Enterprise Data Architect

At SOM, we are a collective committed to shaping a better future for our clients, communities and planet. We aspire to create the most sustainable, impactful work through creative, interdisciplinary teams with all the resources and diversity of a global firm. We value those who are passionate about excellence, innovation, integrity, inclusivity, and collaboration. Together we can achieve great things.

Success at SOM Means
 

Ideas: Our highest aspirations go beyond known solutions and models. We are constantly innovating and attempting to bring new approaches, solutions and processes to our work.

Knowledge: We are not expected to know everything, but rather to passionately pursue answers. It is vital that we listen intently and are proactive about learning, integrating new skills and deepening our knowledge.

Deliverables: We strive for excellence in the concept, quality, and delivery of our work.

Individual: We believe in the individual and the wealth of attributes, skills, and knowledge that a person can develop and contribute.

Team: Our design ethos is founded on the principle of interdisciplinary integration. We foster a positive team culture in which everyone collaborates openly towards common goals. We proactively reconcile the goals and priorities of SOM and clients while fostering opportunities for design and technical excellence in alignment with the firm’s ethos.

Firm: We believe in a meritocracy of ideas. We are a collective that looks to everyone to actively contribute to the design discourse in the office.

Summary

The Enterprise Data Architect is both a highly strategic and technical role central to SOM’s Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Initiatives. This role will lead the strategy, technical design, and implementation of a Data Lakehouse infrastructure to unify AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) design data with enterprise business systems. The role focuses on building scalable data pipelines, enforcing data governance, and enabling advanced AI/ML capabilities across the global firm. The position reports to the Technology Leadership team and works closely with design technology and business operations groups.

Position Responsibilities

• Architectural Design: Leads the design and maintenance of a Data Lakehouse infrastructure (utilizing Snowflake, Databricks, and AWS) to support global data accessibility and AI transformation efforts.

• AEC Data Integration: Develops workflows to extract, transform, and load complex data from design tools such as Revit and Rhino into the enterprise data ecosystem.

• Enterprise System Alignment: Implements and manages integrations between enterprise systems including Workday, Salesforce, Nasuni/Panzura, and the Google Workspace or Microsoft Office suites.

• Modernization Strategy: Translates digital transformation goals into technical controls and data architectures; ensures the enforcement of data standards across all regions.

• Automation & Code: Designs and maintains infrastructure-as-code and automation scripts to support data operations (e.g., Python, SQL, Terraform).

• Data Governance: Implements and audits data access controls, manages privileged access, and ensures data encryption and security practices are maintained.

• Documentation: Maintains comprehensive architectural diagrams, data dictionaries, and runbooks for the global data environment.

• Collaboration: Coordinates with infrastructure and engineering teams to ensure secure configuration standards are applied across data services.

• Project Leadership: Contributes to defining the technical scope of data-centric projects and identifies risks in system design or operations.

Leadership

• Mentorship: Inspires and leads others by example, participating in staff mentoring and training regarding data literacy and data-driven design.

• Work Planning: In collaboration with team members, contributes to a clear work plan to achieve project budgets, deliverables, and schedules.

• Risk Management: Protects the firm from financial and legal risk through robust data compliance and auditing.

• Continuous Improvement: Stays current with emerging data technologies, AI frameworks, and AEC industry trends to support strategic initiatives.

Minimum