Job descriptionAt Datashift, we help organizations become truly data-driven by building solutions that answer real business questions with data. We combine deep technical expertise with a pragmatic consulting mindset.We are looking for a Senior Data Architect who designs and leads the next generation of data platforms.You work on modern, scalable and secure data architectures for organizations in regulated sectors such as healthcare, financial services and government, where security, compliance and responsible data usage are critical by design.You combine strategic thinking with strong technical depth: convincing a CTO about an architectural direction, and shortly after diving deep with engineers into topics such as data protection, encryption, identity & access management, network isolation and distributed data processing.You stay ahead of new technologies, challenge existing approaches and actively share your expertise — internally and in the broader data community. Your roleAs a Senior Data Architect, you:Design and implement modern cloud data architectures using technologies such as Azure, Microsoft Fabric, AWS and DatabricksDefine and enforce architecture principles for scalable, secure and compliant data platformsDesign platforms that are secure by design, including aspects such as encryption, key management, data access control and network securityEnsure platforms comply with regulatory and compliance requirements (e.G. GDPR, data governance standards, sector-specific regulations)Act as a trusted advisor for clients and guide architectural decisions at both strategic and technical levelLead technical and architectural governance within projects and across teamsTranslate business and regulatory requirements into a robust and future-proof architectureTake the architectural lead in pre-sales and proposals, including defining solution approaches in regulated environmentsDesign platforms that are ready for AI, with strong foundations in data quality, governance, lineage, traceability and access controlMentor colleagues and help grow the technical and architectural expertise within DatashiftCommunicate complex topics clearly to engineers, architects and senior stakeholdersContribute to Datashift’s knowledge culture through internal sharing, community events or conferencesYour profile7–10+ years of experience in data engineering, data architecture or cloud data platformsProven experience designing enterprise-grade data platforms in complex environmentsStrong knowledge of modern data architecture patterns and distributed data processing (SQL, Spark)Hands-on experience with Azure, Microsoft Fabric, AWS or DatabricksSolid experience with security, compliance and data governance in regulated environmentsExperience translating regulatory requirements into technical architecture (e.G. GDPR, data protection, access control)Experience working in or with regulated sectors (healthcare, finance, government) is a strong plusExperience mentoring colleagues and leading architecture discussions and decisionsStrong communication skills: able to switch between strategic advisory and technical depthA proactive mindset and the drive to continuously improve and innovate Nice to haveDeep understanding of cloud security and networking concepts (IAM, private networking, encryption, key management)Experience with data governance frameworks, data mesh or modern data platform conceptsExperience with secure data sharing and multi-tenant architecturesActive participation in the data community (blogs, talks, meetups) LanguagesFluent in English and Dutch or French