Organization: Player 15 Group

Position Title: Senior Data Engineer

Reports to: Senior Director, Business Intelligence & Data Strategy

Location: Phoenix, AZ

Search Contact: Prodigy Search

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BACKGROUND

Player 15 Group – the sports and entertainment company behind the Phoenix Suns (NBA), Phoenix Mercury (WNBA), Valley Suns (G League), and Mortgage Matchup Center – is redefining the industry standard for how organizations engage fans, partners, and their communities. Headquartered in downtown Phoenix and reaching audiences around the world, Player 15 Group is driven by possibility, innovation, and a relentless commitment to creating memorable moments on and off the court. The organization’s culture is anchored in purpose-driven leadership and fueled by individuals who bring passion, creativity, and vision to everything they do. By challenging convention, amplifying diverse voices, and crafting experiences that resonate well beyond the final buzzer, Player 15 Group is where talent meets purpose and bold ideas become reality.

SUMMARY

The Senior Data Engineer will be a key architect and builder of Player 15 Group’s modern data ecosystem, advancing the organization’s data infrastructure and playing a critical role in shaping its long-term data strategy. This leader will design, develop, and maintain scalable data pipelines, models, and architectures that power reporting, segmentation, forecasting, pricing, and customer insights across ticketing, marketing, CRM, and partnerships. Working closely with stakeholders across Business Intelligence, Marketing, Ticketing, Partnerships, and Finance, the Senior Data Engineer will translate business needs into robust data engineering solutions. The ideal candidate has deep experience with cloud data warehouses, modern data stack tools, and customer data platforms, and brings a strategic, solutions-oriented mindset to building trustworthy, high-performing data environments that support advanced analytics and business growth.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Architect, develop, and maintain scalable data pipelines leveraging Redshift and other cloud data warehouse technologies to integrate and transform data across ticketing, marketing, CRM, and related platforms.
• Design and maintain data models that power reporting, segmentation, forecasting, pricing, and other analytical use cases across the organization.
• Build and support Segment CDP as the core customer data source, with a focus on identity resolution, audience creation, and data activation across marketing and sales channels.
• Apply well-established and modern hybrid data warehousing methodologies (e.g., Kimball, Inmon, dimensional modeling, star/snowflake schemas) to design scalable, consistent, and business-aligned data structures.
• Establish and enforce standards for data quality, governance, and documentation across the warehouse, integrating anomaly and integrity checks, clear data lineage, and well-defined business logic for all models and transformations.
• Develop and optimize ETL/ELT processes using tools such as dbt, Airflow, and related AWS services to ensure reliable, timely, and efficient data movement.
• Partner with Business Intelligence, Marketing, Ticketing, Partnerships, Finance, and other stakeholders to understand business requirements and translate them into data engineering solutions and data products.
• Architect and optimize data pipelines that power business intelligence tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, Looker), ensuring scalable, trusted, and performant data flows from the warehouse into reporting and extract layers.
• Implement and maintain version control practices (e.g., Git/GitHub) and collaborative development workflows for data engineering projects.
• Monitor and optimize cloud data infrastructure for both cost and performance, recommending and implementing improvements as needed.
• Support AI/ML and predictive analytics initiatives by enabling data access patterns, pipelines, and APIs/microservices that power fan 360 and advanced modeling efforts.
• Contribute to the strategy and execution of migrating workloads from on-premise virtual machines to cloud infrastructure, ensuring stability and scalability throughout the transition.
• Define and track success metrics such as pipeline uptime, data freshness, and activation ROI, using these insights to drive continual improvement.
• Ensure all pipelines, models, and data products align with data privacy and security regulations (e.g., CCPA and GDPR) and collaborate with IT leadership to meet cybersecurity standards.
• Continuously identify opportunities to enhance data infrastructure, tooling, and processes, bringing forward recommendations that support organizational growth and innovation.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years of data engineering experience with a strong focus on cloud data warehouses such as Redshift, Snowflake, Azure, or similar platforms.
• Proven track record designing, building, and maintaining scalable data pipelines and models that support enterprise analytics and business intelligence.
• Hands-on expertise with SQL, Python, and ETL/ELT tools in a production environment.
• Experience with Customer Data Platforms (e.g., Segment, StellarAlgo, KORE Helix, Agilitek Fan Data Platform) including implementation, integration, and downstream activation.
• Strong familiarity with modern data stack tools such as dbt, Airflow, and AWS services, and best practices for data orchestration and workflow management.
• Experience architecting and optimizing data flows into BI tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, Looker) to enable trusted, scalable reporting and self-service analytics.
• Proficiency with version control (Git/GitHub) and collaborative development practices.
• Experience optimizing cloud data infrastructure for both performance and cost efficiency.
• Familiarity with AI/ML pipelines and API/microservices integration to support predictive analytics, personalization, and fan 360 initiatives.
• Experience with on-premise virtual environments and strategies for migrating workloads to cloud-based architectures.
• Awareness of data privacy, security, and compliance considerations, including regulations such as CCPA and GDPR, and their implications for data design.
• Previous experience within the sports, entertainment, or broader consumer ecosystem is preferred.
• Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and ability to communicate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Ability to work non-traditional hours, including evenings and weekends, as needed for games and events, and to move throughout an arena environment for extended periods.

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CONTACT INFORMATION

Founded in 2007, Prodigy Search, located in the New York City suburb of Freehold, NJ, boasts over 80 years of experience in the sports and entertainment business. As a renowned nationwide leader in senior-level executive search, Prodigy Search has honed its business principles and expertise, establishing itself as the largest boutique recruiting agency in North America. We recruit with integrity, purpose, and passion.

No phone calls please. For any additional questions, please email info@prodigysearch.net.