Data Scientist

BigHand; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday

Wellbeing benefits

Pension scheme

Cycle to Work

Remote work options

Job summary

BigHand is seeking a Data Scientist to design and ship AI-powered features behind a production-ready product for legal professionals. You will build and evaluate the models and LLM systems that sit behind the product, owning the quality of releases.

You will wrangle real-world legal data, frame problems for scalable solutions, and contribute to how problems are understood and solved within an agile team. Remote-friendly with a modern tech stack and ongoing learning opportunities.

Qualifications

• STEM degree in a technical subject (physical sciences or maths preferred).
• Strong Python skills with Pandas, NumPy and scikit-learn (or equivalent).
• Experience with LLMs and agentic AI systems (RAG, context engineering).
• Data wrangling and analysis experience.
• Ability to train, tune and evaluate models for production deployment.
• Solid understanding of modern software development lifecycle practices.

Responsibilities

• Train, tune and evaluate models for production deployment with engineering.
• Build and improve LLM and agentic AI systems including retrieval augmented generation and context engineering.
• Wrangle and analyse real-world legal data for product reliability.
• Design evaluations to determine model/agent performance and act on results.
• Explain ML concepts clearly to non-technical audiences.
• Contribute to technical discussions and refine requirements.
• Deliver high-quality output within an agile framework.
• Develop robust solutions using the best tools and avoid fragile shortcuts.

Skills

Python

LLMs & agentic AI

Data wrangling

Communication

Model evaluation

Education

STEM degree

Tools

Pandas

NumPy

scikit-learn

Job description

About BigHand

BigHand offers technology solutions for busy legal professionals that provide data and insights to increase value and profits. Through our expert knowledge and innovative technology, we enable our customers to achieve enhanced efficiency, better decision-making and harness their competitive edge.

We build with tomorrow in mind, transforming ideas into action and empowering our customers to succeed in a world of constant change. We make big happen for our customers.

We are a business driven by our values and have these at the centre of everything we do. Our BigHanders are dedicated to building a culture where We Win Together, We Love to Learn, We Do the Right Thing, We Own It and We Find the Fun.

About The Role

BigHand builds software that legal organisations rely on every day. We are looking for a Data Scientist to help us design and ship products to establish our partnership with Ayora, where a clean, considered user interface meets genuinely intelligent behaviour underneath. This is a hands-on role for a data scientist who wants their work in production rather than in a notebook. You will build and evaluate the models and LLM systems that sit behind the product, contribute to how problems are framed as well as how they are solved, and take real ownership of the quality of what we release.

What You’ll Do

• Train, tune and evaluate models, and prepare them for production deployment alongside engineering.
• Build and improve LLM and agentic AI systems, including harnesses, retrieval augmented generation, context engineering and evaluation frameworks.
• Wrangle and analyse messy real-world legal data, and turn it into something the product can rely on.
• Design evaluations that tell us honestly whether a model or agent is working, and act on what they show.
• Explain complex statistical and machine learning concepts and results clearly, through visualisation and summarisation, including to non-technical audiences.
• Contribute to technical discussion and help refine requirements rather than simply consuming them.
• Deliver consistently within a collaborative agile framework, with a track record of predictable, high quality output.
• Develop well-constructed solutions using the best tools available, avoiding fragile shortcuts taken for short-term speed or to sidestep discussion.
• Apply modern software development lifecycle practices, including code review, testing and continuous delivery.

What We’re Looking For

• An analytical background, evidenced by a STEM degree in a technical subject. Physical sciences or mathematics are preferred.
• Strong Python skills and competency across the Python data science ecosystem such as pandas, numpy and scikit-learn, or a highly transferable equivalent.
• Experience working with LLMs and agentic AI systems, including harnesses, RAG, context engineering and evaluations.
• Experience working safely and efficiently with agentic engineering systems.
• Solid experience with data wrangling and data analysis.
• The ability to train, tune and evaluate models and prepare them for production deployment.
• A solid understanding of modern software development lifecycle practices.
• The ability to navigate typical problems independently, contribute to discussion and help shape technical requirements.
• The ability to communicate complex statistical and machine learning concepts and their results clearly, including to non-technical audiences.

Desirable

• An insatiable appetite for learning and for acquiring new knowledge, skills and experience.
• Comfort operating independently on both existing and new systems while preserving and improving a consistent project structure.
• A positive force in building the team as we grow and develop into more senior positions.
• A habit of introducing new technology and practices that accelerate the team, for example through lunch and learn sessions.
• Experience in the legal industry or another regulated environment such as health or financial services.

What we offer

• 25 days holiday (exc. bank holidays) + 3 BigHand days off between Christmas & New Year
• Various wellbeing benefits including private medical, vision, online wellbeing programs & webinars, access to online therapy and Employee Resource Groups (ERG)
• Company-wide Wellness day, for our teams all across the globe to switch off and spend the day doing something to nourish their mental health
• Opportunities to give back with company volunteer events and individual volunteer days
• Career growth opportunities and study leave allowance
• Family benefits including enhanced parental leave, secondary caregiver leave and fertility support
• Financial benefits including pension scheme, life assurance, and salary sacrificing
• Cycle to Work Scheme and Tech Scheme
• Growing business with a global presence, flexible working, modern offices, and remote work options

Our DEI Commitment

We welcome the unique value and individuality that you can bring to BigHand. We are an equal opportunity employer and are dedicated to recruiting solely based on capability and potential regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, educational background, national origin, religion, military status or physical ability. Our BigHanders are dedicated to advancing our culture of belonging by embracing differing viewpoints, opinions, thoughts, and ideas.