Practice Lead - Data & Analytics

Company Description

WM New Zealand is the leading resource recovery, recycling, and waste management provider. We’re committed to safeguarding our beautiful environment through sustainable management of our valuable resources. Put simply, sustainability is what we do.


Job Description

An opportunity has arisen for a senior data engineer to step into technical leadership as Practice Lead for our Data & Analytics team. The role combines advanced hands-on data engineering with responsibility for technical direction, team leadership, and establishing engineering practices that will scale our data platform.

The position involves serving as the technical authority across our data stack (Snowflake, dbt, Fivetran, Azure), leading a team of data engineers and AI/Application engineers, and building the standards and patterns that enable consistent, high-quality delivery.

Key responsibilities include:

Lead the engineering team: Provide day-to-day direction, coaching, and capability development for data engineers and AI/Application engineers
Set technical standards: Establish and maintain standards for data modelling, code quality, testing, and deployment that the team builds on
Build alongside the team: Contribute as a senior technical practitioner, delivering complex data engineering solutions and data products hands-on
Shape technical architecture: Contribute to the roadmap and design patterns that support platform growth and scalability
Develop team capabilities: Mentor engineers through code reviews, pairing sessions, and hands-on collaboration
Ensure platform reliability: Lead performance optimisation, troubleshooting, and incident response for critical data systems
Implement governance controls: Embed access management, data contracts, lineage, and quality checks through the platform
The role suits someone with deep technical expertise across the modern data stack who is ready to amplify their impact through leadership while staying close to the code.


Qualifications
6+ years of data engineering and analytics experience with demonstrable track record in enterprise environments
Advanced Snowflake expertise including administration, performance tuning, and cost optimization in production environments
Proven dbt proficiency for building and maintaining scalable data transformation workflows
Demonstrated experience in dimensional data modelling using industry-standard methodologies (Kimball, star schema)
DevOps practices experience including CI/CD pipelines, version control, and production deployment processes
Strong leadership and mentoring skills with ability to guide technical teams and foster collaboration
Strong communication skills to translate complex technical concepts to diverse stakeholders

Additional Information
Competitive Salary Package
Valid and rewarding career path
Work Life Balance Initiatives
Professional Development Opportunities
Onsite Café and Carpark
Discounts on various products for you and your family to enjoy
Discounts on Fuel at Z!
To apply for this role click “I'm interested”

Please note - we do not always work to fixed closing dates and may start considering applications as they are received so we encourage you to apply early.

WM is an EEO employer and promotes drug and alcohol-free workplaces.

You must be in New Zealand and hold a current work visa / residency or NZ citizenship.