Research & Innovation Manager - AI, data, and automation

Corporate Centre, IS Central Functions Centrica PLC; Clewer Village; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hybrid working

Competitive benefits

High-calibre team

Job summary

Centrica plc is seeking an experienced R&I Manager (Automation) to lead a team of researchers focused on data science, machine learning, and automation in the energy sector. The role involves shaping the roadmap for the automation pillar and coordinating with internal and external partners to push the state of the art.

The ideal candidate will have strong ML expertise, a PhD or masters with substantial research experience, and a passion for delivering practical, scalable AI solutions for a

Qualifications

• 5+ years designing complex statistical algorithms or ML models in academia or industry.
• Experience with ML frameworks and deployment tools across cloud platforms.
• Strong programming skills in Python and familiarity with other languages (C++, Scala, Rust).
• Experience deploying supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning approaches.
• Industry knowledge in energy tech or related domain is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor teams of research engineers.
• Oversee delivery of high-quality research outputs and projects.
• Own the strategy for the automation pillar within Energised Futures.
• Engage with stakeholders across Centrica, academia and startups.
• Support deployment of outputs to maximise business impact.
• Engage with conferences and journals to stay at the research frontier.

Skills

ML model design

Python

Statistical algorithms

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Data science

Education

PhD in CS/EE or related field

Masters in CS/EE or related field

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

AWS Bedrock

MLflow

Sagemaker

LangGraph

MCP libraries

Job description

Join us, be part of more. We’re so much more than an energy company. We’re a family of brands revolutionising how we power the planet. We're energisers. One team of 21,000 colleagues that's energising a greener, fairer future by creating an energy system that doesn’t rely on fossil fuels, whilst living our powerful commitment to igniting positive change in our communities. Here, you can find more purpose, more passion, and more potential. That’s why working here is #MoreThanACareer. We do energy differently - we do it all. We make it, store it, move it, sell it, and mend it. R&I Manager (Automation)

R&I Manager (Automation)

Want to help the world move towards Net Zero and shape the future of energy from within the UK’s leading energy providers? Energised Futures is Centrica's in-house science, research and innovation incubator, established to systematically explore the possible and catalyse Centrica’s purpose of energising a greener, fairer future. To do this, we’ve built a dynamic and diverse team of researchers to perform cutting edge innovation across its core themes of flexibility, automation, connectivity, markets, engagement, and access, and pairing this with a strong support team to publish and promote research activities, engage with other research institutions and energy innovators, and grow our portfolio of activities. Based in Antwerp and London since 2024, we continue to grow and evolve, giving newcomers to the team the chance to play a pivotal role in shaping the team and its processes, as it in turn shapes the roadmap for the wider organisation and industry. The Role: Our Research and Innovation Managers lead and mentor teams of research professionals, oversee highly technical projects, and own the strategy and roadmap for their area, ensuring alignment with the company's strategic objectives. The Automation theme covers all methods and technology that bring digitisation and optimisation of energy to scale using complex algorithms based on data science, machine learning, and the full spectrum of AI techniques (e.g. generative, agentic, etc). Specifically, the role entails:

• Leading and developing a team of research engineers
• Ensuring reliable delivery of high-quality research and innovation outputs
• Owning the Energised Futures’ strategy around the automation pillar
• Collaborating and engaging with stakeholders, both across Centrica, the energy industry, startups and academia
• Supporting the wider business to adopt and deploy our outputs to maximise our impact
• Monitor and engage with industry and academia by engaging with conferences and journals

The team is currently based in Antwerp, Belgium but we will be building a London-centred team to match. It will be useful to be able to travel between the locations, but we’d prefer you to be based in or around London.

The ideal candidate

An adaptable, experienced data scientist or machine learning expert that wants to tackle complex challenges and push the state of the art for automation in the energy sector. Of course, we’re also adaptable – if you think you’d be a good fit but don’t have all of this then we’d still love to hear from you!

Key skills and experiences

• 5+ years experience designing complex statistical algorithms or machine learning models: A PhD plus 2 or more years or a master’s degree plus 4 or more years of research or equivalent industry experience in a domain such as Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Control Systems, or a related field
• Experience across a spectrum of libraries, frameworks and services: such as ML libraries e.g. TensorFlow or PyTorch; model servers such as AWS Bedrock; MLOps such as ML Flow or Sagemaker; agent / AI orchestration such as LangGraph or MCP libraries
• Strong programming skills, especially in Python (other languages like C++, Scala, Rust etc are bonuses).
• Practical experience implementing and deploying using various techniques including for (deep) supervised / unsupervised / reinforcement learning problems
• Strong mathematical skills and analytical mindset
• Energy industry knowledge is strongly preferred e.g. smart energy technologies and energy management, and connectivity challenges, energy markets and trading techniques, regulatory constraints and processes, etc

And key behaviours and competences

• An adaptable growth mindset: Curiosity and a desire to learn and develop beyond current expertise.
• Proactive, creative, and collaborative approach to problem-solving, especially in the ambiguous, uncertain world of innovation
• Strong sense of ownership: taking initiative and being accountable for your work and the wider team
• Interpersonal skills: working effectively with in cross-functional teams
• Technical communication: e.g. in discussing and explaining technical concepts such as machine learning, energy systems, hardware control, and IoT devices
• Ethical integrity: Upholds high ethical standards in all research and innovation activities, striving for transparency and openness in all interactions

What we offer

• An attractive salary and compensation package
• A highly competitive set of additional benefits, the exact nature of which will depend on being based in the UK or Belgium
• A very flexible hybrid working pattern – we get together twice a week in the office, but are generally quite flexible, especially if it relates to external factors, e.g. family situation
• Join a high potential and fast-growing energy technology company
• A high calibre team, where your creative input will have a high impact.

We embrace diversity and actively seek to attract individuals with unique backgrounds and perspectives. To build a more sustainable future, we need the best team – a team with a diverse mix of people and skills, where everyone feels welcome and able to succeed. We are not looking for people to fit into our culture but to add to it!

Contribute to a greener, fairer future for all, driving a responsible but rapid decarbonisation of energy.

We’re a family of brands revolutionising how we power the planet. When it comes to energy, no one does it like us. We make it, store it, move it, sell it and mend it. We’re made up of 12 different businesses, but united by our purpose as Centrica. We’re energisers. Our journey to a greener, fairer future is powered by individuals like you. Through innovative green products, intelligent energy solutions and developing smarter ways to use and save energy, we’re not just part of the energy transition, we’re leading it. Our commitment goes beyond sustainability. Together we’re bringing our collective energies to create positive change in our local communities. If you immerse yourself in our fight to change tomorrow, you might just find your why. We’re looking for people to add to our culture – not fit in with it. We're building a community where you can be unapologetically you, where differences are celebrated, and where everyone can belong. Real inclusivity also means supporting the different realities our people face. That’s why we have the UK’s best Carers Policy and are continually building our approach to flexibility and wellbeing. Of course, we love having fun too. We’re a people place after all.