Director, Data Science

Publicis Groupe; Chicago, Northern (IL, KY); Hybrid; USD 135,000 - 194,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

401k

Paid time off

Flexible time off

Job summary

Publicis Groupe invites a Director of Applied Data Science to lead advanced analytics and audience solutions for pharmaceutical and healthcare clients. You will guide statistical modeling, ML, and AI-driven approaches to transform complex data into actionable marketing insights.

This role partners with cross-functional teams to create privacy-compliant data-driven solutions, mentor data scientists, and advance analytics capabilities across Strategy, Media, Technology, and Analytics.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a quantitative field; Master's preferred.
• 6+ years of data science, statistics, ML, predictive analytics, or marketing analytics experience.
• Proficient in Python, R, SQL; strong data visualization skills.
• Experience with cloud analytics platforms (Azure, Databricks, Snowflake, AWS).
• Ability to apply AI/advanced analytics to improve marketing effectiveness.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, validation, and deployment of statistical models, predictive analytics, and ML solutions for client and internal initiatives.
• Partner with client teams and internal stakeholders to translate business objectives into scalable analytical approaches.
• Analyze large healthcare datasets (HCP/NPI-level data, claims, prescriptions) to inform audience strategies and marketing decisions.
• Apply MMM, multi-touch attribution, incrementality testing, lift studies, and experimental design to evaluate campaigns.
• Develop AI applications to improve insights, workflow efficiency, and decision-making.
• Leverage cloud-based data platforms to extract, transform, and analyze diverse data sources.
• Create dashboards and visualizations to communicate findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Mentor junior team members and promote best practices in analytics.

Skills

Statistical modeling

Machine learning

Data visualization

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Statistics, CS, Math, Economics, or related

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Python

R

SQL

Databricks

Azure

Snowflake

Job description

Company description

PHM is the leading health media agency in the US, built for the modern healthcare experience. Here, industry depth meets media scale, where data becomes direction, where creativity and storytelling bring truth to life, and where orchestration replaces fragmentation.

Dedicated to making brands discovered, PHM redefines what media can do through data, content, and creativity. Because in modern healthcare, the brands that are found are the ones that lead. And when brands lead, advantage follows. Go deeper. Be found.

Overview

The Director, Applied Data Science plays a key role in delivering advanced analytics and audience solutions for pharmaceutical and healthcare clients. Working closely with senior Data Science leadership, this role applies to statistical modeling, machine learning, and AI-driven approaches to transform complex data into actionable insights that inform marketing strategy, audience engagement, and business decisions.

The Director serves as a technical lead across multiple client engagements, partnering with cross-functional teams to develop privacy-compliant, data-driven solutions. This individual combines strong analytical expertise with a consultative mindset and a passion for solving complex business challenges through data.

Responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, validation, and deployment of statistical models, predictive analytics, and machine learning solutions for client and internal initiatives.
• Partner with client teams and internal stakeholders to understand business objectives, audience strategies, and measurement needs, translating them into scalable analytical approaches.
• Analyze large, complex datasets, including HCP/NPI-level, claims, prescription, and other healthcare data, to develop actionable insights for audience segmentation, targeting, measurement, optimization, and commercial strategy while ensuring HIPAA and applicable privacy compliance.
• Apply advanced media measurement methodologies, including marketing mix modeling (MMM), multi-touch attribution, incrementality testing, lift studies, and experimental design, to evaluate campaign effectiveness and optimize marketing investments.
• Apply advanced statistical methods and supervised and unsupervised machine learning techniques to solve marketing and business challenges, including developing practical AI applications that improve insights, workflow efficiency, and decision-making.
• Leverage cloud-based data platforms and modern analytics environments to extract, transform, and analyze data from diverse sources.
• Develop clear presentations, dashboards, and visualizations that communicate analytical findings and strategic recommendations to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Drive automation of recurring analyses, reporting, and model monitoring to improve operational efficiency and scalability.
• Promote best practices in statistical analysis, model validation, documentation, data quality, and reproducible analytics.
• Collaborate across Strategy, Media, Technology, Analytics, and Client teams to deliver integrated, data-driven solutions, while mentoring Data Scientists and Analysts through technical guidance and coaching.
• Stay current on emerging analytics, AI, and healthcare marketing trends and contribute ideas that strengthen the agency's analytics capabilities and offerings.

Qualifications

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Statistics, Computer Science, Mathematics, Economics, or a related quantitative field required; Master's degree preferred.
• 6+ years of experience in data science, statistical modeling, machine learning, predictive analytics, or marketing analytics, including leading complex analytics projects and providing technical leadership to cross-functional teams.
• Advanced proficiency in Python, R, SQL, and modern data visualization tools.
• Experience working with cloud-based analytics platforms such as Azure, Databricks, Snowflake, AWS, or similar technologies.
• Experience applying AI and advanced analytics to solve complex business problems and improve marketing effectiveness.
• Strong knowledge of statistical modeling, machine learning, predictive analytics, experimental design, media measurement methodologies, including marketing mix modeling, attribution, incrementality, and lift testing, and data visualization.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to translate complex analytical concepts into clear, actionable recommendations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing multiple client engagements and priorities in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
• Experience mentoring junior team members and promoting technical best practices.
• Experience in healthcare, pharmaceutical, life sciences, or marketing analytics, with familiarity with healthcare and pharmaceutical data sources such as HCP/NPI-level data, medical and pharmacy claims, prescription data, and commercial healthcare datasets.
• Familiarity with healthcare data vendors and platforms, including HealthVerity, Symphony Health, MMIT, Komodo Health, IQVIA, PurpleLab, or similar providers.
• Experience working in privacy-safe data environments, including clean rooms and HIPAA-compliant environments, with knowledge of PHI, de-identified, and limited datasets.

Additional information

Our Publicis Groupe motto “Viva La Différence” means we’re better together, and we believe that our differences make us stronger. It means we honor and celebrate all identities, across all facets of intersectionality, and it underpins all that we do as an organization. We are focused on fostering belonging and creating equitable & inclusive experiences for all talent.

Publicis Groupe provides robust and inclusive benefit programs and policies to support the evolving and diverse needs of our talent and enable every person to grow and thrive. Our benefits package includes medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401K, as well as parental and family care leave, family forming assistance, tuition reimbursement, and flexible time off.

If you require accommodation or assistance with the application or onboarding process specifically, please contact [e-mail].

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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Compensation Range: USD $135,375.00 - USD $194,460.00/Annually. This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and the Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. Temporary roles may be eligible to participate in our freelancer/temporary employee medical plan through a third-party benefits administration system once certain criteria have been met. For regular roles, the Company will offer medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k, and paid time off. The Company anticipates the application deadline for this job posting will be 8/16/2026.