Job Opportunities at Shining Hope For Communities

Job Purpose

As a Data Engineer at SHOFCO, this role will be responsible for designing, building and maintaining the data architecture, pipelines and systems that support SHOFCO’s data-driven initiatives. This role will collaborate closely with cross-functional teams including  Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Data analytics team, software engineers and program managers to ensure that data is collected, processed and made accessible for meaningful insights and informed decision-making. The role demands a solid understanding of data engineering best practices, data modelling and proficiency in using a variety of data tools and technologies.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement scalable and robust data architectures to support SHOFCO’s data needs, considering both current requirements and future scalability.
• Evaluate and choose appropriate technologies for data storage, processing, and analytics, such as data warehouses, data lakes and distributed computing frameworks.
• Develop, maintain, and optimize ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes to extract data from various sources, transform it into usable formats, and load it into the appropriate data repositories.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand data requirements and ensure smooth data integration across different systems and platforms.
• Implement data quality checks, data validation, and data cleansing processes to ensure the accuracy, consistency and reliability of the data.
• Establish and enforce data governance policies, standards and best practices to maintain data integrity and security.
• Build and maintain data pipelines that enable the efficient movement of data from source to destination, using tools and frameworks like Apache Spark, Apache Airflow, or similar technologies.
• Monitor pipeline performance, troubleshoot issues, and ensure optimal data flow and processing.
• Continuously optimize data processing and storage systems to improve performance, scalability, and efficiency.
• Identify and address bottlenecks, optimize queries, and fine-tune database systems as needed.
• Collaborate with Data Scientists, Analysts, and other stakeholders to understand data requirements and ensure that the data infrastructure meets their needs.
• Stay updated with the latest trends and technologies in the data engineering field, and assess their potential impact on SHOFCO’s data ecosystem.
• Propose and implement innovative solutions to leverage new technologies and improve data engineering practices.
• Stay up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies in data engineering, recommending and implementing improvements to the organization’s data infrastructure and practices.
• Work closely with the IT team to ensure proper integration of data solutions with existing systems and infrastructure.
• Monitor data pipeline health, troubleshoot issues, and provide timely resolutions to minimize downtime and disruptions.
• Collaborate with external partners, vendors, and stakeholders on data integration projects as needed.

Academic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or a related field.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as Python, Java, or Scala for building data pipelines and data manipulation.
• Proficiency in working with SQL and relational databases.
• 3+ years of experience designing and maintaining data pipelines
• Proficiency working with third party API’s.
• Proficiency with data modelling techniques.
• Experience with version control and code management in git
• Strong foundations in mathematical analysis especially statistics and probability
• Knowledge of good software engineering principles

Professional Qualifications

• Proven experience (3+ years) as a Data Engineer or similar role, working with large-scale data pipelines and architectures.
• Strong experience with data warehousing concepts and technologies (e.g., SQL, NoSQL databases, data lakes).
• Familiarity with cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, or GCP and their data services (e.g., AWS Redshift, Google BigQuery).
• Hands-on experience with data pipeline orchestration tools (e.g., Apache Airflow, Luigi).
• Knowledge of data modelling, schema design, and data governance best practices.
• Familiarity with containerization and orchestration technologies (Docker, Kubernetes) for deploying and managing data applications.
• Previous exposure to data cataloging and metadata management tools.
• Knowledge of machine learning workflows and how data engineering supports machine learning pipelines is a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects and tasks in a dynamic environment.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a keen attention to detail.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to work collaboratively within cross-functional teams.
• Develop solutions for real-time data processing and streaming, enabling timely insights and analytics from live data sources.
• Implement technologies like Apache Kafka or similar tools to capture and process real-time data events.
• Work closely with the IT team to ensure data protection, privacy, and compliance with relevant data regulations (Kenya’s data protection act, GDPR, HIPAA, etc.).
• Implement data encryption, access controls, and other security measures to safeguard sensitive information.
• Design and implement automated testing frameworks to validate the accuracy and quality of data transformations and ETL processes.
• Set up monitoring and alerting systems to proactively detect and address data pipeline issues.
• Experience in the non-profit sector or social impact organizations is a plus.

Other requirements (unique/job specific)

Any professional certification on data management or cloud services is a plus.

Functional Skills:

• Data Integration and ETL
• Database Management
• Data Modelling
• Big Data Technologies
• Data Warehousing
• Data Pipeline Orchestration
• Real-time Data Processing
• Version Control
• Cloud Platforms
• Data Security and Compliance
• Data Governance
• Data Visualization
• Automated Testing
• Performance Tuning
• API Integration
• Machine Learning Infrastructure

Behavioural Competencies/Attributes:

• Analytical Thinking
• Adaptability
• Attention to Detail
• Problem-Solving
• Communication
• Ownership and Accountability
• Innovation
• Ethical and Social Responsibility
• Time Management
• Continuous Learning
• Cultural Sensitivity
• Risk Management
• Interdisciplinary Collaboration

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Job Purpose

SHOFCO is hiring a full-time data visualization and dashboard specialist (3+ years of relevant experience) to grow our dash boarding and data presentation capabilities. In this role the specialist will work with program teams and data engineers to build dashboards that facilitate data-driven decision making leading to social impact. We are in the process of digital transformation and your work will help SHOFCO derive actionable insights from the data collected across our programs. You will join our growing data team and work across our program and M&E teams to provide better presentation of our impact and outcome data.

We are seeking candidates with a strong background in dash boarding tools like Tableau, PowerBI and Google Data Studio, and a passion for working in the social sector.

Key Responsibilities

As a data analyst and dashboard specialist, the day-to-day work may include:

• Working with programs to understand their needs: understanding their current processes and pain points and identifying which of these can be addressed through informative dashboards.
• Designing visualizations and dashboards that cater to audiences ranging from on-the-ground implementers to executive reporting for our social programs.
• Collaborating with program and IT teams to set up, test and deploy dashboards, and ensure timely maintenance.
• Collaborating with the data engineering team on data pipeline requirements.
• Helping develop the organization’s strategy on dash boarding solutions. This will involve developing and institutionalizing best practices on design, execution and management of dash boarding initiatives.

Academic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in design, information science, engineering, social science or related fields

Professional Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience designing and building data visualizations
• Demonstrated understanding of design principles and aesthetics of business dashboards, data visualization and reports
• Passion for UX principles and ability to work with stakeholders to understand their needs in the design process
• Experience working with popular data visualization and dash boarding platforms like PowerBI, Google Data Studio, Tableau. Experience in Power BI would be a big plus.
• Experience with SQL and related database systems such as PostgreSQL or BigQuery.
• Strong oral and written communication skills in English.

Other requirements (unique/job specific)

Any professional certification on data management or cloud services is a plus.

Functional Skills:

• Data Integration and ETL
• Database Management
• Data Modelling
• Big Data Technologies
• Data Warehousing
• Cloud Platforms
• Data Security and Compliance
• Data Governance
• Data Visualization
• Performance Tuning
• API Integration

Behavioural Competencies/Attributes:

• Analytical Thinking
• Adaptability
• Attention to Detail
• Problem-Solving
• Communication
• Ownership and Accountability
• Innovation
• Ethical and Social Responsibility
• Time Management
• Continuous Learning
• Interdisciplinary Collaboration