A Bit About Smartly, a Datacom Company

We exist to make it simpler for Kiwi businesses to look after their people. We’re known as the simple way to sort your payroll for over 20,000 businesses. Our slick software combined with our awesome support team help businesses pay their people on time, accurately and in line with legislation. As a fast-growing FinTech expanding into adjacent markets, Smartly offers a fast paced, fun work environment with great opportunities for personal and professional development.

What We’re Looking For

We’re looking for a Data Engineer to help build, maintain, and improve the data pipelines and datasets that power analytics and decision-making at Smartly. You’ll work closely with Data Science, Analytics, Product, and Engineering teams to ensure our data is reliable, well-structured, and easy to use.

This role is ideal for someone who is hands-on, enjoys working with data using SQL and Python, and is comfortable operating within modern software engineering practices. You’ll contribute to the ongoing development of our data platform while continuing to build your skills in cloud-based data systems and engineering best practices.

We actively use AI-powered development tools to help us work faster and smarter. You don’t need to be an expert in these tools already, but you should be comfortable using (or keen to adopt) AI-assisted development tools such as Cursor, GitHub Copilot, or similar to accelerate coding, testing, and problem-solving.

We see AI as a core part of modern data and software engineering, and we value engineers who are curious, pragmatic, and open to evolving how they work.

What Does the Job Involve?

• Build, maintain, and enhance data pipelines using SQL and Python to ingest, transform, and serve data from core product systems and third-party sources.
• Develop and maintain well-modelled analytical datasets to support reporting, dashboards, experimentation, and data science use cases.
• Work closely with analysts and data scientists to understand data requirements and translate them into reliable, reusable data assets.
• Monitor data pipelines and datasets, identifying and resolving data quality or reliability issues.
• Contribute to data documentation, testing, and basic observability to improve trust and usability of data across the business.
• Support the ongoing improvement of Smartly’s data tooling, pipelines, and development practices.
• Operate comfortably within a cloud-based environment, with a working understanding of how data systems run in the cloud.

What We’re Looking For

Technical Proficiency

• 3+ years’ experience in a data engineering, analytics engineering, or similar role.
• Strong SQL skills, with experience writing complex and performant queries.
• Strong Python skills, particularly for data transformation, automation, and pipeline development.
• Experience using Git or similar version control systems in a team environment.
• Familiarity with CI/CD practices, including automated testing and deployment workflows.
• Working knowledge of cloud infrastructure concepts (e.g. compute, storage, permissions), ideally within a modern cloud platform.
• Experience working with relational databases and analytical data stores.
• Familiarity with data modelling concepts for analytics (e.g. fact and dimension tables).

Ways of Working

• Comfortable working hands-on and owning data tasks end-to-end with appropriate support.
• Able to collaborate effectively with analysts, data scientists, and software engineers.
• Curious and proactive, with a desire to improve data quality and engineering practices.
• Clear communicator, able to explain data issues and solutions to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

What You’ll Get

• Flexible working – opportunity to work from home and offices in Lower Hutt or Auckland CBD.
• Awesome company-wide culture – we love a massive morning tea, an epic work party, and the random rolling lunch. We are also passionate about our people and seeing them thrive.

Apply now

Please submit your Cover Letter & CV by clicking the Apply button.

If this sounds like you, please don’t hesitate to apply!