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AN.

Portland, OR — Data Platform Engineering

Data platforms
teams actually
want to use.

I'm Alex Norum — an engineering leader who still ships. I run the team behind LegalZoom's data platform and build the AI tooling on top of it. Simple systems, clear docs, less time in Slack.

GitHub LinkedIn
Alex Norum

01 — What I Do

Data Architecture

Designing systems that are simple to operate, easy to understand, and don't require hand-holding.

Platform Engineering

Tools people actually want to use. Good docs, clean interfaces, fewer Slack questions.

Team Leadership

Growing engineers, removing blockers, and keeping the right things simple.

AI & Automation

Building AI agents, MCP servers, and LLM-powered tools so the platform helps you help yourself.

02 — Experience

Group Manager, Data Engineering LegalZoom · 2023 – Present

Leading a small team that owns LegalZoom's data platform — Snowflake, Airflow on Kubernetes, dbt, Terraform, and the self-service tooling around all of it.

  • Designed domain-based Snowflake access model that automates role assignments
  • Built AI-powered support bot and MCP server for the data platform
  • Led DSR automation and dynamic PII column masking for governance
Principal Data Engineer LegalZoom · 2021 – 2023

Rebuilt LegalZoom's data platform from legacy to modern — Airflow on Kubernetes, Terraform-managed Snowflake, and GitOps workflows for everything.

  • Migrated the platform to Airflow on K8s with Terraform IaC
  • Wrote the platform standards and documentation the team still uses
  • Established self-service patterns that let domain teams own their own data
Senior Data Engineer → Lead Data Analyst New Relic · 2018 – 2021

Owned the data engineering platform roadmap. Built blue/green deployments, testing frameworks, and brought dbt to the org.

  • Introduced dbt — first adoption across the data org
  • Built Spark pipelines ingesting from 10+ data sources
  • Created self-service tooling for analyst teams
Senior Business Analyst Oracle · 2013 – 2018

Worked across R&D, manufacturing, and supply chain building analytics and migrating Oracle's worldwide SCM systems to cloud.

  • Cut forecasting pipeline runtime from 4 hours to 20 minutes
  • Built predictive models for manufacturing capacity planning
  • Led on-prem to cloud migration for worldwide SCM

03 — Stack

Snowflake Airflow dbt Terraform Kubernetes Python AI Agents & MCP

Platform: Snowflake · Airflow on K8s · dbt · Terraform · GitOps · Spark

AI: MCP servers · LLM tooling · AI agents · Self-service bots

Leadership: Hiring & mentoring · Platform roadmaps · Docs & standards · Data governance

04 — Off the Clock

12 Countries
30 Trips
10× Japan

When I'm not building platforms, I'm usually somewhere on this map.

CHARACTER DATA
Alex Norum
ALEX
DATA PLATFORM ENGINEER
LV 99
HP
9999/9999
MP
999/999
STR 95
VIT 80
MAG 99
SPR 90
DEX 85
LCK 70
LIMIT
LV.4
EXP
9999999
EQUIPMENT
WEAPON
TERRAFORM ENGINE
ARMOR
KUBERNETES CLUSTER
ACCESSORY
SNOWFLAKE CRYSTAL
LIMIT BREAK
PLATFORM OMNISLASH
Unleashes a full-stack data platform assault: automates workflows, deploys secure self-service pipelines, and slices legacy runtimes from hours to minutes. Grants party-wide observability and governance buffs.
LOCATION
PORTLAND
GUILD
LEGALZOOM
▶ SEND MESSAGE
COMMAND MENU

As a DATA PLATFORM ENGINEER, I specialize in building modern data infrastructure, focusing on reliable, secure, and self-service systems powered by Snowflake, Airflow on Kubernetes, and Terraform.

My expertise lies at the intersection of CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE and DATA ENGINEERING — creating scalable platforms and automated pipelines that enable teams to transform raw data into valuable insights.

