Principal Data Architect / Strategist… at Thoughtworks · Cologne

Principal data strategists at Thoughtworks are experienced consultants who work with clients to create winning data solutions that meet business goals. They play a pivotal role in developing modern data architecture approaches that directly address our clients' key business objectives. Their responsibilities span in-depth reviews of current data and technology strategy, targeted data strategy, guiding clients to unlock the full potential of data, and providing high-level roadmaps.

This role entails a mix of advisory responsibilities in data strategy and governance, coupled with a solid delivery-lead role and a breadth of data and AI ecosystem expertise.

This is a client-facing, builder's leadership role. You will start with a small, senior team and grow it through technical depth, delivery excellence and thought leadership, rather than inheriting a large organisation to manage. The role is based in Germany and requires regular travel to client sites, up to approximately 50% of your time.

Job responsibilities

• You will collaborate closely with clients to understand their business ecosystem and goals, and co-create data and technology strategies aligned with their objectives.

• You will help define a clear vision for the client enterprise to become data-driven and aligned with the overall business strategy.

• You will consult on complex data programs, providing technical leadership and guidance as a data subject-matter expert.

• You will lead and interact with clients across various domains, addressing challenging problems, and collaborate with sales to turn them into viable solutions and winning proposals.

• You will act as a translator between business, data and IT, and communicate data strategy to senior client stakeholders, including C-level.

• You will own the creation of end-to-end viable data solutions, keeping in mind long-term impacts and overseeing program inceptions for new product development.

• You will be responsible for formulating data governance strategies addressing security, privacy and compliance requirements.

• You will enable capability building in data strategy and governance, growing the next generation of data strategists.

• You will create differentiated assets in data strategy and governance to take to market.

• You lead through influence rather than headcount: growing capability and raising delivery standards inside the organisation, while building our presence in the market through thought leadership, ecosystem initiatives and client-facing points of view.

Job qualifications

Technical Skills

• You have extensive experience as a consultant, with a proven track record of creating data strategy and solutions that drive business value.

• You have solid experience with data platforms and technologies, and can provide advisory and consultative guidance for clients and cross-delivery teams.

• You have experience engaging with C-level stakeholders to influence and enable the operationalization of an enterprise-wide data strategy.

• You have demonstrated leadership abilities, with the capacity to lead technical teams and drive projects to successful completion.

• You are flexible and adaptable across a variety of projects, leveraging technical expertise and leadership to maximise impact.

• You have a track record of ensuring proper data governance policies, including data lineage, quality checks and classification.

• You have experience with AI and ML use cases and landscapes and can influence the build of the right solutions to harness insights from data.

• You have experience building high-level solution frameworks, leveraging paradigms such as data-as-a-product and federated governance where needed.

• You have professional working proficiency in German (B2 minimum, C1 strongly preferred) and can build consensus with mostly technical stakeholders. Exceptional candidates with outstanding data and AI consulting credentials may be considered where German is not yet at this level.

Professional Skills

• You have worked in a consultancy or professional-services environment within the last five years, driving data and AI engagements end to end (recent examples matter more than historical ones).

• You can point to data and AI pursuits you helped win and shape within the last three to five years, including deals from around €3M upwards, and you can speak concretely to their commercial shape, trade-offs and delivery.

• You have grown a practice, capability or go-to-market asset, for example a reusable accelerator taken to market, combining solutioning, sales and delivery with tangible business outcomes.

• You stay conversant with the technology and hands-on enough in at least one relevant area to earn technical credibility with client and delivery teams, while leading primarily on strategy and advisory.

• You bring significant hands-on and leadership experience in data and AI (typically 10+ years) and, above all, the appetite to keep building: growing accounts, teams and capability rather than only overseeing them.

Other things to know

Learning & Development

There is no one-size-fits-all career path at Thoughtworks: however you want to develop your career is entirely up to you. But we also balance autonomy with the strength of our cultivation culture. This means your career is supported by interactive tools, numerous development programs and teammates who want to help you grow. We see value in helping each other be our best and that extends to empowering our employees in their career journeys.

Responsible Use of AI in Recruitment

At Thoughtworks, we use AI tools to support our recruitment team with administrative tasks such as drafting communications, scheduling interviews and writing job descriptions.

Crucially, our AI tools do not screen, assess, rank or make hiring decisions. Every application is reviewed by our team and all selection decisions are made exclusively by our interviewers and hiring managers.

We are committed to fairness and responsible AI. We actively manage our AI systems by testing, monitoring for biased outcomes and implementing mitigation measures. We hold our third-party vendors to these same high standards through a rigorous governance process. For additional information, please see our full Thoughtworks AI Policy for Recruitment.

About Thoughtworks

Thoughtworks is a dynamic and inclusive community of bright and supportive colleagues who are revolutionizing tech. As a leading technology consultancy, we’re pushing boundaries through our purposeful and impactful work. For 30+ years, we’ve delivered extraordinary impact together with our clients by helping them solve complex business problems with technology as the differentiator. Bring your brilliant expertise and commitment for continuous learning to Thoughtworks. Together, let’s be extraordinary. #LI-Remote See here our AI policy.