Data Science Manager – Experimentation: Innovation & Research

Sony Playstation; City Of London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global gaming company in London is looking for a Data Science Manager to lead a team focusing on experimentation and causal inference. In this role, you'll drive research innovations and collaborate with cross-functional teams to enhance gaming experiences. The ideal candidate will have over 6 years of data science experience, strong leadership skills, and a solid understanding of the gaming industry. This position offers the opportunity to foster a culture of data-driven decision-making within the organization.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in data science, including hands-on work in experimentation.
• Proven track record in experimentation innovation.
• Experience in people management or technical leadership for at least 2 years.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of data scientists focused on experimentation and causal inference.
• Drive innovation in experimentation research and new methodologies.
• Partner with product managers and game studios to align experimentation opportunities.

Skills

Leadership

Innovation

Statistical methods

Collaboration

Communication

Education

Master's Degree in Applied Math, Economics, Statistics, Computer Science

Ph.D. or equivalent experience

Tools

SQL

Python

R

Airflow

Git

Tableau

MicroStrategy

Job description

Overview

Why PlayStation?

PlayStation isn’t just the Best Place to Play — it’s also the Best Place to Work. Today, we’re recognized as a global leader in entertainment producing The PlayStation family of products and services including PlayStation5, PlayStation4, PlayStationVR, PlayStationPlus, acclaimed PlayStation software titles from PlayStation Studios, and more.

PlayStation also strives to create an inclusive environment that empowers employees and embraces diversity. We welcome and encourage everyone who has a passion and curiosity for innovation, technology, and play to explore our open positions and join our growing global team.

The PlayStation brand falls under Sony Interactive Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation.

As a Data Science Manager, you will lead both people and innovation in experimentation and causal inference, helping shape the future of decision-making and product innovation at SIE. This is a hands-on leadership role blending technical depth with managerial responsibilities. You will drive cutting-edge research in experimentation methodologies while mentoring and guiding a team of data scientists. You’ll be responsible for elevating our experimentation strategy, fostering a culture of curiosity and rigor, and helping cross-functional teams deliver player-first experiences through strong evidence-based decisions.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Lead a team of data scientists focused on experimentation and causal inference; provide technical direction, career development, and mentorship.
• Drive innovation in experimentation research by developing and overseeing new methodologies and frameworks that improve the quality, speed, and scalability of experiments.
• Guide the advancement of experimentation infrastructure and tooling, incorporating statistical and machine learning methods to refine analysis capabilities.
• Partner with product managers, game studios, and business leaders to identify high-impact experimentation opportunities and ensure alignment with PlayStation’s strategic goals.
• Act as a thought leader in experimentation and causal inference, evangelizing best practices and fostering learning across teams.
• Contribute directly to research and prototyping of novel experimentation techniques that address complex real-world constraints, such as user behavior variability and data limitations.
• Champion the growth of a data-driven culture by advocating for experimentation standards, ethical practices, and reproducibility.
• Represent the team’s insights, innovations, and impact across the broader data science and product communities within PlayStation.
• Stay abreast of emerging developments in experimentation, causal inference, and applied machine learning to continuously evolve our capabilities.

What We’re Looking For:

• Master’s Degree or equivalent experience in Applied Math, Economics, Statistics, Computer Science, or related field. Ph.D. or equivalent experience preferred.
• Strong familiarity with the gaming industry and contemporary gaming experiences.
• 6+ years of experience in data science, including hands-on work in experimentation, with at least 2+ years in a formal people management or technical leadership role.
• Proven track record of leading experimentation innovation and scaling frameworks within a dynamic business environment.
• Proficiency in SQL and statistical programming languages (e.g., R or Python), especially for causal inference, experimental analysis, and scalable modeling.
• Expertise in causal inference techniques and designing both randomized and quasi-experiments.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate cross-functionally and influence data strategies that inform business and product decisions.
• Excellent communication and storytelling skills, especially in conveying complex concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience working with modern data engineering and visualization tools (e.g., Airflow, Git, Tableau, MicroStrategy).
• A strong sense of ownership and an inclusive leadership style that encourages collaboration and innovation.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All persons will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender (including gender identity, gender expression and gender reassignment), race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, marital or civil partnership status, disability, age, sexual orientation, pregnancy, maternity or parental status, trade union membership or membership in any other legally protected category.

We strive to create an inclusive environment, empower employees and embrace diversity. We encourage everyone to respond.

PlayStation is a Fair Chance employer and qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for employment.