Contract duration: 6 months (with a potential extension)
Engagement Type: Full-time
Start date: July 2026
Location: Abu Dhabi (on-site)
We are seeking an experienced Data Engineer to design, build, and operate scalable, secure, and reliable data pipelines and platforms that power analytics and AI solutions for companies in the UAE. The role is hands-on and client-facing, owning data solutions end-to-end — from architecture and development to production and hypercare – on cloud and on-premise.
Key Responsibilities
Design, build, and maintain scalable batch and streaming data pipelines (ETL/ELT) that move data reliably from source systems to analytics and AI workloads.
Build and optimize data models, databases, data warehouses, and lakehouse architectures (e.g., Databricks, Microsoft SQL Server) for performance and cost.
Develop and tune distributed processing jobs using Spark/PySpark, including cluster management and optimization.
Ensure data quality and data governance across the full data lifecycle (collection, access, storage, transformation, retention).
Productionize pipelines with CI/CD, orchestration (e.g., Airflow, Azure Data Factory), monitoring, and alerting.
Build the data foundation for analytics and AI use cases, collaborating closely with Data Scientists and AI Engineers (e.g., feature engineering, RAG data processing).
Translate client business requirements into data architecture decisions and communicate trade-offs to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Maintain technical documentation, data lineage, and delivery artifacts across Design, Build, UAT, Production & Hypercare.
Candidate Requirements
Demonstrated experience delivering AI solutions in an enterprise or client-facing/consulting environment.
Prior experience at management consulting firms and/or Big Tech is an advantage.
Strong programming in Python and SQL with solid software engineering fundamentals.
Hands-on experience with Spark/PySpark and big-data processing at scale.
Proven experience building production ETL/ELT pipelines.
Practical knowledge of a major cloud data stack — Azure, AWS, or GCP.
Experience with a modern data platform (Databricks, Snowflake, or equivalent).
Familiarity with orchestration, CI/CD, and DevOps (e.g., Airflow, Git, Docker).
Understanding of data warehousing concepts, data modeling, data governance, and security best practices.
Experience with dashboard or frontend engineering is a plus.
Strong collaboration and communication skills, with the ability to work directly with clients.
Qualifications
Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field.
3–6 years of experience in data engineering, building and operating data pipelines at scale.
Preferred certifications: cloud data certifications such as Azure Data Engineer, AWS Data Engineer, or Databricks Data Engineer.

Contango is a strategic partner for transformative growth and sustained success in the dynamic Abu Dhabi market. As a trusted advisor to ADQ's portfolio companies, Contango empowers CEOs to drive strategic growth initiatives, navigate disruptive forces, and maximize long-term value creation.
The locally based team of industry experts excels in providing comprehensive growth solutions that combine global best practices with deep local market expertise. Contango focuses on long-term value creation, empowering clients to achieve the full scale of their aspirations.
With a demonstrated track record in enterprise transformations and performance improvements across companies in Abu Dhabi, Contango brings a wealth of expertise across a range of industries. The company harnesses its proven track record and cross-sector knowledge to develop custom solutions that drive competitive advantage.
Contango is committed to aligning strategic initiatives with Abu Dhabi's vision for achieving economic diversification and strengthening its global competitiveness.