Engineering Manager, Data Platform

Schibsted Marketplaces is transforming the way people consume goods and services with some of the strongest brands Like FINN, Blocket, Tori, DBA & Bilbasen in the Nordics

The Data & Productivity Platform Team is part of the the Foundation unit, which designed to empower Schibsted Marketplaces providing essential Technology shared services and fostering innovation.

In the Data Platform area within the Data & Productivity Platforms, the focus is on enabling self-serve data management, discovery, and utilisation of data across the organisation. This area provides the foundational capabilities that allow various teams to seamlessly access, manage, and leverage data for analytics, AI development, personalisation, and advertising.The platform capabilities primarily serves internal teams by enabling them to unlock the value of data in a scalable and efficient manner.

We are looking for an Engineering Manager to join us and help drive the strategy, development, and success of these data platform capabilities. You will play a key role in ensuring our Verticals can fully harness the potential of data to fuel business growth and innovation.

Position Overview:

We are seeking an experienced Engineering Manager to lead our Data Accessibility team. You will be responsible for leading a team of engineers dedicated to ensuring seamless data access across the organisation while managing Apache Kafka infrastructure, on Confluent Cloud, for reliable real-time data streaming. This role will focus on optimising data accessibility strategies, administering Kafka and Confluent Cloud environments, and ensuring high availability, scalability, and security. The manager will also drive process improvements, foster cross-functional collaboration, and support the organisation’s growth through robust data infrastructure management. This includes overseeing data governance processes, ensuring compliance with privacy and accessibility regulations, and promoting best practices for data accessibility across systems.

You will partner with a Product Manager to align technical execution with product vision, balancing business needs with engineering goals. Your combined leadership will foster a culture of innovation, efficiency, and continuous improvement, ensuring that the team delivers solutions that meet strategic objectives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Leadership & Team Management:
  • As Engineering Manager in the Data Platform Area, you will be part of the operational leadership group that works together with the Product Director and the Engineering Director, coordinating cross-functional efforts, and fostering collaboration between teams to ensure seamless delivery and continuous improvement of the platform
  • Lead and mentor a team of data engineers, Kafka administrators, and specialists in Confluent Cloud and data accessibility.
  • Define team goals, conduct performance reviews, and provide guidance for career development.
  • Foster a collaborative, innovative, and learning-focused team environment.
• Kafka & Confluent Cloud Administration:
  • Oversee the deployment, configuration, and administration of Apache Kafka and Confluent Cloud clusters.
  • Ensure Kafka and Confluent Cloud environments are optimised for performance, scalability, and security.
  • Manage Kafka brokers, topics, partitions, replication, and fine-tune performance on Confluent Cloud.
  • Leverage Confluent Cloud’s tools (e.g., Control Center, Schema Registry, Kafka Connect) for efficient operation and monitoring.
  • Monitor and troubleshoot issues within Kafka/Confluent Cloud environments to maintain high availability.
  • Implement security best practices, including encryption, authentication, and authorisation within Confluent Cloud.
• Data Accessibility:
  • Develop and implement strategies to ensure secure, efficient, and scalable access to enterprise data.
  • Collaborate with Principal Engineers, developers, and business stakeholders to design accessible, high-performance data pipelines.
  • Ensure compliance with data governance and privacy regulations, such as GDPR.
  • Promote and manage self-service data access tools and processes for business users across the organisation.
  • Collaborate with data stewards to ensure that data is properly categorised, structured, and available in formats that enhance usability.
• Infrastructure & Automation:
  • Drive the automation of Kafka infrastructure management and operational tasks on Confluent Cloud, including provisioning, scaling, and monitoring.
  • Work closely with DevOps and CloudOps teams to integrate Kafka/Confluent Cloud with cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP).
  • Implement and maintain monitoring, alerting, and capacity planning solutions specific to Confluent Cloud and Kafka.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration:
  • Partner with product, engineering, and business intelligence teams to understand data needs and prioritise initiatives.
  • Collaborate with security and compliance teams to ensure data accessibility and Kafka environments adhere to security and regulatory standards.
  • Work with data scientists and analysts to enhance data flow, quality, and accessibility.
• Process Improvement & Innovation:
  • Continuously assess and enhance data accessibility processes and Kafka/Confluent Cloud administration practices.
  • Stay updated on the latest advancements in Kafka, Confluent Cloud, and real-time data streaming technologies.
  • Explore opportunities to improve the performance, scalability, and reliability of the Kafka/Confluent Cloud infrastructure.

Technical Expertise:

• Technical understanding of Apache Kafka architecture and experience with Confluent Cloud administration.
• Expertise in Kafka broker, topic, and partition management, including replication and performance tuning.
• Hands-on experience with Confluent Cloud services such as Kafka Connect, Kafka Streams, Schema Registry, and Control Center.
• Proven ability to design and deploy highly available, distributed Kafka clusters and integrate them with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP).

WHAT WE OFFER

We provide an engaging workplace where successes are celebrated, and colleagues support each other. Join us in our modern Oslo office, designed to inspire innovation and collaboration.

Here’s what you can expect:

• Great learning and development opportunities.
• A supportive environment for professional growth—your success is our shared success.

Should you feel this is a good opportunity for you then apply with your resume before the application deadline on 20th Feb 2025