Lead Data Architect

Career Area: Technology, Digital and Data Job Description: Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc. When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other.  We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it. Lead Data Architect Role Summary: We are seeking an experienced Lead Data Architect to define and guide the Power & Energy segment data vision, structure, and standards in close partnership with the Lead Data Engineer. This role is accountable for designing the blueprint of the data ecosystem—ensuring that data is structured, governed, and aligned to business needs—while the engineering team operationalizes and builds the solutions. The ideal candidate brings a balance of strategic thinking, data modeling expertise, and firsthand architectural guidance across modern data platforms.

Data Strategy & Target State Vision Map the current-state data landscape, including systems, flows, redundancies, and gaps. Define and maintain the future-state data architecture vision and roadmap aligned to business strategy. Establish guiding principles for scalable, reusable, and governed data ecosystems. Data Modeling & Architecture Build and maintain conceptual data models that define core business entities and relationships. Guide the development of logical and physical data models in collaboration with engineering teams. Ensure consistent application of industry-standard modeling techniques (e.g., dimensional, data vault) Define canonical data definitions and promote reuse across domains. Solution Design & Engineering Partnership Partner closely with the Lead Data Engineer to translate architecture into implementable solutions. Provide oversight and guidance on end-to-end data solution design, from ingestion through consumption. Ensure architecture decisions support performance, scalability, and extensibility. Review and validate solution designs to ensure alignment with architectural standards. Data Governance & Standards Ensure the right data sources are identified and leveraged for each use case. Enforce alignment with enterprise data standards, governance policies, and security requirements. Promote data quality, consistency, and lineage across the data ecosystem. Define standards for metadata management, data classification, and access controls. Cross-Functional Alignment Collaborate with business stakeholders, analytics teams, and IT to ensure architecture supports business capabilities. Drive alignment across domains to reduce duplication and enable enterprise-wide data consistency. Function as a trusted advisor on data-related decisions and trade-offs. What You Have: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Data Engineering, Software Engineering, or related technical field (or equivalent experience) 12+ years of progressive experience in data, analytics, information architecture, or enterprise technology roles.  4+ years of experience leading enterprise-scale data architecture initiatives across multiple business domains. Deep expertise in enterprise data architecture, data warehousing principles and data modeling (conceptual, logical, physical) Proven experience defining and implementing enterprise data strategies, roadmaps, standards, and governance frameworks.  Experience partnering with executive leadership, business stakeholders, and technology teams to translate business strategy into data architecture solutions. Top Candidates Will Have: Knowledge of Caterpillar's Power & Energy business, including products, customers, operations, and key business processes. Proficiency in at least one programming language (e.g., Python, Java,