Data Engineer – Workforce Data Engineering (Hybrid in Des Moines, IA)

Data Engineer – Workforce Data Engineering Team

What if your role in data engineering didn’t just move data… but shaped how a global workforce operates?

As part of our Workforce Data Engineering team, you’ll work with data representing 20,000+ employees—connecting systems, uncovering insights, and enabling smarter decisions about hiring, development, and productivity.

This is more than pipelines—it’s a puzzle. You’ll act as a data detective, uncovering relationships and turning fragmented data into something meaningful.

Why This Role Is Exciting

This isn’t a “learn by watching” role—it’s a learn by doing, building, and experimenting opportunity. You will:

• Work hands-on with cutting-edge data platforms and AI-enabled technologies
• Collaborate with teams across the company to solve real business problems
• Curate and connect data for a global workforce of 20,000+ employees
• Explore new and creative use cases for workforce and employee data
• Develop AI agents and tools that help leaders and employees get answers faster

Every dataset you touch has a real outcome—helping someone make a better decision, faster.

What We Do

We transform fragmented workforce data into trusted, enterprise-ready data products by:

• Creating a unified view of employees across systems
• Enabling insights into hiring, productivity, and learning
• Delivering datasets that power analytics, reporting, and AI

Career Growth & Mobility

This role is part of our broader Enterprise Hub Data Engineering organization. While your initial focus will be workforce data, our engineers frequently partner across other hub teams as business needs evolve —supporting domains such as customer interactions, party/product data, reference data, and advanced analytics.

This gives you the opportunity to expand your experience across multiple data domains over time.

Ready to Build, Explore, and Make an Impact?

If you enjoy solving puzzles, learning modern technologies, and seeing your work directly influence people and outcomes—you’ll thrive here.

Operating at the intersection of financial services and technology, Principal builds financial tools that help our customers live better lives. We take pride in being a purpose-led firm, motivated by our mission to make financial security accessible to all. Our mission, integrity, and customer focus have made us a trusted leader for more than 140 years.

• Bachelor's degree or a Master's degree in a related field
• Proficiency in SQL, Python and version control tools like GitHub
• Basic planning, organizational, problem-solving, analytical, decision-making and communication skills
• Highly self-motivated with excellent time management skills
• Ability to provide on-call support

Skills That Will Help You Stand Out

• Experience with Snowflake and AWS services
• Ability to work directly with data and datastores through programming languages such as SQL, Python, etc.
• Experience working in an Agile environment, including familiarity with tools like Jira and Confluence
• Experience integrating and managing datasets from multiple sources
• Experience with a variety of data modeling techniques and data structures
• Ability to optimize data for analytics and data science
• Ability to effectively communicate strategies and designs to all levels of the company

The following salary ranges reflect market-specific compensation for this position across multiple job levels. Candidates will be evaluated to determine the appropriate job level based on their skills and experience. 

• Data Engineer I: $62,000- $84,000 / year
• Data Engineer II: $77,000- $105,000 / year

Work Environment

This role offers in-office or hybrid (blending at least three office days in a typical workweek) work arrangements out of our Des Moines, Iowa World Headquarters.

Job Level

We’ll consider talent at the next level, Data Engineer II, with the right experience and skills.

Hours

This role will partner with our global teams and has an expectation for flexibility in your work schedule. Hours may start at 7:00 a.m. CST.

Work Authorization/Sponsorship

At this time, we're not considering applicants that need any type of immigration sponsorship (additional work authorization or permanent work authorization) now or in the future to work in the United States. This includes, but IS NOT LIMITED TO: F1-OPT, F1-CPT, H-1B, TN, L-1, J-1, etc. For additional information around work authorization needs please use the following links.

Nonimmigrant Workers and Green Card for Employment-Based Immigrants

Investment Code of Ethics

For Principal Asset Management positions, you’ll need to follow an Investment Code of Ethics related to personal and business conduct as well as personal trading activities for you and members of your household. These same requirements may also apply to other positions across the organization.

Experience Principal

At Principal, we value connecting on both a personal and professional level. Together, we’re imagining a more purpose-led future for financial services – and that starts with you. Our success depends on the unique experiences, backgrounds, and talents of our employees. And we support our employees the same way we support our customers: with comprehensive, competitive benefit offerings crafted to protect their physical, financial, and social well-being. Check out our careers site to learn more about our purpose, values and benefits.

Principal is an Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.