

Humanity:

Through business, we will better the lives of those less fortunate than ourselves.

Integrity:

We honor our commitments and act with responsibility in all our relationships.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

UST is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other applicable characteristics protected by law. We will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

UST reserves the right to periodically redefine your roles and responsibilities based on the requirements of the organization and/or your performance.

#UST

#CB

#LI-IS1

Skills

data engineering,python,spark,sql,aws system,data integration,data pipeline,

Benefits
Compensation range: $70,000.00 to $105,000.00 per year
About UST
UST is a global digital transformation solutions provider. For more than 20 years, UST has worked side by side with the world’s best companies to make a real impact through transformation. Powered by technology, inspired by people and led by purpose, UST partners with their clients from design to operation. With deep domain expertise and a future-proof philosophy, UST embeds innovation and agility into their clients’ organizations. With over 30,000 employees in 30 countries, UST builds for boundless impact—touching billions of lives in the process.