"Information Technology Architect"

Job Description Summary

Information Systems & Computing (ISC) is the University of Pennsylvania's central IT organization, providing the core network, data, voice, video, and enterprise application infrastructure and services upon which Penn's numerous Schools and Centers build their unique tools and capabilities.

ISC's 300-plus employees work closely with the University's IT organizations in order to create, deliver and support products and services that help Schools and Centers operate efficiently and effectively. We strive to be easy to work with, and to serve as a trusted advisor to Penn's IT community, faculty, staff and students in support of an environment of discovery and progress.

ISC's focus on customer service and the high-quality, cost-effective, reliable implementation of modern IT solutions advances the mission of the University, as well as that of each individual School and Center. At Penn, technological freedom and departmental autonomy represent dearly held core values. ISC supports those ideas by providing foundational services and cogent counsel, empowering individuals and departments to employ their distinct strengths in support of their goals.

Learn more about us by visiting https://www.isc.upenn.edu/about or www.linkedin.com/company/penn-information-systems-computing/.

This position will be a key driver in shaping the university's enterprise IT architecture, with a strong focus on modern data platforms and cloud-based analytics. You'll design and implement scalable solutions across multiple domains-applications, networks, and systems-while setting technical standards and guiding product integration. Partnering with Data Warehouse architects, you'll help design, optimize, and deliver innovative Snowflake services (including advanced features like Snowflake Cortex) to power analytics, data science, and AI initiatives that support the entire university community.

Job Description

Job Responsibilities

• Define, develop, and drive the implementation of enterprise architecture standards and best practices. This includes defining standards, methods, and best practices for data architecture, analytics, and cloud solutions, including Snowflake features (e.g., Cortex, data sharing, compute/storage separation) where appropriate
• Identify and evaluate application platforms, technologies, tools, and frameworks, including cloud-based data platforms such as Snowflake, and recommend cost-effective, secure architectures that support operational efficiency, scalability and align with the University mission, vision, and long-term objectives
• Offer technical guidance and support to development team, particularly around the use of the Snowflake platform, fostering a culture of accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement
• Collaboratively design, model, develop, and implement enterprise-level systems and applications, ensuring seamless integration across the University ecosystem, with an emphasis on leveraging Snowflake as a foundational data and analytics platform where appropriate
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, including data privacy and industry-specific regulations, by incorporating Snowflake security and governance capabilities (e.g., RBAC, data masking, encryption) and working closely with the Office of Information Security and other key constituents
• Effectively communicate with stakeholders at all levels, providing regular updates on transformation progress, project milestones, and architectural developments
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor of Science and 3 to 5 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience is required.
• Strong understanding of database security and governance principles, including role-based access control (RBAC), row/column-level security, permission grants, network policies/IP whitelisting, and authentication mechanisms
• Expert knowledge of OLAP vs. OLTP design patterns and their application in enterprise data solutions
• Hands-on experience developing and optimizing user-defined functions (UDFs) and/or database stored procedures
• Demonstrated expertise with ETL/ELT design and integration tools, including experience orchestrating data pipelines across multiple platforms

Preferred:

• Experience designing and managing data streaming or real-time pipelines in Snowflake
• Familiarity with workload monitoring, warehouse sizing, and resource monitors to ensure performance tuning and cost optimization in Snowflake
• Programming knowledge in Python, Java, and SQL to support advanced data engineering and architectural development

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

Information Systems and Computing

Pay Range

$100,000.00 - $150,000.00 Annual Rate