Context

Digit’Eaux is the preferred partner for stakeholders in the water sector in Wallonia for carrying out digital transformation projects.

The organization supports several major players in the sector, including SWDE, SPGE, as well as various Certified Sanitation Organizations (OAA).

Digit’Eaux is involved in the design, coordination, and implementation of major IT projects for the entire sector and, in this context, is engaged in the implementation of initiatives/projects involving Artificial Intelligence.

In this context, the Strategy and Architecture division of Digit’Eaux wishes to enlist the services of an experienced DATA & INTEGRATION Architect to support the operational implementation of the Data strategy for the water sector in Wallonia. The mission will require active participation in the implementation of the foundations of sector-wide DATA and INTEGRATION platforms as well as in the deployment of use cases making up 40% of the project portfolio to be carried out by Digit’Eaux.

Mission

The DATA & INTEGRATION Architect will have the following main responsibilities:

1. Microsoft DATA platform architecture and roadmap

• Define the target architecture of the DATA platform based on Microsoft technologies, consistent with business needs and security constraints.
• Develop the deployment roadmap for the platform, including milestones, priorities, and dependencies.
• Define architecture, integration, and operation standards.

2. Migration and transposition of the existing DATALAKE

• Analyze the functionalities, flows, and use cases currently supported by the existing DATALAKE.
• Define the transposition strategy of these functionalities to the new Microsoft DATA platform.
• Supervise the progressive migration of data, pipelines, and uses.
• Define and manage the decommissioning plan for the existing DATALAKE, ensuring operational continuity.

3. DATA Governance

• Define and implement data governance associated with the new platform (quality, security, access, traceability).
• Formalize roles and responsibilities (data owners, data stewards, IT, business).
• Define processes for metadata management, data lifecycle, and regulatory compliance.

4. Implementation follow-up

• Support and coordinate technical teams in the implementation of the platform.
• Ensure implementation tracking in relation to the defined roadmap.
• Identify risks, propose corrective measures, and arbitrate technical choices.

5. Preparation for advanced uses and AI

• Design the platform as an “AI-ready” environment, capable of supporting advanced analytics and artificial intelligence use cases.
• Identify future integration points for AI/ML modules (forecasting, anomaly detection, optimization, etc.).
• Advise on best practices related to training datasets, traceability, and reproducibility.

6. Documentation and knowledge transfer

• Produce architecture, governance, and integration documentation.
• Ensure knowledge transfer to the internal teams of the contracting authority and beneficiary entities.

Required general experience

• Design of Datalake, Datawarehouse, Data Mesh, or Lakehouse architectures; mastery of integration models (batch, streaming, API).
• Proven experience in implementing ETL/ELT tools, API integration, and data pipelines, in SAP and open-source environments.
• Mastery of data quality, security, and compliance issues (GDPR, auditability).
• Mastery of relational, dimensional, and business-oriented data models.
• Ability to document, explain, and transfer knowledge to internal teams.
• Understanding of the principles of integrating artificial intelligence and machine learning into data architectures. Ability to design an “AI-ready” platform, open to advanced analytics tools, while respecting security and compliance constraints.

Required experience

• Minimum 8 years’ experience in DATA architecture and integration.
• Participation in at least one DataLake or enterprise data platform implementation project.
• Experience in hybrid environments including SAP and open-source solutions.
• Good knowledge of tools for Enterprise Architecture and Information System modeling (current repository realized on ARCHI).

Relevant desired sector experience

Experience in:

• Public services / intermunicipal organizations / local authorities
• Utilities (water, energy, …)
• Technical organizations with industrial systems

Appreciated knowledge:

• Water sector business systems
• GIS / geomatics
• SCADA / industrial systems
• Technical asset management

Soft skills and interpersonal abilities

Appreciated skills:

• Analytical mindset, rigor.
• Excellent written and oral communication in French.
• Pedagogy and ability to support change.
• Technical leadership without hierarchical posture.
• Collaborative spirit and result orientation.
• Ability to explain artificial intelligence concepts and identify realistic opportunities for application in the context of the water sector (forecasting, quality, operational optimization).

Understanding of public sector challenges

Appreciated knowledge:

• Public procurement
• Public governance
• Public budget constraints
• Intermunicipal pooling
• Digital transformation of public services