Principal Engineer - Data Science

Cellco Partnership; Basking Ridge (NJ); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Verizon seeks a Principal Engineer - Data Science to join the Transformation Command Center. You will lead advanced analytics, transform massive datasets into production-grade predictive models, and drive strategic initiatives across Consumer, Network, and Strategy domains.

You will independently code in Python and SQL, build ML/time-series solutions, and create dashboards with Matplotlib, Seaborn, Tableau, and Grafana, presenting insights to senior leadership.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Data Science, Computer Science, Statistics, Economics, Engineering, or related field, or 4+ years of work experience.
• Six+ years of relevant experience.
• Advanced, independent coding in Python and SQL for data extraction, feature engineering, and analysis.
• Proven track record deploying ML models and time-series forecasting in enterprise settings.
• Strong experience with data visualization tools (Matplotlib, Seaborn, Tableau, Grafana).
• Ability to independently manage technical project lifecycles and present findings to management.

Responsibilities

• Hands-On Technical Execution: query, clean, merge, and manipulate large datasets using SQL and Python.
• Advanced ML & Predictive Modeling: design, build, validate, and deploy ML algorithms and time series models.
• Initiative & Technical Leadership: drive analytics projects end-to-end from scoping to executive presentation.
• Data Visualization & Insights: develop dashboards to translate model output into executive metrics.
• Strategic Stakeholder Partnering: serve as a consultative partner to Consumer, Network, and Strategy teams.
• Model Rigor & Innovation: ensure governance, validation, and incorporate new AI/ML methods.

Skills

Python

SQL

Machine Learning

Time Series Forecasting

Data Visualization

Executive Stakeholder Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Computer Science, Statistics, Economics, Engineering, or related field

Master's degree or Ph.D. in quantitative discipline

Tools

Matplotlib

Seaborn

Tableau

Grafana

Job description

When you join Verizon You want more out of a career. A place to share your ideas freely - even if they're daring or different. Where the true you can learn, grow, and thrive. At Verizon, we power and empower how people live, work and play by connecting them to what brings them joy. We do what we love - driving innovation, creativity, and impact in the world. Our V Team is a community of people who anticipate, lead, and believe that listening is where learning begins. In crisis and in celebration, we come together - lifting our communities and building trust in how we show up, everywhere & always. Want in? Join the #VTeamLife.

What you'll be doing...

The Principal Engineer - Data Science joins the high-visibility Impact Analytics team within Verizon's Transformation Command Center (TCC). In this role, you will operate as an advanced individual contributor (IC) combining top-tier technical execution with strategic initiative ownership. You will work independently to drive deep-dive data manipulation, advanced statistical modeling, and machine learning solutions, serving as the technical lead on critical analytical projects across the business. Working across Consumer, Network, and Strategy domains, you will transform massive, complex datasets into production-grade predictive models and actionable strategies that unlock high-impact financial opportunities for executive leadership.

Responsibilities include:

• Hands-On Technical Execution: Independently query, clean, merge, and manipulate massive structured and unstructured datasets across big data systems using SQL and Python.
• Advanced ML & Predictive Modeling: Design, build, validate, and deploy advanced machine learning algorithms (supervised and unsupervised) and robust time series forecasting models to solve complex, ambiguous business problems.
• Initiative & Technical Leadership: Drive high-visibility analytics projects end-to-end-from initial scoping and data extraction to model building, testing, validation, and executive presentation.
• Data Visualization & Insights: Develop intuitive dashboards and visual reporting frameworks (using Matplotlib, Seaborn, Tableau, Grafana, etc.) to translate complex model output into key executive metrics.
• Strategic Stakeholder Partnering: Serve as a consultative technical partner to Consumer, Network, and Strategy teams, translating business challenges into data science workflows and presenting actionable recommendations to leadership.
• Model Rigor & Innovation: Envision and test for corner cases, ensure rigorous model governance and validation, and continuously integrate state-of-the-art AI/ML and forecasting methodologies into the team's repository.

What We're Looking For...

You are an expert technical practitioner who thrives in an independent, fast-paced environment. You excel at turning ambiguous business problems into structured, production-ready data science solutions without needing step-by-step direction. You bring deep hands-on expertise in coding, statistics, and machine learning, alongside the business acumen required to articulate the commercial impact of your work to senior stakeholders.

You’ll need to have:

• Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Computer Science, Statistics, Economics, Engineering, or a related quantitative field, or four or more years of work experience.
• Six or more years of relevant experience required, demonstrated through work experience and/or military experience.
• Advanced, independent coding experience in Python and SQL for complex data extraction, feature engineering, and statistical analysis.
• Proven track record building, validating, and deploying Machine Learning models and time series forecasting solutions in enterprise business settings.
• Strong experience with data visualization tools and libraries (e.g., Matplotlib, Seaborn, Tableau, Grafana).
• Demonstrated ability to independently manage technical project lifecycles, handle complex data pipelines, and present analytical findings to management.

Even better if you have one or more of the following:

• Master's degree or 4+ years of hands‑on experience in data science, advanced analytics, or predictive modeling.
• Master's degree or Ph.D. in a quantitative discipline or an MBA with a strong technical background.
• 5+ years of progressive technical experience in data science, advanced analytics, or quantitative consulting.
• Experience with Big Data frameworks (Spark, Splunk, Hadoop) and cloud analytics platforms.
• Advanced expertise in specialized fields (e.g., Deep Learning, NLP, causal inference, recommendation systems, or advanced time series frameworks like Prophet, ARIMA, LSTM).
• Track record of independently driving cross-functional analytics projects in telecommunications, pricing, sustainability, or customer experience.

Where you'll be working

In this hybrid role, you'll have a define