Director of Data Engineering

Company Description

Depop is the community-powered circular fashion marketplace where anyone can buy, sell and discover desirable secondhand fashion. With a community of over 35 million users, Depop is on a mission to make fashion circular, redefining fashion consumption. Founded in 2011, the company is headquartered in London, with offices in New York and Manchester, and in 2021 became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Etsy. Find out more at www.depop.com 

Our mission is to make fashion circular and to create an inclusive environment where everyone is welcome, no matter who they are or where they’re from. Just as our platform connects people globally, we believe our workplace should reflect the diversity of the communities we serve. We thrive on the power of different perspectives and experiences, knowing they drive innovation and bring us closer to our users. We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer, providing employment opportunities without regard to age, ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy or maternity, marriage and civil partnership, or any other protected status. We’re continuously evolving our recruitment processes to ensure fairness and are open to accommodating any needs you might have.

If, due to a disability, you need adjustments to complete the application, please let us know by sending an email with your name, the role to which you would like to apply, and the type of support you need to complete the application to adjustments@depop.com. For any other non-disability related questions, please reach out to our Talent Partners.

The Role

We are seeking a visionary and technically adept Director of Data Engineering to lead our data engineering initiatives at Depop, as we are at a growth point where we want a step change in the performance of our data. We want insights globalised to the whole business by default, clear and incentivised data ownership and a valuable data catalogue.

We are looking for a customer-centric leader, who measures success in the daily active users of their data products, as well as accuracy and compliance. We want a strategy for low- and high-intent data discovery that prioritises knowledge sharing and resilient data models.

You will lead multiple squads responsible for critical components of our data ecosystem, including experimentation, analytics event logging, our batch data platform on Databricks, Kafka/Avro-based real-time infrastructure, and our analytics engineering platform, which leverages dbt. Your role will be essential in improving self-service capabilities for all users of our data infrastructure, enhancing data quality, and ensuring the usability of our core data sets.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership:

  • Develop and implement the data engineering strategy, ensuring alignment with Depop’s business goals.

  • Lead and mentor 3-4 squads responsible for experimentation, analytics event logging, batch data platform, real-time infrastructure, and analytics engineering.

• Technical Oversight:

  • Oversee and optimise our data infrastructure, including Databricks (Spark/Spark SQL), Kafka/Avro, and dbt-driven data pipelines.

  • Drive initiatives to improve data quality, usability, and the self-service experience for engineers.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration:

  • Partner with Data Science, Insights, and Engineering teams to ensure data solutions meet their needs.

  • Advocate for best practices in data governance, security, and compliance.

• Innovation and Continuous Improvement:

  • Evaluate and implement new technologies to improve data processing, storage, and accessibility.

  • Cultivate a culture of experimentation and continuous improvement within the data engineering team.

Qualifications:

• Experience & Expertise:

  • Experience in data engineering, within a leadership or managerial role overseeing multiple teams or squads.

  • Strong expertise in data infrastructure, including experience with Databricks, Apache Spark, Spark SQL, Kafka, Avro, and dbt.

  • Demonstrated success in managing data platforms at scale, including both batch processing and real-time streaming architectures.

  • Deep understanding of data warehousing concepts, ETL/ELT processes, and analytics engineering.

  • Strong programming skills, particularly in Python, Scala, or Java, and a solid understanding of cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure).

• Leadership & Management:

  • Experience in hiring, mentoring, and developing managers and senior individual contributors.

  • Strong leadership skills with a track record of building and nurturing high-performing, collaborative teams.

  • Ability to inspire and influence teams, driving alignment with organisational goals and encouraging a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.

• Collaboration & Communication:

  • Experience working closely with data science, analytics, and engineering teams to deliver impactful data solutions.

  • Excellent communication skills, with the ability to influence and align diverse stakeholders around a common data strategy.

Additional Information

Health + Mental Wellbeing

• PMI and cash plan healthcare access with Bupa

• Subsidised counselling and coaching with Self Space

• Cycle to Work scheme with options from Evans or the Green Commute Initiative

• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for 24/7 confidential support

• Mental Health First Aiders across the business for support and signposting

Work/Life Balance:

• 25 days annual leave with option to carry over up to 5 days

• 1 company-wide day off per quarter

• Impact hours: Up to 2 days additional paid leave per year for volunteering

• Fully paid 4 week sabbatical after completion of 5 years of consecutive service with Depop, to give you a chance to recharge or do something you love.

• Flexible Working: MyMode hybrid-working model with Flex, Office Based, and Remote options *role dependant

• All offices are dog-friendly

• Ability to work abroad for 4 weeks per year in UK tax treaty countries

Family Life:

• 18 weeks of paid parental leave for full-time regular employees

• IVF leave, shared parental leave, and paid emergency parent/carer leave

Learn + Grow:

• Budgets for conferences, learning subscriptions, and more

• Mentorship and programmes to upskill employees

Your Future:

• Life Insurance (financial compensation of 3x your salary)

• Pension matching up to 6% of qualifying earnings

Depop Extras:

• Employees enjoy free shipping on their Depop sales within the UK.

• Special milestones are celebrated with gifts and rewards!