Sr Director - Data Engineering

Upwork ($UPWK) is the world’s largest work marketplace, connecting businesses with highly skilled professionals worldwide. From entrepreneurs to Fortune 100 enterprises, companies trust Upwork’s platform to access expert talent, leverage AI-powered work solutions, and drive meaningful business outcomes.

Upwork’s AI-powered platform has facilitated over $20 billion in economic opportunity for professionals worldwide. With professionals spanning 10,000+ skills, including AI and machine learning, software development, sales and marketing, customer support, finance and accounting, and more, Upwork empowers businesses of all sizes to scale, innovate, and build agile teams.

We’re seeking a strategic and visionary Senior Director of Data Engineering to lead the development and evolution of Upwork’s Data Platform team. In this critical leadership role, you’ll be at the forefront of shaping scalable data infrastructure and driving data strategy across the organization. You’ll collaborate cross-functionally with Marketing, Finance, Engineering, AI/ML, and Data Science teams, ensuring our platform delivers high-quality data to power decision-making and innovation. Join us in revolutionizing how data is leveraged across Upwork and making a meaningful impact on our platform and users.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and grow a high-performing data engineering team, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and accountability

• Define the vision, strategy, and execution roadmap for Upwork’s Data Platform to support the company’s growth and analytics needs

• Build and scale reliable, efficient data infrastructure and data processing pipelines that support real-time and batch data workflows

• Collaborate with cross-functional partners in marketing, finance, engineering, and data science to ensure alignment on data priorities and outcomes

• Oversee data governance, quality, and best practices to ensure the availability of accurate, actionable insights

• Drive technical excellence while balancing trade-offs between short-term delivery and long-term platform scalability

• Foster strong communication and coordination across a globally distributed team

What it takes to catch our eye

• Proven experience leading and scaling data engineering or platform engineering teams in high-growth environments

• Experience with key components of modern data ecosystems, including orchestration tools (e.g., DBT, Apache Airflow), scalable data processing (e.g., Apache Spark), and cloud-native data architectures (e.g., AWS, GCP, or Azure)

• Strong technical foundation in building and optimizing ETL/ELT pipelines, working with both SQL and NoSQL databases, and implementing data observability, monitoring, and query performance tuning

• Familiarity with enterprise-grade data platforms and storage solutions, including data lake and warehouse technologies such as Snowflake

• Understanding of machine learning architecture integration within data platforms, supporting experimentation and model deployment workflows

• Strong track record of cross-functional collaboration, particularly with marketing, finance, engineering, and data science

• Experience managing teams distributed across time zones, with a focus on inclusive and effective remote-first practices

• Ability to define a long-term vision for data architecture while ensuring day-to-day operational excellence

Come change how the world works.

At Upwork, you’ll shape the future of work for a global, remote-first workforce, creating economic opportunities for professionals worldwide. While we have a physical office in Palo Alto, we currently hire full-time employees in 21 U.S. states, making it easier than ever to join our mission from wherever you call home.

Our culture is built on trust, risk-taking, customer focus, and excellence, all in service of our core mission: to create economic opportunities so people have better lives. We embrace authenticity and inclusion, encouraging everyone to bring their whole selves to work. Personal and professional growth is a priority here, supported through development programs, mentorship, and our Upwork Belonging Communities.

We’re proud to offer benefits that go beyond the basics, including comprehensive medical coverage for you and your family, unlimited PTO, a 401(k) plan with matching, 12 weeks of paid parental leave, and an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. Visit our Life at Upwork page to learn more about our values, working principles, and the overall employee experience.

Ready to help shape the future of work? Check out our Careers page and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X. to learn more about life at Upwork.

Upwork is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or other legally protected characteristics under federal, state, or local law.

Please note that a criminal background check may be required once a conditional job offer is made. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered in accordance with applicable law, including the California Fair Chance Act and local Fair Chance ordinances.

The annual base salary range for this position  is displayed below. The range displayed reflects the minimum and maximum salary for this position, and individual base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location. Additionally, this position is eligible for the annual bonus plan or sales incentive plan and eligibility to participate in our long term equity incentive program.

Annual Base Compensation

$195,000—$296,000 USD