Company Overview
Our client is a high-profile public-sector statutory body focused on large-scale national strategic planning, regulatory policy insights, and long-term socio-economic transformation. Operating at the core of Ireland's long-range strategic roadmaps, the organisation produces authoritative evidence, econometric models, and analytics that guide government policy and community-wide infrastructural investment. They are recognized for technical rigor, cross-sector collaboration, and a forward-looking commitment to modernising core digital and analytical assets.
Job Overview
Our client is seeking an experienced Software Engineer (Data Systems & Core Modelling Architecture) to join their central Data and Insights function on an 18-month contract.
In this position, you will lead the modernization, modularization, and back-end scalability of a high-visibility, national-scale computational framework. You will engineer clean back-end architecture to connect enterprise databases with scientific simulation libraries, automate complex data pipelines, and lay the foundation for an extensible, modular codebase designed for wide stakeholder use.
- Location: Dublin or Cork (Blended working model: minimum 2 days per week on-site)
- Tenure: 18-month fixed-term contract
- Annual Leave: 27 days per year (exclusive of public holidays)
Core Tech Stack
- Languages: Python, Julia, SQL
- Databases: PostgreSQL (Relational & Object-Relational)
- Data Processing & Scientific Libraries: Python scientific/data analysis ecosystem (e.g., pandas, NumPy, SciPy)
- Infrastructure & Compute: Cloud data processing services (Microsoft Azure or similar), Virtual Machines, Cloud Object Storage
- Version Control & DevOps: Git, GitHub
- Visualization & Front-End: Dashboarding & validation UI tools
Responsibilities
- Back-End Development: Lead the design and implementation of a production-level Python codebase engineered to query, manipulate, and pass complex objects between relational databases and advanced computational libraries written in Python or Julia.
- Database Architecture: Design, optimize, and maintain a new PostgreSQL relational database tailored for multi-layered input assumptions, high-volume parameters, and projection outputs.
- Application & Visualization Tools: Develop lightweight application interfaces and visualization tools to evaluate, validate, and compare alternative scenario simulation outputs.
- Analytical Tooling Enhancement: Build and refine analytical utilities using Python and Julia, ensuring adherence to modern engineering best practices, modular structures, and comprehensive documentation.
- Data Pipeline Engineering: Ingest, clean, and integrate heterogeneous institutional and external data sources to generate robust inputs for simulation and scenario calculations.
- Quality Assurance & Standards: Implement disciplined software lifecycle workflows, including comprehensive testing suites, strict version control, code reviews, and CI/CD practices to guarantee reproducible results.
- Compute Infrastructure: Specify and deploy scalable cloud storage and compute environments (e.g., virtual machines and cloud-native services) for data retrieval and analytical pipelines.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with multidisciplinary research leads, data scientists, and external stakeholders, representing technical deliverables in industry and inter-agency forums.
Requirements
Essential Criteria
- Education: Postgraduate qualification (Level 9 on the National Framework of Qualifications - NFQ) in Computer Science, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Engineering, Science, or Economics.
- Experience: Minimum 4 years of hands-on professional experience in software development, data engineering, or production data science, including demonstrated experience operating as a software engineer.
- Back-End Python Fluency: Proven experience writing production-grade modules and libraries in Python (or similar) from scratch, with a focus on back-end development without reliance on generative assistants.
- Database & SQL Proficiency: Strong hands-on background in relational schema design and complex SQL queries in PostgreSQL (or similar), including automated data pipelines and Python database integrations.
- Application Visualization: Experience building functional user interfaces or interactive visualization utilities to validate and inspect complex database-backed analytical outputs.
- Source Control & Engineering Rigor: Extensive practical background using Git and GitHub, combined with formal documentation methodologies and automated unit/integration testing.
- Complex Data Analysis: Proven track record analyzing multi-faceted, high-dimensional datasets and communicating technical results effectively to non-technical audiences.
- Work Authorization: Must hold valid eligibility to live and work in the Republic of Ireland for the entire 18-month contract term.
Desirable Criteria
- Passion for open-source frameworks, lean code design, and platform-agnostic architecture.
- Working knowledge of or direct development experience with Julia.
- Hands-on exposure to cloud data architectures and services (e.g., Microsoft Azure or equivalent).
- Experience handling time-series, statistical, or predictive scenario data models.
- Track record of introducing and mentoring teams on modern software engineering standards.
- Familiarity with public-sector operational environments or working proficiency in the Irish language.
Feel Free to Apply Below
If you are a talented software engineer ready to architect high-performance data systems that underpin critical national decision-making, we want to hear from you.
Submit your CV and contact details below to be considered by our recruitment team for this 18-month assignment with our client.
