Ontology Designer - Data Modeling and Analytics

Ontology Designer - Data42

Job Description Summary

Data42 is Novartis’s data and analytics platform, that allows us to integrate different data modalities at scale (discovery, preclinical, clinical, RWD etc.,), to support data-driven decision making across Novartis. Data42 uses Palantir Foundry as one of the key technological components. We’re seeking a Palantir Foundry Ontology Designer to translate complex business processes and data into a clear, scalable, and secure Ontology that powers operational applications and analytics. You’ll partner with domain experts, data engineers, and application builders to define object, logic sources and action types, relationships, governance controls, and semantic contracts that make data usable, trustworthy, and impactful across the organization.

Job Description

Major accountabilities:

• Lead end-to-end Ontology design in Foundry, defining Object Types, Action Types, relationships, properties, and metrics aligned to business processes and outcomes.

• Translate domain workflows into an operational data model that supports both real-time decisioning and analytical use cases.

• Map upstream data sources and pipelines into the Ontology; establish semantic contracts and data contracts to ensure stability and evolvability.

• Foundry Application Development is a plus

• Configure governance: access controls, row/column-level permissions, lineage visibility, and certification to meet compliance and privacy requirements.

• Collaborate with data engineers to shape transforms and data quality checks that feed Ontology objects and actions.

• Partner with application builders to ensure Ontology supports operational apps, forms, and workflows (e.g., case/issue management, asset lifecycle, supply/finance/ops scenarios).

• Establish versioning, change-control, and deprecation strategies for Ontology elements; maintain documentation and data dictionary.

• Define and track Ontology KPIs (coverage, freshness, quality, adoption, performance) and drive continuous improvement.

• Conduct discovery sessions with stakeholders; facilitate design workshops; provide enablement and best practices across teams.

• Troubleshoot modeling issues, performance bottlenecks, and access constraints; steward Ontology health across dev/test/prod environments.

• Collaborative, product-minded, and iterative approach to design and delivery.

• Comfortable working across strategy, architecture, hands-on configuration, and stakeholder enablement.

 

Minimum Requirements:

Work Experience:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field; Master's degree preferred

• 4+ years in data modeling, enterprise data design, or knowledge/graph modeling, with at least 1–2 years working directly with Palantir Foundry Ontology (or equivalent Ontology-driven platforms).

• Strong grasp of conceptual/logical/physical modeling; object–action modeling; relationship/graph patterns; semantic consistency and naming conventions.

• Experience building or supporting Foundry operational applications and workflows using Ontology-driven patterns.

• Exposure to ML/AI integration in Foundry (feature exposure via Ontology, model inferences as objects/actions).

• Knowledge of cloud data ecosystems (AWS) and modern warehouses/lakes (e.g., Snowflake, Databricks).

• Familiarity with data quality frameworks, schema validation, and testing strategies in CI/CD contexts.

• Hands-on experience integrating heterogeneous data sources and pipelines into operational models; familiarity with SQL and at least one scripting language (e.g., Python).

• Practical understanding of data governance: RBAC, row/column-level security, PII handling, lineage, and compliance controls.

• Proven ability to translate business processes into scalable Ontology designs that support operational and analytical applications.

• Excellent communication and facilitation skills; ability to align diverse stakeholders and document complex systems clearly.

• Palantir certifications: Foundry Solution Architect, or Foundry Application Developer

 

Languages :

• English.

Skills Desired

Clinical Data Management, Data Architecture, Data Governance, Data Integration, Data Management, Data Profiling, Data Quality, Data Science, Data Strategy, Master Data, Waterfall Model

Experience Level

Senior Level