Suggested rewrite: Led a cross-functional initiative that improved [business outcome] by [measurable result], demonstrating experience relevant to this role...
Solutions Architect – Retail, Consumer Goods, Travel & Hospitality
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The role, at a glance.
Databricks seeks a senior Solutions Architect to own technical strategy and platform adoption for customers in retail, consumer goods, travel, and hospitality. The role combines pre-sales architecture leadership with hands-on solution development across data engineering, streaming, ML/AI, analytics, cloud infrastructure, security, and governance. The architect will lead design discussions with senior customer stakeholders, demonstrate differentiated Databricks solutions, and coordinate internal specialists and partners. Success requires strong Python and SQL skills, live coding ability, production cloud experience, and the capacity to translate technical trade-offs into business value.
Role DNA
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Pace & Pressure
5/5Autonomy Level
5/5Communication Load
5/5Salary analysis
Estimated compensation compared with the broader US market for similar roles.
Core skills
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Sample interview questions
I would begin with business outcomes, latency targets, data sources, volumes, and governance requirements. I would propose an ingestion layer using structured streaming, a medallion-style lakehouse design with Delta tables, quality controls and observability, and curated serving layers for analytics and ML use cases. I would validate security, cost, recovery, and operational ownership before piloting the highest-value workflow.
I would frame the decision around the customer's required outcomes rather than product features alone. I would document technical and operational trade-offs, build a focused proof of value using representative workloads, and quantify factors such as performance, governance, developer productivity, and total operating cost. This approach gives stakeholders an evidence-based path to select the platform that best supports their strategy.
I describe it as a unified data foundation that reduces the cost and complexity of maintaining separate systems for reporting, data engineering, and AI. I connect the architecture to executive outcomes such as faster decisions, more reliable data, shorter time to production, and stronger governance. I avoid unnecessary implementation detail while clearly explaining the risks and value of the proposed roadmap.
I would stay transparent, quickly isolate whether the issue is data, configuration, permissions, or compute related, and narrate the troubleshooting process calmly. If a fix cannot be safely completed during the session, I would pivot to a validated backup environment or architecture walkthrough while defining the follow-up actions and owner. Afterward, I would perform a root-cause review and improve demo readiness controls.
I align an adoption plan to measurable customer outcomes and identify priority personas, workloads, enablement needs, and success metrics. I establish a technical roadmap that expands from the initial use case to adjacent data engineering, analytics, governance, or AI opportunities, supported by regular architecture reviews. I also coordinate account teams and specialists to remove blockers and demonstrate continuing value.
About this role.
FEQ327R526
Solutions Architect (L5)
The Role
As a Solutions Architect, you will lead the technical strategy for your customers — owning architecture discussions, driving platform adoption, and serving as a trusted advisor to customer technical leads and architects. You combine deep technical expertise with strategic thinking to position Databricks as the foundation of your customers’ data and AI strategy. You are developing a technical specialization (archetype) and are recognized within your team for depth in a specific domain.
The Impact You Will Have
- Own the end-to-end technical strategy for your accounts, from initial discovery through production deployment and consumption growth
- Lead complex architecture discussions — designing scalable, production-grade solutions spanning data engineering, ML/AI, and real-time analytics
- Serve as a trusted technical advisor to customer architects, engineering leads, and Directors
- Drive technical wins in competitive scenarios by demonstrating Databricks’ differentiation through custom-built solutions
- Develop and declare an emerging technical specialization (archetype) — becoming a go-to resource for your team in that domain
- Orchestrate cross-functional resources (DSAs, SSAs, Partners) to deliver comprehensive solutions for complex customer needs
- Influence product direction by providing structured feedback on customer requirements and competitive gaps
What We Look For
- 6+ years in solutions architecture, data engineering, technical pre-sales, or a senior hands-on technical role
- Strong coding proficiency in Python and SQL — you must demonstrate live coding, debugging, and solution-building skills
- Deep expertise in distributed data systems architecture: designing scalable pipelines, streaming architectures, lakehouse patterns, and cloud-native data platforms
- Proficient on the Databricks Platform (or demonstrated ability to achieve proficiency rapidly) with a developing technical specialization in one area (e.g., real-time/streaming, ML/AI, data governance, migrations)
- Proven ability to lead architecture discussions with senior technical stakeholders — whiteboarding, design reviews, and trade-off analysis
- Experience with production deployments on public cloud (AWS, Azure, or GCP), including infrastructure, security, and governance considerations
- Track record of driving platform adoption and consumption growth within accounts
- Excellent communication skills — able to translate complex architectures into business value for both technical and executive audiences
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a quantitative discipline (or equivalent experience)
Nice to Have:
- Databricks certifications (Data Engineer, ML, Platform)
- Experience with competitive platforms (Snowflake, AWS native services, Azure Synapse) — understanding the landscape you’ll position against
- Background in a data/AI company or cloud provider
- Industry domain expertise (Financial Services, Healthcare, Retail, Media, etc.)
Interview Process: Recruiter Screen → Hiring Manager Screen → Design and Architecture Interview → Live Coding Assessment → Build, Demo, Pitch! Presentation → Reference Check
Pay Range Transparency
Databricks is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. The pay range(s) for this role is listed below and represents the expected salary range for non-commissionable roles or on-target earnings for commissionable roles. Actual compensation packages are based on several factors that are unique to each candidate, including but not limited to job-related skills, depth of experience, relevant certifications and training, and specific work location. Based on the factors above, Databricks anticipates utilizing the full width of the range. The total compensation package for this position may also include eligibility for annual performance bonus, equity, and the benefits listed above. For more information regarding which range your location is in visit our page here.
Local Pay Range
$180,000—$247,500 USD
About Databricks
Databricks is the Data and AI company. More than 20,000 organizations worldwide — including adidas, AT&T, Bayer, Block, Mastercard, Rivian, Unilever, and 70% of the Fortune 500 — rely on the Databricks Data + AI Platform to build and scale data and AI apps, analytics and agents. Headquartered in San Francisco with 30+ offices around the globe, Databricks offers a unified platform that includes Genie, Lakebase, Agent Bricks, Lakeflow, Lakehouse, and Unity Catalog. To learn more, follow Databricks on LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Instagram.
Benefits
At Databricks, we strive to provide comprehensive benefits and perks that meet the needs of all of our employees. For specific details on the benefits offered in your region click here.
Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion
At Databricks, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture where everyone can excel. We take great care to ensure that our hiring practices are inclusive and meet equal employment opportunity standards. Individuals looking for employment at Databricks are considered without regard to age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and other protected characteristics.
Compliance
If access to export-controlled technology or source code is required for performance of job duties, it is within Employer’s discretion whether to apply for a U.S. government license for such positions, and Employer may decline to proceed with an applicant on this basis alone.
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