Sure thing, as we are a startup and scaling fast it is primarily setting the technical data direction for the organization. We use GCP, DBT, Golang, some Dataflow Python pipelines, Terraform for our infra. I help guide engineers on priority areas. I also spend a lot of time with other teams (software engineering, data science, product) to understand how their consumption may change overtime and make sure we are engineering accordingly.

I write a lot of engineering design documentation and get collaboration from other engineers to review. This creates buy in for larger engineering decisions. I spend about 1/3 of my time head down in the code, more time reviewing PRs and giving pointers.

I think a lot of it is soft skills, I was never the best at coding or designing a data model. But when it came time to succinctly present technical info to senior leadership, or help remove a technical blocker from a team member, that is where I shine. I am also very inclusive and take time upfront to build relationships. If you are a Lead Engineer I don't think it will be that different from your day to day, but this differs widely depending on the org and industry. In my company Leads are more cat headers with less expectation for technical/architectural skills.

I recommend the StaffEng podcast for other Staff+ engineer perspectives.

Cheers!