INFRASTRUCTURE ENGINEERING
LV.5
I architect cloud-native data platforms using Terraform, Kubernetes, and AWS. Rebuilt LegalZoom's data platform from the ground up as an engineer and people leader.
MP COST 45
EFFECT PLATFORM STABILITY +85%
MASTERY
90%
AP: 9000/10000
PIPELINE ORCHESTRATION
LV.4
I design and implement data workflows using Airflow on Kubernetes, optimizing ETL processes that reduced runtime from hours to minutes.
MP COST 60
EFFECT PROCESSING SPEED +75%
MASTERY
75%
AP: 7500/10000
DATA GOVERNANCE
LV.4
I implement secure access models, automated data masking, and compliance frameworks. Lead a team focused on platform reliability and self-service capabilities.
MP COST 70
EFFECT DATA SECURITY +80%
MASTERY
80%
AP: 8000/10000
ENGINEERING PRINCIPLES
  • 🧰 A well-designed platform isn't just technically sound — it's intuitive to use, clear in purpose, and enables self-service for all data consumers.
  • 🚦 Robust data platforms enable team autonomy. They guide users toward best practices without requiring constant oversight from platform engineers.
  • 🔐 Make the secure path easy, the risky path difficult — while preserving the flexibility needed for innovation and experimentation.
  • 📦 Elegant simplicity beats unnecessary complexity. Solve the actual business problem, not the one that showcases technical prowess.
  • 📚 Clear documentation, practical runbooks, and reusable infrastructure patterns have more lasting impact than heroic individual efforts.
DATA PLATFORM MATERIA
DATA ENGINEERING
MAGIC
SNOWFLAKE
LV.5
BIGQUERY
LV.4
REDSHIFT
LV.3
AIRFLOW
LV.5
DBT
LV.4
SPARK
LV.3
KAFKA
LV.3
INFRASTRUCTURE
SUMMON
AWS
LV.5
GCP
LV.4
TERRAFORM
LV.5
KUBERNETES
LV.4
SCRYING & WARDING
DATADOG
LV.4
PROMETHEUS
LV.3
GRAFANA
LV.3
SLOs
LV.4
AI & AUTOMATION
INDEPENDENT
CLAUDE / LLMs
LV.4
MCP SERVERS
LV.4
PYDANTIC AI
LV.3
SLACK BOTS
LV.4
PLATFORM LEADERSHIP
COMMAND
JOB LV
14/20
TEAM LEADERSHIP
LV.4
ENGINEER MENTORING
LV.4
ROADMAP PLANNING
LV.5
STAKEHOLDER ALIGNMENT
LV.3
PLATFORM ARCHITECTURE
LV.5
DATA STRATEGY
LV.4
ENGINEER'S CREED
  • 🧰 If people need to Slack you to use the platform, the platform isn't done yet.
  • 🚦 Good guardrails beat good gatekeepers. Build the paved road, then get out of the way.
  • 🔐 Make the secure path the easy path. If compliance feels painful, it's a design problem.
  • 📦 Solve the actual problem, not the one that lets you use the cool new tool.
  • 📚 A good runbook outlasts a heroic fix. Documentation is the real infrastructure.
QUESTS

Quest Log

LegalZoom
Group Manager, Data Engineering
LegalZoom · 2023 – Present

Leading a small team that owns LegalZoom's data platform — Snowflake, Airflow on Kubernetes, dbt, Terraform, and the self-service tooling around all of it.

  • ▸ Designed domain-based Snowflake access model that automates role assignments
  • ▸ Built AI-powered support bot and MCP server for the data platform
  • ▸ Led DSR automation and dynamic PII column masking for governance
LegalZoom
Principal Data Engineer
LegalZoom · 2021 – 2023

Rebuilt LegalZoom's data platform from legacy to modern — Airflow on Kubernetes, Terraform-managed Snowflake, and GitOps workflows for everything.

  • ▸ Migrated the platform to Airflow on K8s with Terraform IaC
  • ▸ Wrote the platform standards and documentation the team still uses
  • ▸ Established self-service patterns that let domain teams own their own data
New Relic
Senior Data Engineer → Lead Data Analyst
New Relic · 2018 – 2021

Owned the data engineering platform roadmap. Built blue/green deployments, testing frameworks, and brought dbt to the org.

  • ▸ Introduced dbt — first adoption across the data org
  • ▸ Built Spark pipelines ingesting from 10+ data sources
  • ▸ Created self-service tooling for analyst teams
Oracle
Senior Business Analyst
Oracle · 2013 – 2018

Worked across R&D, manufacturing, and supply chain building analytics and migrating Oracle's worldwide SCM systems to cloud.

  • ▸ Cut forecasting pipeline runtime from 4 hours to 20 minutes
  • ▸ Built predictive models for manufacturing capacity planning
  • ▸ Led on-prem to cloud migration for worldwide SCM
CRAFTS

Running & Fitness

Running mostly to clear my head. Sometimes to train. Always tracking something.

Golf

Trying to get better, tracking my misses, and regretting most 3-woods.

Reading

I read a mix of sci-fi, philosophy, and whatever's on my nightstand too long.

Traveling

Travel is not a reward for working, it's education for living.

BATTLE
BATTLE ARENA
Choose your encounter. Each boss guards real achievements.
MAP

Places I've Been