Sr Technical Data Security Architect- Remote (Anywhere in the U.S.)

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced and strategic Senior Technical Data Security Architect to join our growing data platform team. In this highly visible role, you will be responsible for designing, implementing, and governing enterprise-grade data security frameworks across the Microsoft data ecosystem and Databricks lakehouse platform. You will serve as the authoritative technical expert on data protection, privacy, access governance, and compliance, partnering closely with engineering, architecture, and business stakeholders to embed security by design at every layer of the data stack.

Key Responsibilities

Data Security Architecture & Strategy

• Design and maintain end-to-end data security architecture across Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Fabric, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Lake Storage (ADLS Gen2), and Databricks Lakehouse Platform.
• Define and enforce enterprise data classification, labeling, and handling standards aligned with Microsoft Purview Information Protection.
• Develop reference architectures and security blueprints for data ingestion, transformation, storage, and consumption layers.
• Lead threat modeling sessions for data pipelines and analytics workloads, identifying and mitigating risks proactively.
• Establish a Zero Trust data security model across all data platforms and integration points.

Microsoft Data Technologies - Security Focus

• Architect and govern data security controls within Microsoft Fabric, including workspace-level and item-level permissions, sensitivity labels, and OneLake security.
• Design role-based access control (RBAC) and attribute-based access control (ABAC) strategies across Azure Data Factory, Azure Synapse, Azure Databricks, and Azure SQL.
• Implement and operationalize Microsoft Purview for data catalog governance, data lineage, and automated sensitivity classification across hybrid and multi-cloud data estates.
• Configure and manage Azure Private Endpoints, VNet integration, and network security groups for data services to eliminate public exposure.
• Oversee encryption strategies including Azure Key Vault integration, customer-managed keys (CMK), and data-at-rest / data-in-transit encryption standards.
• Partner with identity teams to enforce Entra ID Conditional Access policies, Privileged Identity Management (PIM), and managed identities for data service authentication.
• Lead the implementation and tuning of Microsoft Defender for Cloud data security posture management (DSPM) capabilities.

Databricks Security Architecture

• Architect and implement Unity Catalog as the enterprise-wide data governance layer across Databricks workspaces, including metastore design, catalog/schema/table-level permissions, and row/column-level security.
• Design Databricks workspace security including network isolation (no-public-IP, vNet injection, private link), cluster policies, and IP access lists.
• Define and enforce Databricks credential passthrough, service principal governance, and OAuth integration with Azure Entra ID.
• Implement dynamic data masking and column-level security policies within Unity Catalog to protect PII, PHI, and sensitive financial data.
• Establish Delta Lake security patterns including table ACLs, fine-grained access control, and audit logging strategies via Databricks system tables.
• Oversee the security of Databricks workflows, notebooks, and job clusters, including secrets management integration with Azure Key Vault-backed secret scopes.
• Conduct security reviews of MLflow models and Feature Store configurations to address data leakage risks in ML pipelines.

Compliance, Audit & Risk Management

• Ensure data platform compliance with relevant regulatory frameworks including GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI-DSS where applicable.
• Design and maintain audit trail and data access logging architectures across Microsoft and Databricks platforms.
• Conduct regular security risk assessments, gap analyses, and maturity evaluations of the data security program.
• Develop and maintain security runbooks, policies, and standards documentation for data platform operations.
• Coordinate with legal, compliance, and privacy teams to respond to data subject access requests (DSARs) and regulatory inquiries.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Leadership

• Serve as the primary security advisor to data engineering, analytics engineering, and BI teams throughout the development lifecycle.
• Lead security architecture review boards for new data initiatives, third-party data integrations, and major platform changes.
• Develop and lead a structured mentoring program for junior and mid-level engineers and architects, providing one-on-one coaching, career guidance, and skills development roadmaps tailored to each individual’s growth goals.
• Conduct regular knowledge-sharing sessions, lunch-and-learns, and internal workshops to upskill teams on evolving data security threats, tooling, and compliance requirements across the Microsoft and Databricks ecosystems.
• Partner with engineering managers and HR to define data security competency frameworks, leveling guides, and certification pathways that support talent development and retention across the data platform organization.
• Establish and maintain a community of practice around data security, fostering peer learning, documentation culture, and cross-team collaboration on shared security challenges and architectural patterns.
• Collaborate with SecOps and SOC teams to build data-specific detection rules, incident response playbooks, and forensic investigation capabilities.
• Present security posture, risk findings, and remediation roadmaps to executive leadership and board-level stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in data engineering, data architecture, or information security, with at least 5 years focused on data security architecture.
• Deep hands-on expertise with Microsoft Azure data services: Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Factory, Azure SQL Database, and Microsoft Fabric.
• Demonstrated expertise in designing and implementing Databricks Unity Catalog, including workspace federation, metastore design, and fine-grained access control.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Purview, including data map configuration, classification rules, sensitivity labels, and policy enforcement.
• Expert-level knowledge of Azure identity and access management: Entra ID, Managed Identities, Conditional Access, PIM, and service principal governance.
• Hands-on experience with Azure Key Vault, customer-managed encryption keys, and secrets management integration with data platforms.
• Solid understanding of data governance frameworks and data security principles including Zero Trust, least privilege, and data minimization.
• Experience with regulatory compliance programs (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, SOC 2, PCI-DSS) as applied to data platforms.
• Proficiency in SQL and at least one programming/scripting language (Python, PySpark, PowerShell, or Terraform) used for security automation.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to articulate complex security concepts to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated experience securing data workloads across multi-cloud environments (Azure, AWS, and/or GCP), including cross-cloud data governance, identity federation, and consistent enforcement of security policies across heterogeneous cloud estates.
• Hands-on experience with Snowflake data security, including Snowflake RBAC/DAC models, column-level and row-level security policies, dynamic data masking, network policies, Private Link configuration, and Snowflake Data Sharing governance controls.
• Proven ability to support presales activities, including leading technical discovery sessions, contributing to RFP/RFI responses, delivering solution demonstrations, and authoring security architecture sections of client-facing proposals and statements of work.

Preferred Qualifications

• Active certifications: Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate (AZ-500), Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Engineer Associate (DP-203), Databricks Certified Data Engineer Professional, or equivalent CISSP / CISM.
• Experience with Microsoft Sentinel for SIEM integration with data platform audit logs and anomaly detection.
• Familiarity with Databricks Delta Sharing, Cleanroom, and cross-cloud governance patterns.
• Experience with infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, Bicep) for automated, policy-compliant data platform deployments.
• Background in data mesh or federated data governance operating models.
• Exposure to AI/ML security considerations including model governance, training data security, and responsible AI frameworks within Azure ML or Databricks.
• Experience in financial services, healthcare, or other highly regulated industries.

Technical Skills Summary