Lead Data Scientist

Independence Pet Group

Chicago (IL)

On-site

USD 120,000 - 160,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive medical, dental and vision insurance

Parental leave

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

Paid holidays

Pet-friendly office environment

Job summary

Independence Pet Group is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to drive data science and analytical solutions within their pet insurance portfolio. The candidate will be responsible for developing advanced models and mentoring data talent. Preferred qualifications include experience in insurance, cloud platforms, and pricing. The position offers hybrid work flexibility and comprehensive benefits such as medical and dental insurance, parental leave, and a pet-friendly office environment.

Qualifications

6+ years of professional data science or advanced analytics experience.
Strong expertise in Python and SQL.
Experience with large-scale datasets.

Responsibilities

Develop predictive and prescriptive models for decision-making.
Apply statistical and machine learning techniques.
Mentor other data scientists and analytics talent.

Skills

Python

SQL

Advanced analytics

Statistical methods

Education

BS/MS in a quantitative field

PhD in a quantitative field

Tools

Databricks

Snowflake

dbt

Job description

Established in 2021, Independence Pet Holdings is a corporate holding company that manages a diverse and broad portfolio of modern pet health brands and services, including insurance, pet education, lost recovery services, and more throughout North America. We believe pet insurance is more than a financial product and build solutions to simplify the pet parenting journey and help improve the well‑being of pets. As a leading authority in the pet category, we operate with a full stack of resources, capital, and services to support pet parents. Our multi‑brand and omni‑channel approach includes our own insurance carrier, insurance brands and partner brands.

Job Summary

IDEA (IPH Data & Enterprise Analytics) is IPH’s enterprise data organization responsible for building and operating the data platform, governance framework, and analytics capabilities that power decision‑making across all brands. The team brings together experienced data leaders and engineers from across IPH and beyond to create a unified, enterprise‑scale data function. Organized around four core pillars—Data Strategy & Planning, Infrastructure & Data Engineering, Enterprise Data Governance, and Analytics & Reporting—IDEA partners with teams across the organization to architect, manage, and activate data & analytics so every IPH team can make faster, smarter, and more informed decisions. As a result, we are looking for a Lead Data Scientist to join the organization. The Lead Data Scientist will lead the development and application of advanced data science and analytical solutions to drive pricing, risk, customer, and operational insights across IPH’s pet insurance portfolio. While the role is focused on pet insurance, we value candidates with experience in e‑commerce, subscription businesses, or other consumer‑facing industries who can bring diverse analytical approaches—such as LTV modeling, segmentation, A/B testing, and paid media analytics—to help innovate and optimize the business. Beyond model development, this role will frame complex business problems, translate analytical findings into clear and actionable insights, and partner closely with stakeholders across product, marketing, actuarial, and operations to drive data‑informed decisions. Reporting to the Head of Analytics, the Lead Data Scientist will help shape the data science roadmap, champion best practices in experimentation and modelling, and contribute to building a strong analytical culture across IPH.

Job Location

Hybrid - Chicago, Cleveland, Scottsdale/Phoenix, New York City

Main Responsibilities

Develop predictive and prescriptive models to support pricing, risk, customer, and operational decision‑making across the pet insurance portfolio
Apply advanced statistical and machine learning techniques to a variety of business problems, including customer behaviour, retention, and marketing performance
Mentor other data scientists and analytics talent as needed, and develop data science rigor and expertise across the organization
Partner with actuarial, product, and analytics teams to set data science goals and objectives and translate business questions into analytical solutions
Collaborate with engineering and analytics teams to deploy models into production and ensure scalable, maintainable solutions
Communicate insights and recommendations to technical and non‑technical audiences, leveraging learnings from insurance and other consumer‑facing industries

Qualifications

6+ years of professional data science or advanced analytics experience with a BS/MS, or 4+ years of experience with a PhD in a quantitative field
Strong Python and SQL expertise
Experience with large‑scale datasets, structured and unstructured
Familiarity with analytics engineering concepts or hands‑on experience is a plus

Preferred Qualifications

Pricing, underwriting, or risk modeling experience
Experience in insurance or regulated industries
Experience with cloud‑based platforms (Databricks, Snowflake, or similar) and notebook‑based workflows
Experience with dbt (data build tool) or related data transformation approaches
Exposure to concepts common in P&C, ecommerce, subscription, or marketing analytics (LTV, segmentation, A/B testing, etc)

All of our jobs come with great benefits including healthcare, parental leave and opportunities for career advancements. Some offerings are dependent upon the location of where you work and can include the following: