Associate Data Engineer

About AffirmedRx

AffirmedRx is dedicated to enhancing healthcare outcomes by making pharmacy benefit management transparent, trustworthy, and easy to access. Our mission emphasizes clarity in business practices, clinical leadership, and cutting-edge technology to serve employers and the people they impact.

Role Overview

The Associate Data Engineer will be responsible for ensuring the smooth operation and performance of AffirmedRx's Snowflake data warehouse and associated upstream data ingestion pipelines. This role involves close monitoring of data loads, file ingestion, transformation workflows, and troubleshooting any data issues that arise. Reporting to the Data Warehouse Manager, the engineer will assist in growing and improving the data infrastructure through tasks such as building new tables, developing dbt models, automating workflows, and enhancing monitoring processes. Acting as a backup to the Senior Data Warehouse Engineer, this position supports continuity of critical operations and aims to reduce individual dependency on key personnel.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee daily Snowflake data loads, confirm file arrivals, and validate error-free processing.
• Manage drop-zone, upload-zone, data lake, and SFTP file transfers utilizing tools like Couchdrop and Azure Data Factory; troubleshoot any transfer issues.
• Respond promptly and thoroughly to file failures, load errors, and data quality problems; escalate when necessary with data engineering, pre-processing teams, or IT.
• Implement and maintain file-level monitoring and alerting systems based on expected vs. received files and validation checks.
• Serve as trained backup for essential data warehouse operations to ensure uninterrupted delivery during absences or peak workloads.
• Document existing pipelines, schedules, and troubleshooting protocols to facilitate process reproducibility and reduce reliance on individual accounts.
• Support recurring client and regulatory data deliverables on a shared and documented timetable.
• Build and maintain Snowflake tables, views, and dbt models, supporting data modeling efforts for analytics and reporting.
• Develop crawlers, validators, and rules for file acceptance and rejection; contribute to automating manual file operations.
• Assist with Snowflake administration adhering to security standards, including roles and grants, MFA policies, storage configurations, and backup strategies.
• Perform quality assurance on loaded data and reconcile discrepancies before data release to ensure accuracy.
• Maintain comprehensive documentation covering pipelines, data sources, operational schedules, and standard operating procedures.
• Collaborate effectively with data engineering, pre-processing, analytics, and IT/security teams to clarify requirements and transition work to production smoothly.

Required Qualifications and Skills

• Bachelor's degree in a quantitative or technical discipline such as Computer Science, Information Systems, Data Science, or Engineering, or equivalent practical experience.
• 1 to 3 years of professional experience with SQL and cloud data warehouse platforms; Snowflake experience preferred.
• Proficient in SQL querying and familiar with data warehouse environments, ideally Snowflake or similar technologies.
• Comfortable working with data files and pipelines involving CSV/flat files, SFTP protocols, encryption concepts like PGP, and resolving file/load issues.
• Highly detail-oriented with a strong commitment to documentation and operational reliability; adept at following runbooks and escalating issues responsibly.
• Willingness to participate in on-call rotations for supporting time-sensitive data loads and deliverables.
• Experience or exposure to dbt, Python scripting for data tasks, Azure Data Factory and storage solutions, and file automation tools like Couchdrop.
• Knowledge of data modeling, data vault architecture, and warehouse monitoring and alert systems.
• Prior exposure to healthcare, pharmacy benefit management, claims, or eligibility data is advantageous, including knowledge of PHI and HIPAA requirements.
• Familiarity with pharmacy data terminologies such as NDC codes, eligibility criteria, accumulators, and formulary concepts is a plus.
• Ability to work remotely with a reliable internet connection and appropriate home office setup.
• Available to provide occasional off-hours support for critical data processing and incident responses.
• Willingness and capability to travel 10% to 20% as needed.

Compensation and Benefits

• Opportunity to contribute significantly to transformative changes within the pharmacy benefits management industry, enhancing patient outcomes.
• Engagement in a collaborative culture that prioritizes team well-being and success as keys to organizational growth.
• Competitive salary package alongside comprehensive benefits, including health, dental, and vision coverage.

Additional Information

AffirmedRx values equal employment opportunities for all candidates. Remote employees are expected to maintain a professional and distraction-free workspace to ensure optimal performance and collaboration.