Data Architect / Database Migration Engineer – Data Center Migration
Project Type | Legacy data center to new on-premises data center migration |
Role Level | Mid-career / senior hands-on individual contributor or technical lead |
Primary Focus | Design, migrate, validate, optimize, and stabilize SQL Server-centric databases across on-premises data centers. |
About the Role
As a Data Architect / Database Migration Engineer, you will be a hands-on technical contributor responsible for database architecture, migration execution, data integrity, performance, security, and operational readiness as business-critical applications move from a legacy on-premises data center to a new on-premises data center.
This project is primarily a data center relocation and infrastructure migration with minimal application refactoring. However, the move creates an opportunity to improve database documentation, performance, backup and recovery practices, monitoring, operational processes, and selected areas of technical debt without creating unnecessary modernization scope.
What You'll Do
Assess current-state SQL Server databases, schemas, stored procedures, indexes, jobs, integrations, dependencies, data movement patterns, backup/recovery procedures, and operational runbooks.
Design target-state database architecture for the new data center, including configuration, connectivity, security, high availability, replication, monitoring, and supportability requirements.
Plan and execute database migration activities including discovery, dependency mapping, migration sequencing, backup/restore, replication, validation, reconciliation, cutover, rollback, and stabilization.
Develop SQL scripts, stored procedure updates, validation routines, reconciliation queries, automation scripts, and migration documentation.
Partner with application developers, QA, infrastructure, security, monitoring, and operations teams to ensure database readiness and application compatibility.
Use Jira for migration tasks, defects, documentation, traceability, and status reporting; use ServiceNow for change and operational workflows.
Required Qualifications
Deep expertise with Microsoft SQL Server, SQL Server databases, SQL stored procedures, T-SQL, query tuning, indexing, schema design, and SQL programming.
Experience with data validation, reconciliation, backup/recovery, rollback planning, performance tuning, and production support.
Experience with database dependencies across applications, batch jobs, reporting, APIs, integrations, and operational processes.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience in fintech, payments, banking, accounting, or regulated environments.
Experience with PowerBuilder, VB6, .NET, Java, VBS macros, and database-heavy legacy applications.
Core Technology Environment
Jira for Agile delivery, backlog, defects, traceability, and reporting
Splunk, Dynatrace, and Moogsoft for observability, monitoring, alerting, and event correlation
.NET, C#, VB.NET, Java, PowerBuilder, VB6, VBS macros
Success in the First 12 Months
Improve SQL Server performance, reliability, documentation, monitoring, and operational supportability.
Ideal Candidate
A hands-on data architect and database migration engineer with deep SQL Server and SQL programming expertise who can safely move complex enterprise databases between on-premises data centers while improving performance, integrity, documentation, and operational resilience.
Work Authorization