Open Digital Services is the software development company of Santander Group powering the next generation of banks by creating innovative banking products and implementing them in collaboration with Santander Group Affiliates. Santander Group is one of the world's largest financial institutions and the Eurozone's leader, we're committed to being the best Digital Bank with Branches in the industry.
Our mission at ODS is to design and support an advanced digital and omnichannel platform, ensuring the best customer experience using cutting-edge technology. Openbank, our flagship partner, is where we develop our most advanced concepts first.
Be part of our Best-in-Class team and help us create unique value for our customers!
THE DIFFERENCE YOU MAKE
As a Senior Data Engineer within the Data Management department, you will design, build and optimize scalable data solutions that support analytics, machine learning, reporting and business-critical decision-making.
You will work with large and complex data environments, developing robust data pipelines and distributed processing solutions using Spark-based technologies. This role is ideal for someone with strong data engineering fundamentals, hands-on experience with Spark, and the ability to build reliable production data solutions in cloud environments.
To succeed in this role, you will be responsible for:
- Designing, developing and optimizing large-scale data pipelines using Apache Spark and Scala.
- Building and maintaining batch and near-real-time data processing solutions for high-volume data environments.
- Creating reliable, reusable and well-structured datasets consumed by Analytics, Data Science, Machine Learning and business teams.
- Working with cloud data platforms (AWS), to process, transform, store and expose data efficiently.
- Implementing data quality, validation, monitoring and documentation practices across data pipelines.
- Collaborating with Data Engineering, Data Science, Machine Learning, Architecture and business teams to understand requirements and deliver practical data solutions.
- Contributing to engineering best practices around code quality, testing, version control, CI/CD and automation.
WHAT YOU’LL BRING
Professional Experience
- 5+ years of experience in Data Engineering, Big Data Engineering, or similar technical roles. Required
- Experience building production-grade data pipelines in large-scale or complex data environments. Required
- 5+ years of hands-on experience working with Spark in real projects with Scala. Required
- Experience working with cloud data platforms. Required
- Experience in banking, fintech or regulated environments. Preferred
Language
- Fluent Spanish. Preferred
- Professional English. Required
Hard Skills
- Strong experience with Spark-based distributed processing. Required
- Strong Scala coding skills for data engineering use cases. Required
- Solid SQL knowledge and experience working with relational and analytical databases. Required
- Experience designing and optimizing ETL/ELT processes. Required
- Experience with AWS or similar cloud ecosystems; ideally S3, Glue, Athena, EMR, Redshift, IAM or Lake Formation. Required
- Experience with Git and collaborative software development practices. Required
- Understanding of data quality, validation, monitoring and performance optimization. Required
- Experience with CI/CD or DevOps tools such as Jenkins, Sonar, Nexus, Jira, Splunk or similar. Preferred
- Experience with Apache Flink, Spark Streaming or near-real-time applications. Preferred
- Experience with Apache Iceberg, Delta Lake or modern lakehouse formats. Preferred
- Experience with Airflow or workflow orchestration tools. Preferred
Soft Skills
- Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work autonomously. Required
- Ownership mindset and focus on building reliable, maintainable solutions. Required
- Ability to communicate clearly with technical and non-technical stakeholders. Required
- Collaborative approach and ability to work across Data Engineering, Data Science, ML and business teams. Required
- Curiosity and willingness to learn new tools, frameworks and cloud services. Required
WHAT TO DO NEXT
If this sounds like a role you are interested in, then please apply.
READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP IN YOUR JOURNEY?
Open Digital Services is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered as equal without paying attention to gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, age, political orientation, union membership nor disability status.
We make recruiting decisions based on your experience and skills. We value your passion to discover, invent, simplify, and build.
The personal data you provide as well as any data generated during the selection process are confidential and will be processed by Open Digital Services, S.L. with registered office at Plaza de Santa Bárbara 2, 28004 (Madrid), Madrid, Spain for the sole purpose of managing your participation in the selection processes and, where appropriate, to formalise your recruitment.
For further information about your rights and data protection, please read the Open Digital Services Privacy Policy applicable to this type of data processing here
Skills Required
- 5+ years of experience in Data Engineering, Big Data Engineering or similar
- Experience building production-grade data pipelines in large-scale or complex data environments
- Hands-on experience working with Apache Spark in real projects
- Experience working with cloud data platforms
- Professional English
- Strong experience with PySpark, Spark SQL or Spark-based distributed processing
- Strong Python or Scala coding skills for data engineering use cases
- Solid SQL knowledge and experience with relational and analytical databases
- Experience designing and optimizing ETL/ELT processes
- Experience with AWS or similar cloud ecosystems (S3, Glue, Athena, EMR, Redshift, IAM, Lake Formation)
- Experience with Git and collaborative software development practices
- Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work autonomously
- Ownership mindset and focus on building reliable, maintainable solutions
- Ability to communicate clearly with technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Collaborative approach working across Data Engineering, Data Science, ML and business teams
- Curiosity and willingness to learn new tools, frameworks and cloud services
- Experience in banking, fintech or regulated environments
- Fluent Spanish
- Experience with CI/CD or DevOps tools such as Jenkins, Sonar, Nexus, Jira, Splunk
- Scala experience
- Experience with Apache Flink, Spark Streaming or near-real-time applications
- Experience with Apache Iceberg, Delta Lake or modern lakehouse formats
- Experience with Airflow or workflow orchestration tools
Santander Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Santander and has not been reviewed or approved by Santander.
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Retirement Support — A dollar‑for‑dollar 401(k) match up to 6% of eligible pay and immediate vesting are highlighted as core strengths, supporting long‑term savings. This is reinforced by company‑paid disability and life/AD&D coverage that bolster financial security.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Paid time off typically ranges from 18–30 days in the U.S. with 11 paid holidays, plus dedicated volunteer and development time; the UK features a minimum of 25 days with buy/sell options. Some roles also use self‑managed PTO, offering additional flexibility depending on team norms.
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Parental & Family Support — U.S. parental benefits include 8 weeks paid for all parents and a total of 16 weeks paid for birth mothers, with flexibility for reduced hours around childbirth. Caregiver leave and dependent‑care programs add further family support.
Santander Insights
What We Do
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC LN) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain and one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. The group’s activities are consolidated into five global businesses: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Wealth Management & Insurance and Payments (PagoNxt and Cards). This operating model allows the bank to better leverage its unique combination of global scale and local leadership. Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way. Santander is building a more responsible bank and has made a number of commitments to support this objective, including raising €220 billion in green financing between 2019 and 2030. In the first quarter of 2024, Banco Santander had €1.3 trillion in total funds, 166 million customers, 8,400 branches and 211,000 employees.
