Lead Data Scientist & ML Leader

Hastings Direct; Rotherfield; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Car allowance

Flexible Working

Competitive Bonus Scheme

Private medical insurance

Pension contribution match

Job summary

Hastings Direct is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to shape and deliver advanced Data Science solutions across the business. You will lead a team of Data Scientists, taking ownership from exploration through deployment, monitoring and optimisation.

You will work closely with stakeholders to identify opportunities where Data Science can impact decisions and outcomes, including telematics, claims, customer behaviour, and other insurance lifecycle applications.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading, mentoring and developing Data Scientists.
• Strong Python and SQL skills in a commercial setting.
• Experience deploying ML models from development to production.
• Experience with large, complex datasets.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS/Azure) and Databricks/Spark.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing Data Science team.
• Shape and deliver DS strategy aligned to priorities.
• Develop advanced ML and statistical models.
• Oversee projects from concept to production and monitoring.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to drive business outcomes.
• Evaluate new data sources and techniques to improve models.
• Ensure models are robust, governed and monitored.
• Partner with Data Engineering to deploy pipelines.
• Translate outputs to actionable insights for technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Champion best practices and drive innovation across the function.

Skills

Data Science Leadership

Machine Learning

Statistical Modelling

Python

SQL

Cloud Platforms

Stakeholder Management

Commercial Awareness

Tools

AWS

Azure

Databricks

Snowflake

Spark

Job description

Hastings Direct is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to shape and deliver advanced Data Science solutions across the business. You will lead a team of Data Scientists, taking ownership from exploration through deployment, monitoring and optimisation.

You will work closely with stakeholders to identify opportunities where Data Science can impact decisions and outcomes, including telematics, claims, customer behaviour, and other insurance lifecycle applications.