Overview
We are seeking an experienced Data Architect to support a Data Strategy Discovery engagement for a global telecommunications client, spanning the Customer, Finance, and Network domains.
This role will drive the assessment of the current data landscape - including an existing GCP BigQuery-based Data Lakehouse - and help shape a target-state data architecture, technology roadmap, and governance framework.
The ideal candidate combines strong technical data architecture skills with stakeholder-facing consulting ability, and has hands-on familiarity with GCP data platforms.
Key Roles & Responsibilities
Workstream 1 - Scope, Drivers & Stakeholder Alignment
Participate in stakeholder interviews/workshops to understand current-state architecture, pain points, and business drivers (cost, compliance, reporting gaps, AI/analytics ambitions, scalability).
Help identify and engage data owners, IT/application owners, SMEs, and technical leads across in-scope domains.
Contribute to scoping decisions on systems, domains, and deliverable cadence.
Workstream 2 - Data Landscape Inventory
Catalogue databases, tech stacks, and data processing methodologies across the in-scope estate, including an existing BigQuery-based Data Lakehouse.
Map data movement across systems (integrations, ETL/ELT, APIs, manual exports) to surface silos and duplication.
Group data sources by business domain to identify duplicate/unreconciled data entities.
Produce a consolidated data source inventory and source-to-target flow diagrams.
Assess current architecture and platform: warehouse/lake design, integration tooling, cloud vs. on-prem footprint, and scalability constraints.
Workstream 3 - Data Health Assessment
Assess data quality dimensions (completeness, consistency, duplication, accuracy) via interviews and/or sample profiling.
Evaluate governance maturity: stewardship, ownership, standards, metadata management, and MDM practices.
Assess security/compliance posture for PII and sensitive data handling.
Identify architectural and scalability gaps in the current platform.
Workstream 4 - Synthesis & Roadmap
Consolidate findings into a prioritized, evidence-based inventory and maturity assessment.
Design the high-level target-state Data Architecture, including a Data Ontology for AI use cases (Customer 360, churn, order prioritization, assurance/NOC, autonomous network, capacity planning, revenue assurance, etc.).
Finalize the 7-layered target technology stack for future data strategy phases.
Define a high-level data governance framework (lineage, pipeline, ownership, life cycle, visualization).
Support development of the high-level data strategy roadmap and target operating model, and help drive stakeholder signoff.
Tools & Technologies
Must-Have
Google Cloud Platform (GCP) - BigQuery (Data Lakehouse architecture, performance, scalability)
Data architecture & modelling (conceptual, logical, physical; domain-driven data modelling)
ETL/ELT tools and integration patterns (batch, API-based, CDC)
Data governance & metadata management concepts (data catalogs, MDM, lineage tools)
Data quality assessment/profiling methods and tools
Experience with data architecture in Telecom or similarly complex enterprise environments
Strong stakeholder engagement, interviewing, and documentation skills (architecture diagrams, inventories, roadmaps)
Good-to-Have
Experience with GCP ecosystem tools beyond BigQuery: Dataflow, Data Fusion, Dataplex, Vertex AI, Cloud Composer
Exposure to AI/ML data enablement and data ontology design for AI use cases
Knowledge of GDPR and telecom-specific regulatory/compliance frameworks
Experience with Legacy on-prem data warehouse/lake platforms and hybrid cloud migration
Familiarity with data governance/compliance frameworks (DAMA-DMBOK, DCAM)
Prior consulting/advisory experience delivering data strategy assessments (vs. pure implementation)
Familiarity with telecom OSS/BSS systems and network data domains
Suggested Experience Range
10-15 years of overall data architecture/engineering experience, with at least 5+ years specifically in data architecture or data strategy consulting/advisory roles, and 2-3 years of hands-on GCP (BigQuery) experience.
Telecom domain exposure is a strong plus.