Senior Backend Engineer - Snowflake Data Platform
Upwork is looking for a talented, experienced, and hardworking Senior Backend Engineer with an expert level in Python, Javascript, server-side development with SQL experience, and AWS knowledge to work on the Upwork Data Platform Backend.
The Intelligent Data Platform team is seeking a Senior Backend Engineer to support the Snowflake Data Platform. This is a hands-on IC role focused on building, operating, and automating backend services that power data ingestion, orchestration, governance, cost optimization, and compliance for a platform used by hundreds of internal users.
Your Responsibilities:
- Build and operate backend services and automation for the Snowflake data platform.
- Support data ingestion pipelines (RDS/Oracle → Snowflake) and reverse ETL (Snowflake → RDS).
- Develop and maintain Airflow (AWS MWAA) workflows for ingestion, data quality, and ops automation.
- Implement tooling for data quality checks, platform governance, and SOX-related controls.
- Help monitor and optimize Snowflake performance and costs.
- Deliver production-ready solutions with minimal supervision.
Must Haves (Required Skills):
- Strong backend engineering experience in production systems.
- Proficiency in Python and SQL (JavaScript a plus).
- Hands-on experience with Snowflake or large-scale data warehouses.
- Experience with AWS and workflow orchestration (Airflow preferred).
- Strong operational mindset: monitoring, troubleshooting, and performance tuning.
- Ability to work independently in a remote, distributed team with minimum supervision and attention to detail.
- Communicate frequently and effectively in English.
- Can commit at least 3 hours a day, overlapping with the working hours of the Upwork Data Platform team - typically 8 AM - 11 AM PST.