Founding Data Engineer - Digital & Innovation
Founding Data Engineer – Digital & Innovation
Permanent, Full- time
Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Dunedin
Who we are | Ko wai mātou:
Awanui Group, New Zealand's largest human and veterinary pathology network, with 25 laboratories, 150 collection centres, and over 2,200 dedicated employees across New Zealand, we are committed to delivering world-class service, collecting, analysing, and reporting over 7 million patient results annually.
About the role | Mō te tūranga:
Awanui is at a pivotal stage in its digital and innovation journey, with a focus on unlocking greater value from its data, improving access to trusted insights, and enabling scalable analytics and future GenAI capabilities. This role will help accelerate that journey by building strong, practical data foundations that enable better and faster decision-making across the business.
Reporting to the Chief Digital Officer, the Founding Data Engineer plays a key hands-on role in establishing Awanui’s modern data capability. Working across business and technology teams, the role designs and delivers scalable data pipelines, models, and curated datasets that turn complex data into reliable, usable insights. Partnering closely with the Digital Transformation Lead and wider teams, the role translates business needs into practical data solutions and ensures data is structured, accessible, and fit for purpose.
This role can be based in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Dunedin.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design, build, and maintain data pipelines, models, and curated datasets that support reliable access to trusted data.
- Integrate data from multiple systems into consistent, scalable, and well-structured data solutions.
- Translate business needs into practical data products, models, and insights that enable decision-making.
- Develop and maintain modern data engineering standards, practices, and lightweight governance to ensure quality and scalability.
- Collaborate across business, IT, and operational teams to align data solutions with organisational priorities.
- Support the development of a scalable data platform that enables analytics, reporting, and future GenAI capability.
About you | He kōrero mōu
To be successful in this role you need to have:
You are an experienced, hands-on data engineer who is confident working across business and technology teams to turn complex data into reliable, scalable, and usable insights. You thrive in environments where you can bring structure to ambiguity, build practical solutions, and support better decision making through data.
- Experience designing and building data pipelines, integrations, and transformation processes in modern data environments.
- Strong SQL and data engineering skills with the ability to work across multiple systems and data sources.
- Experience developing data models and curated datasets that support analytics and reporting needs.
- Ability to work closely with stakeholders to understand data requirements and translate them into practical solutions.
- Strong problem-solving skills with a focus on data quality, reliability, and performance.
- Ability to work in fast-moving environments, balancing pragmatism with engineering best practice.
- Understanding of modern data engineering principles, cloud platforms, and scalable data architecture.
- Interest in emerging data technologies, analytics, and AI-driven capabilities.
- Eligibility to work in New Zealand.
What’s in it for you | He aha mōu:
Joining Awanui Group means becoming part of a supportive and inclusive work environment that values the growth, work-life balance, and personal well-being of its employees. As part of our close-knit team, you will have the opportunity to showcase your initiative, collaboration, and resilience.
Our mission is to provide accurate medical expertise to every person, every day, and you can be a part of this meaningful endeavour. Explore excellent opportunities to enhance your skills with our in-house Learning & Development team, ensuring your professional competency and career growth.
Our three core values guide us in creating an inclusive and respected workplace where everyone can thrive and make a meaningful difference:
- Manaakitanga - We Care for each other and the people we serve.
- Whakapakari - We Improve and adapt to create opportunities for success.
- Hiranga - We Deliver the highest quality medical and scientific expertise
Don't miss this opportunity to contribute to a leading healthcare organisation! Apply now with your CV and a cover letter.
Application closes 28 July 2026