Principal Azure Databricks Platform Engineer

Syneos Health is seeking an experienced Principal Azure Databricks Platform Engineer to lead the engineering, administration, automation, governance, and continuous modernization of their enterprise data platform built on Microsoft Azure and Azure Databricks.

This is a senior, hands-on technical leadership role requiring deep expertise in Databricks platform capabilities. The ideal candidate has a proven track record of operating enterprise-scale Databricks environments, implementing platform engineering best practices, building reusable automation, and enabling data engineering, analytics, and AI teams through secure, scalable, and governed platform services.

Job Responsibilities

1. Azure Databricks Platform Engineering & Administration

Lead the design, implementation, administration, and optimization of enterprise Azure Databricks environments across development, staging, and production. Manage Databricks account-level and workspace-level configurations, including identity, permissions, networking, compute, workspace settings, and governance. Establish and enforce enterprise Databricks architecture, administration standards, platform security policies, and operational best practices.

1. Databricks Automation, Terraform & DevOps

Develop and maintain reusable Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using the Databricks Terraform Provider and Azure Terraform Provider. Automate Databricks account and workspace administration, Unity Catalog resources, permissions, compute policies, and other platform configurations. Implement Databricks Declarative Automation Bundles for standardized deployment and management of Databricks resources.

1. Unity Catalog, Governance & Platform Security

Lead enterprise implementation and administration of Databricks Unity Catalog including catalogs, schemas, permissions, external locations, storage credentials, and governance policies. Define scalable data access models using Entra ID groups, service principals, managed identities, and role-based access controls. Establish standards for data product isolation, least-privilege access, environment separation, ownership, and secure data sharing.

1. Databricks Platform Modernization & Emerging Capabilities

Continuously evaluate and introduce new Databricks capabilities to improve enterprise platform functionality, developer experience, scalability, and cost efficiency. Lead platform enablement and establish operational patterns for capabilities such as Unity Gateway / AI Gateway, Lakebase, Lakeflow, Delta Sharing, and Databricks Apps.

1. Azure Infrastructure, Security & Integration

Design and manage the Azure infrastructure supporting enterprise Databricks environments, including networking, storage, identity, and security integrations. Demonstrate strong hands-on expertise in Azure networking, private endpoints, VNets, DNS, Azure Data Lake Storage, Key Vault, and Entra ID.

1. Technical Leadership, Mentorship & Platform Standards

Serve as a technical authority for Azure Databricks platform engineering and administration. Lead complex technical initiatives from architecture and design through implementation and operational handover. Mentor engineers through design reviews, technical coaching, knowledge sharing, and hands-on problem-solving.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of relevant experience in cloud engineering, platform engineering, infrastructure automation, or enterprise data platform technologies.
• Strong hands-on experience with Microsoft Azure, including infrastructure architecture, networking, storage, identity, and security.
• Significant hands-on production experience administering and engineering Azure Databricks platforms preferably 4+ years.
• Proven experience implementing Databricks platform capabilities beyond basic workspace creation, cluster provisioning, or notebook execution.
• Demonstrated experience leading technical initiatives, mentoring engineers, and establishing platform engineering standards.

Essential Technical Skills

• Azure Databricks Platform: Advanced Databricks administration, account and workspace configuration, compute governance, operational troubleshooting, and platform performance optimization.
• Infrastructure as Code & Automation: Hands-on experience with the Databricks Terraform Provider, including management of Databricks-specific resources.
• Microsoft Azure: Strong knowledge of Azure networking, private endpoints, DNS, ADLS Gen2, Key Vault, and Entra ID.
• Leadership & Communication: Proven ability to independently own complex technical solutions and make architectural decisions.