Principal Data Engineer, Analytics Solutions

The Hershey Company•Dallas, TX

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Principal Data Engineer, Analytics Solutions is responsible for defining, enabling, and scaling Hershey’s portfolio of analytics solutions across the enterprise. Analytics solutions include Power BI dashboards, conversational analytics interfaces, AI-enabled insight applications, and custom insight applications. This role does not centralize all analytics development; it establishes the standards, frameworks, and reusable assets that enable business domain teams to build and maintain their own solutions with confidence. This role ensures these solutions are user-centered, technically sound, adoption-ready, and continuously improving, enabling faster and more consistent decision-making across commercial, supply chain, and corporate functions. We welcome candidates from analytics engineering, BI development, data product, or solution design backgrounds who bring a blend of technical depth and solution design experience. This is an individual contributor role with accountability for the full analytics solutions portfolio, with the potential to grow into direct management of an analytics practice team as the portfolio scales. The Principal Data Engineer drives the vision for how analytics works across Hershey, sitting at the intersection of analytics, product management, design thinking, and business domain expertise, and is accountable for the end-to-end lifecycle of analytics solutions, from requirements gathering and design through delivery, adoption, and iteration. The role sets standards, builds reusable frameworks, and partners with business domain teams and analysts to co-develop and continuously improve analytics solutions. The role also contributes to the analytics practice function, establishing standards, best practices, and reusable assets that raise the quality and consistency of analytics solutions across the organization. The Principal Data Engineer partners closely with Data Products, Data Platform Engineering, and Data Governance to ensure analytics solutions are built on trusted, governed data. Data Products owns enterprise data assets and governance; this role owns the analytics solutions that consume those assets and put insights into the hands of decision-makers. The Principal Data Engineer works closely with key business analytics consumers across commercial, supply chain, and corporate functions, operating as a strategic partner to domain leaders who depend on analytics to run their businesses. This ensures that analytics solutions are not only delivered but are trusted, adopted, and consistently used by the business. What We Are Building for Hershey: This role is foundational to how Hershey turns data into action. The Principal Data Engineer, Analytics Solutions will build a unified portfolio of analytics solutions that give leaders, analysts, and frontline teams the insights they need to make better decisions. From Power BI dashboards that track retail execution and trade promotion ROI, to conversational analytics that let users ask questions in natural language, to applied AI solutions that o conversational analytics that let users ask questions in natural language, to applied AI solutions that surface recommendations and predictions (built on the enterprise AI/ML platform), this role shapes how analytics is built, consumed, and continuously improved across the enterprise. By establishing clear standards, enabling self-service capabilities, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement, this role ensures Hershey’s analytics evolve from scattered reports into a cohesive, enterprise-grade analytics portfolio that drives growth, efficiency, and competitive advantage.

Requirements

Strong analytical solution design with experience defining, designing, and delivering analytics solutions that drive measurable business outcomes.
Deep experience with Power BI, including data modeling, DAX, governance (workspaces, row-level security, deployment pipelines), and performance optimization.
Experience building analytics solutions at scale (dashboards, self-service tools, applied AI solutions), not one-off ad hoc analyses.
Ability to translate business questions into well-designed analytics solutions.
Deep understanding of the modern analytics stack (BI platforms, AI/ML tooling, data visualization, conversational interfaces), with strong SQL skills for evaluating data models, validating logic, and ensuring solutions are built on the right data.
Experience working with user adoption and change management for analytics and data products.
Strong leadership and influence skills, with the ability to shape analytics practices across business domains, not just within the central data team.
Experience contributing to or helping shape an analytics practice, shared services function, or standards body within a large organization.
Excellent communication and storytelling skills with both technical and non-technical audiences.
BA/BS in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or related field.
7+ years of experience in analytics, product management, or data-driven roles.
5+ years building and leading analytics solutions or BI platforms, with informal leadership or mentoring experience.
Solution-oriented mindset with strong business acumen.
Ability to bridge analytics, technology, and business teams.
Ability to drive clarity, prioritization, and execution discipline.
Demonstrated ability to mentor, coach, and grow the capabilities of analysts and solution designers, with the potential to formally manage a team as the role evolves.
Trusted partner to business leaders with a bias toward enabling self-service and driving adoption.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Azure Cloud and Databricks, or equivalent cloud analytics platforms.
Familiarity with Python or R for analytics, with enough literacy to evaluate model outputs, review notebooks, and engage credibly with data science teams.
Experience with conversational analytics, natural language query interfaces, or AI-powered analytics tools (e.g., Power BI Copilot, LLM-powered insight tools).
Strong data visualization and UX design sensibility: information hierarchy, cognitive load management, accessibility, and designing dashboards that drive decisions.
Experience with semantic models, metrics layers, or unified definition frameworks that ensure consistent measures across analytics solutions.
Advanced degree preferred.
Experience in CPG, retail, or complex enterprise environments preferred.
Direct people management experience is a plus, as this role may grow into a team leadership position.

Responsibilities

Defining, enabling, and scaling Hershey’s portfolio of analytics solutions.
Establishing standards, frameworks, and reusable assets for analytics solutions.
Ensuring analytics solutions are user-centered, technically sound, adoption-ready, and continuously improving.
Driving the vision for how analytics works across Hershey.
Accountable for the end-to-end lifecycle of analytics solutions.
Setting standards, building reusable frameworks, and partnering with business domain teams and analysts to co-develop and continuously improve analytics solutions.
Contributing to the analytics practice function by establishing standards, best practices, and reusable assets.
Partnering closely with Data Products, Data Platform Engineering, and Data Governance to ensure analytics solutions are built on trusted, governed data.
Working closely with key business analytics consumers across commercial, supply chain, and corporate functions as a strategic partner.
Building a unified portfolio of analytics solutions that give leaders, analysts, and frontline teams the insights they need to make better decisions.
Establishing clear standards, enabling self-service capabilities, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement for analytics.
Mentoring, coaching, and growing the capabilities of analysts and solution designers.
Enabling self-service and driving adoption of analytics solutions.