Head of Client Data Engineering

Job Description

Purpose of the role

To  lead and manage engineering teams, providing technical guidance, mentorship, and support to ensure the delivery of high-quality software solutions, driving technical excellence, fostering a culture of innovation, and collaborating with cross-functional teams to align technical decisions with business objectives. 

Accountabilities

• Lead engineering teams effectively, fostering a collaborative and high-performance culture to achieve project goals and meet organizational objectives.
• Oversee timelines, team allocation, risk management and task prioritization to ensure the successful delivery of solutions within scope, time, and budget.
• Mentor and support team members' professional growth, conduct performance reviews, provide actionable feedback, and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Evaluation and enhancement of engineering processes, tools, and methodologies to increase efficiency, streamline workflows, and optimize team productivity.
• Collaboration with business partners, product managers, designers, and other stakeholders to translate business requirements into technical solutions and ensure a cohesive approach to product development.
• Enforcement of technology standards, facilitate peer reviews, and implement robust testing practices to ensure the delivery of high-quality solutions.

Director Expectations

• To manage a business function, providing significant input to function wide strategic initiatives. Contribute to and influence policy and procedures for the function and plan, manage and consult on multiple complex and critical strategic projects, which may be business wide..
• They manage the direction of a large team or sub-function, leading other people managers and embedding a performance culture aligned to the values of the business. Or for an individual contributor, they lead organisation wide projects and act as deep technical expert and thought leader, identifying new ways of working and collaborating cross functionally. They will train, guide and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long term profits, organisational risks and strategic decisions..
• Provide expert advice to senior functional management and committees to influence decisions made outside of own function, offering significant input to function wide strategic initiatives.
• Manage, coordinate and enable resourcing, budgeting and policy creation for a significant sub-function.
• Escalates breaches of policies / procedure appropriately.
• Foster and guide compliance, ensure regulations are observed that relevant processes in place to facilitate adherence.
• Focus on the external environment, regulators, or advocacy groups to both monitor and influence on behalf of Barclays, when appropriate.
• Demonstrate extensive knowledge of how the function integrates with the business division / Group to achieve the overall business objectives.
• Maintain broad and comprehensive knowledge of industry theories and practices within own discipline alongside up-to-date relevant sector / functional knowledge, and insight into external market developments / initiatives.
• Use interpretative thinking and advanced analytical skills to solve problems and design solutions in often complex/ sensitive situations.
• Exercise management authority to make significant decisions and certain strategic decisions or recommendations within own area.
• Negotiate with and influence stakeholders at a senior level both internally and externally.
• Act as principal contact point for key clients and counterparts in other functions/ businesses divisions.
• Mandated as a spokesperson for the function and business division.

All Senior Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.

As Head of Client Data Engineering, you will lead the strategic development and execution of Client Data Platform in Investment Bank. This role is pivotal in driving strategic data platform build, engineering transformation, and ensure data quality to enable superior client outcomes and informed decision-making. You will be responsible for shaping the future of IB Client Data Management, implementing unified client hierarchies, and championing data governance and analytics initiatives that support Markets, Investment Banking, and Research

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Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Define and execute the strategic vision for client data engineering aligned with Barclays’ broader data strategy and business goals.
• Lead the transformation of IB Client Data Management into a best-in-class Data platform.
• Partner with senior stakeholders to align data product strategy with business objectives.

Data Engineering & Platform Ownership

• Oversee the development and maintenance of scalable data pipelines, ensuring high-quality, complete, and actionable client data.
• Lead the simplification and cleansing of legacy data, including eliminations of duplicates entities.
• Drive adoption of cutting-edge technologies (ML/AI, CI/CD, cloud-native architectures)
• Modernize and optimize the platform with Commercial mindset to drive sustainable business outcomes.

Governance & Collaboration

• Partner with senior stakeholders to ensure seamless data integration and platform adoption.
• Actively participate in governance forums such as the Data Architecture Review Board and Client Data Management Working Groups.
• Ensure compliance with data protection regulations and internal policies.
• Team Leadership & Development
• Build and lead a high-performing engineering team (50+ engineers across various levels), fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Mentor and develop talent across the Client Data Engineering function, promoting cross-functional collaboration and knowledge sharing.

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Required Skills & Qualifications

• Proven experience in leading large-scale data engineering transformation programs within financial services.
• Deep understanding of data architecture, governance, and analytics platforms.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to influence at senior levels.
• Expertise in Java, SQL, and cloud ecosystems (e.g., AWS, Azure).
• Experience managing cross-functional teams and delivering complex change initiatives.
• Budget management and P&L responsibility for technology investments
• Cross-functional collaboration with Risk, Compliance, and Business units
• Vendor management and strategic partnership development

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Preferred Attributes

• Strategic thinker with a hands-on approach to execution.
• Passionate about data-driven decision-making and client-centric innovation.
• Collaborative leader who thrives in a matrixed, global organization.
• Versatility to adapt to manage other functions as needed.