Principal Data Scientist

Forward Financing LLC; United States; On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Forward Financing LLC in Boston leads data science initiatives to unlock capital for small businesses. The role focuses on designing, developing, and deploying high-stakes statistical and machine learning models that impact pricing, risk, and business strategy.

You will mentor data scientists, shape the roadmap with senior leaders, and ensure scalable, well-documented production pipelines. The position requires strategic thinking and strong communication with executives.

Qualifications

• Experience leading data science initiatives from problem framing through deployment.
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.
• Mentor data scientists and raise the technical bar across the team.

Responsibilities

• Lead design, development, and deployment of the company's most complex statistical and ML models.
• Drive end-to-end data science initiatives from framing to deployment and monitoring.
• Define and enforce standards for model development, validation, code quality, and documentation.
• Partner with senior leaders to shape the data science roadmap and identify high-value opportunities.
• Architect and evolve production ML pipelines and monitoring frameworks for reliability and scalability.
• Mentor data scientists at all levels and elevate the technical capabilities of the team.
• Communicate tradeoffs and business implications to executives and stakeholders.

Skills

Machine learning

Statistical modeling

Model deployment

End-to-end delivery

Leadership

Communication to executives

Job description

Forward Financing is a financial technology company based in Boston, Massachusetts with team members throughout the United States, Dominican Republic, and Canada. The company is on a mission to unlock the capital that fuels small businesses across America. Recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In Boston and certified as a Great Place To Work®, Forward is investing in its employees, technology, and customer experience – with long‑term success in mind every step of the way.

In This Role You Will

• Lead the design, development, and deployment of the company's most complex and highest‑stakes statistical and machine learning models, particularly in ambiguous problem spaces with no established playbook
• Drive end‑to‑end delivery of flagship data science initiatives, from problem framing and model design through deployment, monitoring, and ongoing iteration
• Lead the technical strategy and architecture for Forward's modeling ecosystem, including credit risk, pricing and loss forecasting, ensuring solutions are built for long‑term scalability and business impact
• Partner with senior leaders across Portfolio Strategy, Engineering, Product, Underwriting, Sales, and Collections to shape the data science roadmap, proactively identify high‑value opportunities, and influence business strategy with data
• Define and enforce organization‑wide standards for model development, validation, code quality, and documentation; serve as the technical authority on design decisions
• Mentor data scientists at all levels, including senior and lead team members, raising the technical bar and fostering a culture of rigorous, continuous learning
• Communicate complex technical concepts, tradeoffs, and business implications to executives and non‑technical stakeholders, and represent data science in strategic planning
• Architect and evolve production machine learning pipelines and monitoring frameworks to ensure models are reliable, scalable, and continuously improving

Why You Should Apply

• Mission driven company: Forward is a trusted source of fast, flexible funding for small businesses that have often been underserved by traditional financing options. When you join the team,