Metadata Analyst Jobs in Colorado (NOW HIRING)

For more than a decade, Karthik Consulting has been a reliable and trusted advisor to our Government customers, providing independent and unbiased recommendations and solutions to mitigate risk and help solve IT issues. We bring the innovation, passion, and agility of the commercial sector to meet the unique challenges of this competitive space. Karthik Consulting is seeking Senior Enterprise Data Engineer with the below skillset. Senior Enterprise Data Engineer
Fulltime with Karthik Consulting
Location: National Capital Region, Colorado Springs or Denver surrounding areas
Clearance: Active TOP SECRET / SCI (Polygraph may be required) Program Description POSITION SUMMARY The Senior Enterprise Data Engineer establishes, optimizes, and maintains the technical data foundation for the Air Force Intelligence Community (AF IC) Information Environment. Operating directly at the Headquarters Air Force (HAF) staff level, this role ensures all organizational data assets are securely postured for multi-domain discovery, ingestion, and integration across mission partners. The position is responsible for delivering end-to-end enterprise data mapping, constructing live data asset catalogs with strict metadata analysis, validating data maturity, and providing specialized engineering support throughout the complete data lifecycle. By translating functional data requirements into resilient technical data pipelines, this role ensures intelligence analysts can securely exploit data as a critical strategic asset. PROGRAM CONTEXT PROGRAM DESCRIPTION This role supports the Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Digital Infrastructure Transformation. The mission focuses on modernizing, designing, and sustaining an integrated digital environment that transitions from historical hardware-based industrial constraints to software-defined digital processes. This modern enterprise architecture interconnects physical and virtual technologies across Data and Analytics, Sense-Making, Automation, Augmentation, and Artificial Intelligence (AAA), Hybrid/Multi-Cloud environments, Networks, and Zero Trust security frameworks to safely deliver intelligence to warfighters at the speed of relevance. PROGRAM SCOPE The role operates within the operational oversight of the AF IC Chief Information Officer (CIO), Chief Data Officer (CDO), IT Risk Management Framework Authorizing Official (AO), and Chief Technology Officer (CTO). The work spans the entire spectrum of Air Force ISR Information Environment operations, encompassing strategic data management, data lifecycle tracking, asset visualization, and engineering data integration support across NIPR, SIPR, and JWICS infrastructures.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Enterprise Data Mapping & Visibility
• Lead the development of high-level, end-to-end depictions of the data life cycle at the enterprise level, enabling comprehensive visualization of both internal and external data interactions.
• Provide architectural and structural data transparency to support critical HAF data triage, technical infrastructure modernization, and advanced data analytics initiatives.
• Coordinate directly with domain mission partners to trace data lineages and pinpoint pipeline gaps, dependencies, or structural processing bottlenecks across the Information Environment.
• Synthesize intricate data path visualizations into streamlined, high-quality technical diagrams and analytical reports for executive leadership review. Data Asset Inventory & Metadata Cataloging
• Architect and populate a comprehensive, live inventory of critical enterprise data assets captured in an agreed-upon corporate format.
• Lead metadata analysis efforts to construct and expand an authoritative data catalog capability, vastly improving secure data discovery and access for intelligence analysts.
• Define, structure, and enforce explicit metadata standards to maximize the utility and visibility of disparate data sets across multi-domain environments.
• Review, manage, and optimize data cataloging processes to guarantee that all indexed tactical information remains accurate, properly classified, and compliant with law and policy. Master Data Management (MDM) Readiness & Maturity Analysis
• Analyze the data management maturity of the AF IC Information Environment and individual programs using recognized industry frameworks.
• Provide formal, program-level and enterprise-level data maturity ratings along with actionable technical recommendations to continuously improve system capabilities.
• Lead Master Data Management (MDM) readiness evaluations to deeply understand current master data practices in terms of management, usage, strengths, and structural weaknesses.
• Produce comprehensive MDM strategic plans, multi-year implementation roadmaps, and lifecycle prioritization models to implement robust master data management over time. Data Lifecycle Analysis & Technical Integration Support
• Define, evaluate, and design target-state operational data processes and rules used to plan, specify, enable, create, acquire, maintain, use, archive, retrieve, control, and purge data.
• Provide specialized engineering assistance to seamlessly translate complex functional mission requirements into functional data ingest, staging, and structural integration configurations.
• Support advanced analytics maturity modeling by analyzing how data engineering pipelines prepare, clean, and format enterprise scale data sets for data mining and research purposes.
• Coordinate engineering checkpoints with platform teams to ensure data pipelines safely feed downstream automation, process engineering tools, and secure cloud environments.
QUALIFICATIONS EDUCATION • Required: Bachelor's Degree in a STEM-related or analytical field.
• Preferred: Master's Degree in a STEM-related or management field. PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATIONS • Required: CompTIA Security+ CE (or equivalent DoD 8570.01-M / DoD 8140 IAT Level II baseline certification).
• Preferred: Certified Data Management Professional (CDMP/DAMA-DMBOK), Cloudera Certified Professional (CCP) Data Engineer, or relevant big data/database management certifications. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS • Experience: 6–12+ years of professional technical data engineering, data modeling, metadata management, or systems engineering experience within the DoD or Intelligence Community.
• Clearance: Final, verified TOP SECRET / SCI clearance day-one.
• Staff Expertise: Demonstrated background supporting HAF, MAJCOM, OSD, Joint Staff, or CCMD headquarters-level staff actions and coordination processes.
• Technical Skills: Mastery of data management principles, data lifecycle analysis, and data schema design across relational, non-relational, or graph databases (e.g., SQL, NoSQL).
• Functional Translation: Proven skill in performing needs analyses, evaluating data collection paths, and translating customer tracking requirements into stable data solutions. PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS • Comprehensive knowledge of data governance frameworks (such as the DAMA-DMBOK data management body of knowledge).
• Practical familiarity with building and scaling Extract, Load, Transform (ELT) or Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) data pipelines, data warehouses, and data lakes.
• Working knowledge of USAF, DoD, and IC infrastructures, specifically data transport protocols across the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System (JWICS).
• Familiarity with how data cataloging, feature engineering, and data preparation standards impact downstream AI/ML and advanced data science workflows. CORE COMPETENCIES ACCOUNTABILITY & OWNERSHIP
Takes full professional responsibility for the reliability of the enterprise data foundation, metadata records, and lifecycle analysis, ensuring all engineering pipelines are managed with sound judgment. COMMUNICATION & COLLABORATION
Translates intricate data modeling, schema, and database administration concepts into clear layman language; collaborates flawlessly with data architects, developers, and HAF mission owners. ANALYTICAL THINKING
Evaluates dense data sets from multiple disparate sources, isolates ingestion patterns, and develops highly logical, evidence-based recommendations to optimize data tracking across the enterprise. QUALITY & COMPLIANCE
Mandates rigorous indexing and documentation discipline for metadata assets; guarantees that data lifecycle actions explicitly comply with national-level laws, IC classification rules, and security policies. ADAPTABILITY & INITIATIVE
Proactively isolates and mitigates pipeline data quality or ingest roadblocks, rapidly adjusting integration techniques to accommodate evolving information environments. CUSTOMER & MISSION FOCUS
Connects daily metadata cataloging, lifecycle mapping, and technical integration support to the ultimate goal of delivering secure, visible, and discoverable intelligence assets to edge warfighters.