Lead Data Scientist - Recommendations

DataJobs; Minneapolis (MN); Hybrid; USD 132,000 - 238,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

401(k)

Employee discount

Paid vacation

Job summary

Target is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to drive machine learning for recommendations and personalization across digital guest experiences. The role requires technical leadership and collaboration with data scientists, engineers, product managers, and business stakeholders.

The position involves end-to-end model work—from design to production deployment—balancing innovation with reliability in a hybrid Minneapolis-based setting.

Qualifications

• PhD or MS in CS/ML/related quantitative field with 2+ years industry exp.
• 5+ years developing ML solutions at scale for recommendations, personalization, ranking, retrieval, or search.
• Experience with reinforcement learning and/or contextual bandit design and evaluation.
• Strong coding in Python and SQL; experience with PyTorch/JAX.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for ML systems powering Target's digital recommendations and personalization.
• Collaborate with data scientists, engineers, PMs, and business stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve guest experiences.
• Lead end-to-end model development, evaluation, and deployment at large scale.

Skills

Python

SQL

PyTorch

JAX

Spark

Reinforcement learning

Contextual bandit

Experiment design

Communication

Software engineering

Education

PhD or MS in CS/ML/Statistics/OR

Tools

PyTorch

JAX

Spark

Job description

Target is hiring a Lead Data Scientist to lead machine learning recommendations and personalization that support Target’s digital guest experiences.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for machine learning systems powering Target’s digital recommendations and personalization.
• Collaborate with data scientists, engineers, product managers, and business stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve guest experiences through recommendation, retrieval, ranking, and personalization at large scale.
• Lead end-to-end model work: design, development, evaluation, and deployment of machine learning models that influence how millions of guests discover products across Target digital experiences.
• Convert ambiguous business goals into scalable algorithmic solutions delivering measurable guest and business outcomes.
• Drive projects from problem definition through production deployment and measurement, balancing innovation with operational excellence and long-term maintainability.
• Shape the technical direction of Target’s recommendation capabilities by establishing best practices for model development, evaluation, and measurement and influencing decisions across product, engineering, and data science teams.
• Mentor and develop other scientists to raise the technical bar; contribute to the growth of Target’s data science community through collaboration, thought leadership, and adoption of emerging machine learning techniques and technologies.
• Communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Requirements

• PhD or MS in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Operations Research, or a related quantitative field, with 2+ years of industry experience.
• 5+ years developing machine learning solutions scaling systems for recommendation, personalization, ranking, retrieval, or search.
• Experience with reinforcement learning and/or contextual bandit design, implementation, and evaluation.
• Experience leading development, evaluation, and deployment of machine learning solutions and partnering with engineering teams to deliver scalable production systems.
• Strong programming in Python and SQL; experience with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or JAX.
• Experience with large-scale data processing and analytics platforms such as Spark (or equivalent).
• Deep understanding of machine learning, deep learning, optimization, statistics, probability, and experimental design.
• Experience designing, analyzing, and interpreting online experiments and using results to inform product and business decisions.
• Demonstrated ability to translate ambiguous business challenges into scalable machine learning solutions.
• Demonstrated ability to influence technical direction and align product, engineering, and business stakeholders.
• Experience leveraging modern AI and generative AI tools to accelerate development, experimentation, and model delivery.
• Excellent communication skills for technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong software engineering fundamentals: testing, code reviews, documentation, and maintainable system design.

Technologies

• Python
• SQL
• PyTorch
• JAX
• Spark

Location and Work Arrangement

• Minneapolis, MN (hybrid)
• May be considered for remote or hybrid work arrangement under Target’s “Flex for Your Day” program.
• Remote arrangement: full-time from home or an alternate non-Target location, no desk at a Target location, travel to HQ up to 4 times per year.
• Hybrid/Flex: core role may be performed remote or onsite at a Target location based on role, team, and day-to-day tasks.
• Work duties cannot be performed outside the country of the primary work location unless otherwise prescribed by Target.

Compensation

• USD 132,000 - 238,000 per year

Benefits

• Comprehensive health benefits and programs (may include medical, vision, dental, life insurance and more)
• 401(k)
• Employee discount
• Short term disability
• Long term disability
• Paid sick leave
• Paid national holidays
• Paid vacation
• Find competitive benefits from financial and education to well-being and beyond

Please paste this URL into your preferred browser to learn about benefits eligibility for this role: https://tgt.biz/BenefitsForYou_E

ADA Information

• Target provides reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities in compliance with state and federal laws.
• For accommodation needs during the application or interview process, contact: [e-mail]
• Non-accommodation requests (application follow-ups or technical issues) will not be addressed via this channel.

Application deadline: 10/29/2026