Research Scientist, Server Demand

Meta; Lansing (MI); On-site; USD 271,000 - 347,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

Equity

Benefits

Job summary

Meta is seeking a Senior Technical Owner for Server Demand Planning to forecast long- and near-term server capacity by rack, hardware, and region. You’ll develop operations-research models to match demand with supply, guiding production-grade optimization vs.

lightweight prototypes to support decisions. You will bridge product capacity owners, capacity engineering, site planning, and finance, establishing standards and tracking forecast-to-actual gaps.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in a technical field.
• 7+ years applying operations research to planning problems.
• MS in a quantitative field or equivalent experience.
• Deep toolkit: LP, MILP, stochastic/robust optimization, simulation.
• Experience building production-grade models and lightweight prototypes.
• Strong experience reconciling forecast with constrained supply.
• Fluency with solvers (Gurobi/CPLEX/Xpress/OR-Tools) and SQL+Python.

Responsibilities

• Own multi-horizon server/MW demand forecast (2–5+ years) by resource and DC.
• Aggregate and normalize demand signals into a trusted long-term plan.
• Formulate and solve demand-supply matching using OR models.
• Build production-grade optimization and forecasting systems and prototypes.
• Set operating model, track forecast accuracy and supply-matching metrics.
• Collaborate with IDC engineering, site selection, and hardware teams to align data center plans with demand.

Skills

Operations research

Optimization (LP/MILP)

Forecasting

Python

SQL

Data center capacity planning

Gurobi/CPLEX/Xpress/OR-Tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in a technical field

MS in quantitative field (OR/Industrial Eng/Applied Math/Stats)

PhD (preferred) in OR/Industrial Eng/Management Science

Tools

Kinaxis

SAP IBP

o9

Blue Yonder

Demantra

E2open

MCP/ICPC

Capacity Explorer

Job description

Summary

Meta runs one of the largest server fleets on earth, and every product bet (AI training, ranking, inference, storage) turns into a demand for compute that we must forecast, shape, and match to a physical supply of servers, racks, power, and data center space. As the senior technical owner of Server Demand Planning, you own the demand side of that equation and close the loop with supply: you forecast long- and near-term server capacity demand by rack/hardware type and region, and you build the operations-research models that match that demand to supply so we land the right servers, in the right place, at the right time. You set the modeling approach for the function, decide when to ship a production-grade optimization system versus a fast lightweight model to unblock a decision, and act as the connective tissue between product/service capacity owners, capacity engineering, supply chain, data center planning, and finance.

Required Skills

Research Scientist, Server Demand Responsibilities:

1. Own the multi-horizon server/MW demand forecast long range (2-5+ years), by resource type and DC supply requirements.

2. Aggregate and normalize demand signals from short term demand and product groups, into a single trusted statistical long term demand plan.

3. Formulate and solve the demand-supply matching problem using operations-research models that reconcile forecasted demand with hardware roadmaps, cooling, lead times, and power constraints to inform the Plan of Record.

4. Build across the full modeling spectrum: production-grade optimization and forecasting systems and prototype models and heuristics that answer a leadership question or unblock a decision.

5. Set functional standards: define the operating model, bridge short- and long-term forecasts, track accuracy and supply-matching metrics, and bridge forecast-to-actual gaps.

6. Partner with IDC engineering, site selection, and hardware strategy teams to align next-generation data center designs, rack sizing, and hardware roadmaps with demand, eliminating stranded power, cooling, and space capacity.

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, relevant technical field, or equivalent practical experience

2. 7+ years applying operations research / management science to real planning problems in demand planning, capacity planning, supply-demand matching, network optimization, or inventory

3. MS in a quantitative field (Operations Research, Industrial Engineering, Applied Math, Statistics, CS, or related), or equivalent experience

4. Deep operations-research toolkit: mathematical optimization (LP, MILP, stochastic/robust optimization), simulation, queuing theory, and probabilistic/statistical forecasting

5. Demonstrated ability to build BOTH production-grade models/systems (deployed, maintained, driving real decisions) AND lightweight/prototype models delivered fast under ambiguity

6. Strong demand-to-supply matching experience: reconciling forecasted demand against constrained supply, lead times, and inventory

7. Fluency with optimization solvers (Gurobi, CPLEX, Xpress, or OR-Tools) and with SQL + Python for modeling, analysis, and pipelines

Preferred Qualifications

Preferred Qualifications:

1. PhD in Operations Research, Industrial Engineering, Management Science, or a related quantitative field

2. Direct experience with server/compute or data center capacity planning at hyperscale

3. Statistical/ML forecasting depth (time series, hierarchical/probabilistic forecasting, forecast reconciliation)

4. Experience with planning platforms (Kinaxis, SAP IBP, o9, Blue Yonder, Demantra, E2open) and internal capacity tools (MCP/ICPC, Capacity Explorer)

5. Publications, patents, or recognized technical leadership in OR / optimization / forecasting

Public Compensation

$271,000/year to $347,000/year + bonus + equity + benefits

Industry

Internet

Equal Opportunity

Meta is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. Meta participates in the E-Verify program in certain locations, as required by law. Please note that Meta may leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies in connection with applications for employment.

Meta is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities in our recruiting process. If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, please let us know at [e-mail].