Lead Databricks Data Security Engineer

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Lead Databricks Data Security Engineer based in the United States.

• Lead the architecture and implementation of role-based access control (RBAC) and attribute-based access control (ABAC) within Databricks Unity Catalog.
• Define scalable data access models, including data structures, permissions, tagging standards, dynamic views, row-level security, and column-level masking.
• Establish and evolve identity governance for the Databricks environment, including service principals, workload identities, SCIM, and integration with enterprise identity providers.
• Translate regulatory, contractual, security, and compliance requirements into practical technical controls and enforceable platform policies.
• Develop and maintain data classification frameworks and tagging structures that enable consistent and scalable access governance.
• Implement Databricks grants, catalogs, tags, access controls, and policies as code using Terraform and/or Databricks Asset Bundles.
• Build automation and controls that support version management, audit readiness, repeatability, and secure deployment practices.
• Partner with workspace administrators and platform engineers to align workspace, compute, secrets, networking, and identity controls with the overall data security architecture.
• Create reusable guardrails, templates, and workflows that enable data engineering teams to manage access efficiently while maintaining strong security standards.
• Provide technical leadership and guidance as the data security function evolves, balancing enterprise security requirements with usability and engineering efficiency.
• Use Python and SQL to automate security processes, monitoring, compliance activities, and operational workflows.

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline with at least 8 years of experience as a Software Engineer or Data Engineer, with significant focus on data platform security and security automation; alternatively, a master’s degree with at least 6 years of relevant experience.
• At least 2 years of hands-on experience implementing Databricks Unity Catalog security capabilities.
• Demonstrated expertise designing and implementing RBAC and ABAC models at scale.
• Strong practical experience with Unity Catalog grants, dynamic views, row-level filtering, column-level filtering, and data masking.
• Fluency with identity and federation concepts, including SCIM, service principals, workload identities, and integration with enterprise identity providers such as Microsoft Entra ID.
• Experience applying infrastructure-as-code practices to Databricks security, access, tagging, and policy management, preferably using Terraform.
• Strong proficiency in Python and SQL for automation, monitoring, security operations, and compliance.
• Ability to translate complex security, regulatory, and contractual requirements into scalable technical solutions.
• Strong understanding of data classification, access governance, identity management, and security automation.
• Ability to operate effectively across data engineering, platform engineering, security, and enterprise stakeholder groups.
• Strong technical leadership, problem-solving, communication, and collaboration skills.
• Ability to work independently while establishing engineering standards and driving security initiatives across a complex technical environment.
• Ability to obtain a government security clearance is preferred.
• A master’s degree is preferred.
• Full-time onsite work in Falls Church, Virginia, is preferred, although full-time remote work is available.

• Competitive base salary range of $142,200–$213,200, depending on responsibilities, experience, education, skills, and market conditions.
• Potential eligibility for additional compensation, including overtime, shift differentials, and discretionary bonuses, depending on position requirements.
• Health insurance coverage.
• Life and disability insurance.
• Savings and retirement benefits.
• Paid company holidays.
• Paid time off (PTO) for vacation and personal business.
• Flexible work arrangements, including the option for full-time telework.
• Opportunities to work with modern cloud data, security, automation, and infrastructure technologies.
• Exposure to complex enterprise-scale data security initiatives and cross-functional technical programs.
• Opportunities for continued professional development and career growth.