Sr. Principal - Information Architect

Who are we?

Equinix is the world’s digital infrastructure company®, operating over 260 data centers across the globe. Digital leaders harness Equinix's trusted platform to bring together and interconnect foundational infrastructure at software speed. Equinix enables organizations to access all the right places, partners and possibilities to scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences and multiply their value, while supporting their sustainability goals.

Our culture is based on collaboration and the growth and development of our teams.  We hire hardworking people who thrive on solving challenging problems and give them opportunities to hone new skills and try new approaches, as we grow our product portfolio with new software and network architecture solutions. We embrace diversity in thought and contribution and are committed to providing an equitable work environment that is foundational to our core values as a company and is vital to our success.

We are seeking a Sr. Principal – Information Architect & Data Modeling expert to define, design, and govern our enterprise information architecture. The ideal candidate will be a thought leader who sets industry-aligned standards for data modeling and architecture, driving data interoperability, semantic consistency, and enterprise data governance. This role is central to enabling our cloud-native, AI-enabled data platform vision and ensuring trusted, high-quality data is available for business insights and innovation.

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Data Architecture & Strategy

• Establish and evolve enterprise information architecture frameworks that align with industry standards .
• Define canonical data models (CDM) , shared taxonomies , and reference architectures for use across systems, domains, and APIs.
• Lead the development of enterprise data blueprints for operational, analytical, and AI/ML use cases.
• Drive adoption of data-as-a-product and domain-driven design (DDD) principles to support distributed data ownership.

Data Modeling Excellence

• Set and enforce standards for conceptual, logical, and physical data modeling following best practices (e.g., 3NF, Dimensional Modeling, Data Vault 2.0).
• Lead design reviews to ensure data normalization, referential integrity, metadata completeness , and lineage traceability .
• Champion semantic model design (Looker Modeler / LookML, dbt, Dataform, etc.) for analytics and self-service BI.
• Design and evolve data contracts , ensuring consistency and governance across microservices and data pipelines.

Cloud & Modern Data Platform Enablement

• Architect and oversee cloud-native data solutions on GCP (BigQuery, Dataplex, Dataflow, Pub/Sub, Looker Modeler) or equivalent cloud platforms.
• Ensure alignment of data architecture with MLOps pipelines , real-time data streaming , and AI/ML readiness .
• Promote automation-first approaches for schema management, model validation, and metadata curation.

Data Governance, Compliance & Quality

• Define and implement enterprise data governance standards integrating lineage, stewardship, and data quality KPIs.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory frameworks (e.g., GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA) through model design and data classification strategies.
• Collaborate with Governance and Security teams to embed privacy-by-design and security-by-design principles in data architecture.

Stakeholder Engagement & Influence

• Serve as a key advisor to senior leadership on data architecture decisions and data-driven transformation.
• Partner with engineering, analytics, AI/ML, business, and governance teams to ensure architecture meets evolving needs.
• Translate complex architecture concepts into actionable roadmaps and communicate effectively at all levels of the organization.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Data Science, or related field.
• 12+ years of experience in enterprise data architecture , data modeling , or information architecture , including 3-5 years at a senior principal, chief architect, or equivalent level .
• Strong proficiency in programming languages such as Python, Java, or Scala, and experience with SQL.
• Proven experience in designing and implementing data architectures, ETL processes, and MLOps practices.
• Knowledge of machine learning frameworks (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch) and experience in deploying ML models in production.
• Demonstrated expertise in:
  • Data modeling techniques : relational (3NF), dimensional (Kimball), Data Vault 2.0, hierarchical, NoSQL, graph models.
  • Information architecture frameworks : TOGAF, DAMA-DMBOK, DCAM, CDMC.
  • Cloud-native data architecture : GCP (BigQuery, Dataplex, Dataflow), AWS, or Azure equivalents.
  • Semantic modeling for BI / analytics (Looker Modeler / LookML, dbt, Dataform).
  • Metadata management , data lineage , and master/reference data management (MDM/RDM) .

• Strong knowledge of:
  • Data governance tools (Collibra, Informatica, Dataplex, Alation, etc.).
  • Regulatory compliance (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA) and data privacy principles.
  • Data contracts, API data modeling, and domain-driven design (DDD).

• Experience leading data architecture for:
  • Data lakehouses , data mesh/data fabric architectures , and multi-cloud strategies .
  • Integration of AI/ML solutions into data architectures.
• Exceptional communication, leadership, and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience implementing data products in a data mesh or federated architecture .
• Hands-on experience with modern catalog, lineage, and observability tools .
• Experience with event-driven architectures and real-time data streaming patterns.

What Sets You Apart

• You think strategically while remaining hands-on where needed.
• You balance rigor in data design with pragmatism for fast-changing business needs.
• You bring thought leadership in emerging data architecture trends and future-ready solutions.

Equinix is committed to ensuring that our employment process is open to all individuals, including those with a disability. If you are a qualified candidate and need assistance or an accommodation, please let us know by completing this form .

Equinix is an Equal Employment Opportunity and, in the U.S., an Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to unlawful consideration of race, color, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, place of birth, citizenship, sex, pregnancy / childbirth or related medical conditions, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or domestic partnership status, age, veteran or military status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, political / organizational affiliation, status as a victim or family member of a victim of crime or abuse, or any other status protected by applicable law.