Lead Data Scientist

BBC; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 91,000 - 97,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading broadcasting company is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to manage the Authoring & Curation Data Science team in a hybrid role across London, Salford, or Newcastle. You will lead efforts in implementing ML/AI to enhance user experience while collaborating with cross-functional teams. The position demands strong leadership and technical skills in data science and machine learning. Expected salary ranges from £91,000 to £97,000, reflecting your skills and experience.

Qualifications

• Passion for coaching and mentoring others; effective at growing those around you.
• Strong technical grounding in data science and machine learning.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support a team of data scientists within a diverse team.
• Set direction and priorities for your team, aligning work with strategy.
• Champion best practices in machine-learning product delivery.

Skills

Data Science

Machine Learning

Communication

Stakeholder Management

Coaching and Mentoring

Job description

Job Details

Job Reference: 23234

Band: E

Salary: £91,000 - £97,000 depending on relevant skills, knowledge and experience. The expected salary range reflects internal benchmarking and external market insights.

Contract type: Permanent Full-Time

Location: Glasgow, London, Salford or Newcastle. This is a hybrid role and the successful candidate will balance office working with home working. We are happy to discuss flexible working – please indicate your choice under the flexible working question in the application. There is no obligation to raise this at the application stage, but flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

Purpose of the Role

The BBC has been serving audiences online for decades across key products including iPlayer, News, Sport, Weather and Sounds. As we evolve to deliver more personalised content and experiences, Data Science is at the heart of that transformation.

Our team uses ML / AI to enrich content, power personalised experiences and improve editorial workflows for thousands of BBC editorial staff and millions of audience members. We are looking for a Lead Data Scientist to lead the Authoring & Curation Data Science team within Product Group.

Why Join the Team

As Lead Data Scientist you’ll play a leading role in supporting the delivery of value from our existing ML / AI products while helping the team grow into newly emerging opportunities.

In this role you will lead the Authoring & Curation Data Science team, which focuses on delivering automated metadata and authoring tooling for BBC audiences. This is a well‑established team with significant ambition for the year ahead, aiming to accelerate the delivery of generative AI within the content publication workflows. It is a fantastic opportunity to grow your leadership skill set as part of a multi‑disciplinary leadership team at a time of significant transformation.

Interview Process

• Brief introductory screening call for shortlisted candidates (approx 20 minutes)
• Two‑part interview – 1.5 hours total
• Case study task – 45 minutes (10‑minute presentation + 30‑minute Q&A)
• Competency‑based interview – 45 minutes

Your Key Responsibilities and Impact

• Lead and support a team of data scientists within a diverse, cross‑functional team.
• Collaborate with multi‑disciplinary leadership in your area, including product management, software engineering, architecture and delivery.
• Set the direction and priorities for your team, aligning their work with area and wider Product Group strategy.
• Champion best practice in machine‑learning product delivery, including approaches to model evaluation and responsible AI.
• Build partnerships and relationships with stakeholders across the BBC to identify new opportunities where data science can deliver audience and editorial value.

Your Skills and Experience

• Passion for coaching and mentoring others; effective at growing those around you.
• Strong technical grounding in data science and machine learning with prior hands‑on experience delivering data‑science products at scale.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, able to act as a bridge between technical and non‑technical perspectives.
• Skilled at framing complex, ambiguous problems as clear, actionable data‑science opportunities.
• Strategic mindset, focused on driving measurable impact and continuous improvement.

Essential Criteria

• Enthusiasm for leading and managing a team of data scientists (experience is a bonus).
• Experience delivering value with data and ML products and / or features in production at scale.
• Experience working with multi‑disciplinary teams.
• Understanding of the technical landscape of data science and machine learning in industry.
• Ability to work with domain experts and non‑technical stakeholders to identify new collaboration opportunities.

Desired but Not Required

• Experience as a people leader and hiring manager for a team – a bonus.
• Experience applying ML or Generative AI in media publishing or creative domains.
• Experience working in large product or public service organisations.
• Familiarity with NLP and metadata automation.

If you can bring some of these skills and experience along with transferable strengths, we would love to hear from you and encourage you to apply.

Notice

Before your start date you may need to disclose any unspent convictions or police charges in line with our Contracts of Employment policy. This allows us to discuss any support you may need and assess any risks. Failure to disclose may result in the withdrawal of your offer.

Key Skills

• Laboratory Experience
• Immunoassays
• Machine Learning
• Biochemistry
• Assays
• Research Experience
• Spectroscopy
• Research & Development
• cGMP
• Cell Culture
• Molecular Biology
• Data Analysis Skills

Employment Type: Full Time

Experience: years

Vacancy: 1

Monthly Salary: £91,000 - £97,000