Machine Learning & Data Platform Engineer

Overview We are looking for a Staff Engineer to own and evolve our financial data integration and ML classification platform. This system ingests hundreds of variations of real estate financial reports — trial balances, rent rolls, budgets, forecasts, aged receivables — from property management companies, automatically detects their format, classifies their structure using ML models, and transforms them into normalized data for downstream analytics.  You will be the primary technical lead across two critical systems: a document parsing engine handling 280+ specialized ETL processors and a dynamic pipeline orchestration platform that uses ML-predicted field mappings to automate data extraction at scale. This role demands breadth — you will build ML models, maintain production data pipelines, design database schemas, and make architectural decisions independently. You will also mentor and manage one direct report. Responsibilities ML Model Development & Deployment —  Build, train, and deploy classification models (currently served via Wallaroo) that predict financial field/table mappings from document headers. Extend existing BERT-based question-answering models used for extracting structured data from free-text property descriptions. Pipeline Platform — Maintain and extend the configuration-driven orchestration system that matches incoming files to processing pipelines, executes dynamic conditionals, and writes standardized output to downstream templates. ETL Engine — Evolve the parsing library that handles complex Excel workbooks with nested headers, multi-tab structures, merged cells, and varied accounting system formats (ARES, GIC, DCS). Data Quality & Reliability — Improve prediction accuracy, expand audit logging, and ensure processing integrity across clients and document types. Architecture & Technical Leadership — Drive technical decisions on model serving infrastructure, database schema design, and API integration patterns with RealPage's Data Management Gateway (DMG). Provide mentorship and technical guidance to your direct report.  Qualifications 5+ years Python development with production ML systems  Strong experience with NLP / text classification — specifically training and fine-tuning transformer models (Hugging Face, TensorFlow) for document understanding tasks Deep proficiency with pandas, NumPy, SQLAlchemy, and PostgreSQL Experience building and maintaining ETL pipelines that process messy, semi-structured data (Excel, CSV) at scale Familiarity with ML model serving platforms (Wallaroo, SageMaker, Vertex AI, or similar) including OAuth2-based inference APIs Comfort operating as a technical lead — triaging bugs, shipping features, making architectural calls independently, and mentoring junior engineers Demonstrated ability to work across the full stack of a data platform: from raw file ingestion through model inference to API integration  Preferred   Domain experience in real estate finance, property management, or accounting data (chart of accounts, trial balances, rent rolls)  Experience with SFTP-based file processing workflows and Paramiko  Familiarity with dynamic code generation / evaluation patterns for configurable data transformations  Background in document parsing / OCR / intelligent document processing  Experience with SSH-tunneled database connections and multi-environment deployments  Prior experience mentoring or leading a small team  Tech Stack   Python  Pandas  TensorFlow Hugging Face Transformers PostgreSQL  SQLAlchemy  Wallaroo · Paramiko/SFTP  openpyxl/xlrd REST APIs OAuth2/JWT  Why This Role   You will have high autonomy over a system that directly impacts how financial data flows through RealPage's platform. The ML models you build will reduce manual data mapping for enterprise property management clients, and the pipelines you maintain process real financial documents daily. This is not a research role — it is applied ML engineering where your models ship to production and your code runs against real client data. As a Staff Engineer, you will shape the technical direction of the platform and have meaningful influence over how the team grows.  SALARY AND BENEFITS RealPage provides a competitive salary package along with a comprehensive benefit plan that includes: Health, dental, and vision insurance. Retirement savings plan with company match. Paid time off and holidays. Professional development opportunities. Performance-based bonus based on position. Compensation may vary depending on your location, qualifications including job-related education, training, experience, licensure, and certification, that could result at a level outside of these ranges. Certain roles are eligible for additional rewards, including annual bonus, and sales incentives depending on the terms of the applicable plan and role as well as individual performance. Equal Opportunity Employer: RealPage Company is an equal opportunity employer and committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Pay Range USD $107,200.00 - USD $182,600.00 /Yr.