Principal Database Platform Engineer

Boston Consulting Group • Boston, MA

2d • $143,000 - $186,330

About The Position

Join BCG’s global Data Platform Engineering portfolio, which builds and operates database infrastructure supporting data products, analytics, and AI capabilities across Case Teams, Practice Areas, and Business Systems. The Principal Database Platform Engineer owns cloud-native database platforms end to end, with a primary focus on AWS. This is a hands-on senior individual contributor role responsible for designing for scale and reliability, driving automation, and establishing platform standards used across the firm. The role calls for an experienced, self-directed engineer who can identify what needs to be built, make sound technical decisions, and deliver without step-by-step direction, while developing database infrastructure that enables AI and analytics use cases.

The engineer designs and operates scalable, resilient, cost-efficient AWS database platforms; builds self-service capabilities using Terraform, CI/CD, and Git-based workflows; and defines reusable patterns and guardrails across a multi-cloud environment. The role embeds SRE practices, security, and FinOps into platform operations, partners with architecture, application, and data teams, and provides technical guidance and mentorship. It also evaluates emerging database technologies and leads proofs of concept as BCG’s AI and data needs evolve.

The position is available in Boston or Atlanta. For US locations, the stated base salary range is $143,000 to $186,330, depending on region and factors such as experience and skill set. Total compensation also includes an annual discretionary performance bonus, retirement contributions, and benefits.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• 8 to 10 years of experience in database, platform, or infrastructure engineering.
• Hands-on production experience with PostgreSQL and AWS-managed database services such as DynamoDB, OpenSearch, or similar.
• Experience with Terraform and CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure automation.
• Solid understanding of database performance at scale, including query performance, indexing, and data distribution.
• Self-directed, hands-on approach, with ownership of problems from design through delivery.
• Genuine interest in the evolution of database platforms, particularly for AI and analytics.
• Clear communication skills, including the ability to explain technical decisions and trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders.
• Ability to work across global, cross-functional teams and build effective partnerships.
• Analytical rigor and a practical engineering mindset.
• Ability to prioritize and deliver in a fast-moving environment while maintaining quality and standards.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with more than one cloud provider, such as Azure or GCP alongside AWS.
• Familiarity with graph, document, or NoSQL databases such as Neptune, DocumentDB, or MongoDB.
• Exposure to vector search or pgvector for AI and GenAI workloads.
• Experience with analytics platforms such as Databricks or BigQuery.
• Familiarity with RAG pipelines, embedding stores, or modern AI data architectures.
• Working knowledge of cloud security practices, including IAM, least privilege, and data protection.
• Exposure to FinOps, SRE, or enterprise architecture frameworks such as TOGAF.
• Experience mentoring engineers or contributing to architecture reviews.
• Relational database background such as MSSQL or Oracle.

Responsibilities

• Design and operate cloud-native database platforms on AWS, focusing on scalability, resilience, and cost efficiency.
• Build automated, self-service capabilities using Infrastructure as Code (Terraform), CI/CD, and Git-based workflows.
• Define and implement reusable platform patterns, standards, and guardrails across a multi-cloud environment.
• Translate business and engineering needs into scalable database platform designs and provide technical leadership where required.
• Embed SRE principles, including observability, performance tuning, and incident response, into daily operations.
• Apply secure-by-design practices across identity, access management, and data protection.
• Drive cloud cost transparency and optimization using FinOps practices, including tagging, attribution, and rightsizing.
• Partner with architecture, application, and data teams to translate needs into practical platform solutions.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineers.
• Lead design and architecture reviews aligned with enterprise standards.
• Evaluate emerging database technologies and lead proofs of concept as BCG’s AI and data needs evolve.
• Support AI and analytics use cases through modern database platform capabilities.

Benefits

• Annual discretionary performance bonus of up to 20%.
• Retirement contribution starting at 5% and increasing to 10% after two years.
• Zero-dollar health insurance premiums for employees, spouses, and children.
• $10 copays for doctor visits, urgent care visits, and generic prescriptions.
• Dental coverage, including up to $5,000 in orthodontia benefits.
• Vision coverage for glasses and contact lenses annually.
• Reimbursement for gym memberships and other fitness activities.
• Fully vested annual Profit Sharing Retirement Fund contributions, whether or not the employee contributes.
• Option for employees to make personal contributions to a 401(k) plan.
• Paid parental leave and family benefits, including elective egg freezing, surrogacy, and adoption reimbursement.
• Paid time off, including 12 holidays per year, an annual office closure between Christmas and New Year’s, and 15 vacation days per year.
• Paid sick time on an as-needed basis.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal