Technical Manager Senior - Data Engineering

Allianz - Minneapolis, MN

Full-time - Senior

Minneapolis, MN

10,001+ employees

Insurance Carriers and Related Activities

About the position

The Senior Manager of Data Engineering at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty is a pivotal role responsible for the technical management and delivery of data infrastructure and pipelines for various insurance policy administration systems and supporting applications. This position involves overseeing day-to-day operations, ensuring that projects and programs are delivered successfully while aligning with the organization's strategic goals. The senior manager will lead initiatives in Technology Modernization, Capability Maturity, and Delivery Optimization, focusing on enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of data engineering processes. In this role, the senior manager will provide day-to-day work direction to the team, which includes allocating tasks, coordinating team capacity, and serving as an escalation point for any issues that arise. The manager will also act as a subject matter expert, assessing new processes for alignment with technical areas, preparing recommendations for process improvements, and performing complex analyses related to assigned areas. Managing relationships with vendors and service partners is also a key responsibility, which includes reviewing technical work products, ensuring compliance with service level agreements, and approving vendor billings. The senior manager will be tasked with identifying and implementing delivery improvements by leveraging people, processes, and technology. Building and managing relationships with key business and technology stakeholders is essential to enable customer success and enhance customer value. The role requires the creation of a strategic vision for business alignment, with a focus on continuous improvement and re-engineering of processes to achieve both business and IT goals. Regular communication with the organization's executives, department heads, and end users regarding pertinent IT activities is crucial. The senior manager will also manage project/program budgets, review IT system performance to determine operating costs and productivity levels, and make recommendations for improvements. Additionally, the role involves developing business case justifications and cost/benefit analyses for IT spending and initiatives, as well as directing research on potential technology solutions to support new initiatives and procurement efforts. Mentoring team members and driving results across various areas of the organization are also key aspects of this position.

Responsibilities

• Providing day-to-day work direction, including allocating work and coordinating team capacity.
• Serving as an escalation point to ensure success in the assigned area.
• Providing subject matter expertise and assessing new processes for alignment with technical areas.
• Preparing and presenting recommendations for process improvements.
• Performing complex analyses or project management related to assigned areas.
• Managing vendors and service partners, including reviewing vendor technical work products and managing service level agreements.
• Identifying and implementing delivery improvements leveraging People, Process, and Technology.
• Building and managing relationships with key business and technology stakeholders.
• Creating strategic vision for business alignment and improving processes to achieve business and IT goals.
• Establishing and maintaining regular communications with executives, department heads, and end users regarding IT activities.
• Managing delivery to project/program budgets.
• Reviewing performance of IT systems to determine operating costs, productivity levels, and upgrade requirements.
• Benchmarking, analyzing, reporting on, and making recommendations for the improvement of IT infrastructure and systems.
• Developing business case justifications and cost/benefit analyses for IT spending and initiatives.
• Directing research on potential technology solutions and implementations in support of new initiatives.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 8+ years of related experience in data engineering or related roles.
• 4 or more years of people and vendor management experience.
• 4+ years of project and delivery management experience.
• Deep understanding of database design, data modeling, and ETL processes with 7+ years of practical exposure.
• 2+ years of working experience with Cloud platforms such as Azure, AWS, and GCP.
• Experience with Azure data platform technologies such as Data Lake, Azure Data Factory, and Synapse is preferred.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to perform and prioritize multiple tasks seamlessly with excellent attention to detail.
• Very strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with stakeholders, including customers and internal staff.
• Demonstrated proactive approaches to problem-solving with strong decision-making capability.
• Emotional maturity and the ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team.
• Demonstrated ability to achieve high performance goals and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Forward-looking thinker who actively seeks opportunities and proposes solutions.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with additional cloud platforms beyond Azure, AWS, and GCP.
• Familiarity with insurance policy administration systems.
• Knowledge of advanced data analytics and visualization tools.