Senior Data Scientist, Causal Inference + Experimentation

Socket.dev; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 221,000 - 245,000; Full time

Job summary

Discord is seeking an experienced Senior Data Scientist to join the Experimentation Platform team. You will ensure sound statistical methods for hundreds of daily experiments and empower engineers and product managers to design rigorous tests.

You will lead causal inference initiatives, educate cross-functional teams, and mentor 50+ data scientists while advancing scalable experimentation and data-driven decision making.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in designing and validating statistical methodologies for experimentation platforms or similar systems.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate closely with engineering and product teams to improve the reliability and scalability of experimentation at Discord.
• Provide statistical expertise, ensuring that all statistical choices, methodologies, and frameworks are sound and aligned with best practices in causal inference and experimental design.
• Lead initiatives to educate and train cross-functional teams on best practices in experimentation design, statistical methodologies, and causal inference, ensuring a deep understanding of the principles that drive sound decision-making under uncertainty.
• Develop and deliver engaging workshops, training sessions, and educational materials that demystify complex statistical concepts and promote data-driven decision-making across the company.
• Empower our Data Science team (50+ members) to use more rigorous causal inference methods.
• In addition to consulting within the wider Data Science team (50+ members), lead and conduct causal inference research of your own on important Discord priorities.

Skills

Python

SQL

R

Education

MSc in a quantitative field

Job description

Discord has a highly engaged community of millions of daily active users who use the platform for many different reasons, but there’s one thing that nearly everyone does: play video games. Discord plays a uniquely important role in the future of gaming, and we are focused on making it easier and more fun for people to hang out before, during, and after playing games.

Discord is looking for an experienced, proactive, and self-driven Senior Data Scientist to join our Experimentation Platform team. The Experimentation Platform puts data at the heart of the company’s decision-making and growth by enabling rapid and accurate product experimentation. Discord runs hundreds of experiments on any given day, turning experiment results into business decisions. As a Data Scientist on this team, you will ensure that the statistical underpinnings of our experiments are sound, that experimenters are able to design experiments with high rigor, and that Discord makes the best business decisions on the basis of these experiments. We are a small and quickly growing team; you will be presented with significant leadership opportunities as we evolve.

Our team directly impacts the strategy and roadmaps that improve Discord for its more than 90M daily active users! If helping make Discord an even better place to hang out with your friends sounds like an exciting challenge - we'd love to chat with you! Check out our blog about how our team informs strategy & innovation at Discord here!

What You'll Be Doing

• Collaborate closely with engineering and product teams to improve the reliability and scalability of experimentation at Discord.
• Provide statistical expertise, ensuring that all statistical choices, methodologies, and frameworks are sound and aligned with best practices in causal inference and experimental design.
• Lead initiatives to educate and train cross-functional teams on best practices in experimentation design, statistical methodologies, and causal inference, ensuring a deep understanding of the principles that drive sound decision-making under uncertainty.
• Develop and deliver engaging workshops, training sessions, and educational materials that demystify complex statistical concepts and promote data-driven decision-making across the company.
• Empower our Data Science team (50+ members) to use more rigorous causal inference methods.
• In addition to consulting within the wider Data Science team (50+ members), lead and conduct causal inference research of your own on important Discord priorities.

What you should have

• Proven experience in designing and validating statistical methodologies for experimentation platforms or similar systems, with a focus on ensuring the accuracy and reliability of experimental results.
• MSc in a quantitative field (e.g. Statistics, Economics, Political Science, Psychology, etc.) and 2+ years of experience designing, implementing and analyzing experiments or causal inference projects.
• Ability to critically evaluate and recommend statistical approaches and methodologies that enhance the integrity of experimentation frameworks.
• Strong passion for education and the ability to communicate complex statistical and experimental design concepts clearly and effectively to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated experience in developing and delivering training programs or educational content related to experimentation, causal inference, or statistical analysis, with a track record of fostering a culture of data literacy within an organization.
• Proficient with Python, SQL, R, and other statistical programming languages.

Bonus Points

• PhD in a quantitative field
• Interest in conducting literature reviews, translating and championing best scientific practices to a wide range of functions across the company.
• Track record in using causal inference methods that translated into business decisions and outcomes.
• Passion for Discord or gaming.
• Causal inference related publications.

The US base salary range for this full-time position is $220,500 to $245,000 + equity + benefits. Our salary ranges are determined by role and level. Within the range, individual pay is determined by additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include equity, or benefits.

Why Discord?

Discord plays a uniquely important role in the future of gaming. We're a multiplatform, multigenerational and multiplayer platform that helps people deepen their friendships around games and shared interests, and helps developers build and grow their businesses. We believe games give us a way to have fun with our favorite people, whether listening to music together or grinding in competitive matches for diamond rank. Join us in our mission! Your future is just a click away!

Discord is committed to inclusion and providing reasonable accommodations during the interview process.

We want you to feel set up for success, so if you are in need of reasonable accommodations, please let your recruiter know.

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