Senior Manager, Data Science

Upstart; United States; Remote; USD 195,000 - 270,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

401(k) with company match

Employee stock purchase program (ESPP)

Comprehensive health coverage

Annual wellness allowance

Paid time off and holidays

Opportunities for onsite collaboration

Job summary

Upstart is seeking a senior leader to head Marketing Science within its Growth, Product, and Ops Analytics team. You will lead analysts and data scientists embedded with marketing channels, driving end-to-end measurement, experimentation, and optimization across direct mail, paid media, and partnerships.

You will set roadmaps with marketing, finance, and product leaders, hire and develop a high-impact team, and elevate measurement practices, including incrementality and attribution, to maximize

Qualifications

• 10+ years in data science and analytics, including 5+ years managing teams of analysts and data scientists.
• Technical depth in reporting, experiments, causal inference, and attribution; know which approach fits a question.
• Proficient in SQL and Python; able to verify team work independently.
• Proven ability to hire well and grow talent into senior roles.
• Clear judgment in ambiguous areas; able to frame questions others haven’t asked and decide value.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of analysts and data scientists embedded with marketing channels and end-to-end responsible for their work.
• Ride experimentation to the center: decide tests to run and ensure results drive marketing decisions.
• Guide analysis toward explaining performance moves and recommended actions for marketing.
• Drive proactive, untasked analyses that spot problems or opportunities before marketing asks.
• Set a high bar for measurement, including incrementality tests and attribution; ensure quality outputs.
• Collaborate with marketing, finance, and product to shape team roadmap and align with business goals.
• Hire and develop a team that marketing leaders treat as partners, not a reporting service.

Skills

Data science experience

Team management

SQL

Python

Hiring experience

Communication

Education

PhD/Master's in statistics/economics/CS

Tools

Experiments

Causal inference

Attribution modeling

Job description

About Upstart

At Upstart, we’re united by a mission that matters: to radically reduce the cost and complexity of borrowing for all Americans. Every day, we bring creativity, experimentation, and advanced AI to reshape access to credit, helping millions move forward financially with clarity and confidence.

As the leading AI lending marketplace, we partner with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit through technology that’s both radically intelligent and deeply human. Our platform runs over one million predictions per borrower using more than 3,000 signals, powering smarter, fairer decisions for millions of customers. But the numbers only hint at the impact. Every idea, every voice, and every contribution moves us closer to a world where credit never stands between people and their financial progress.

We’re proudly digital-first, giving most Upstarters the flexibility to do their best work from wherever they thrive, alongside teammates across 80+ cities in the US and Canada. Digital-first doesn’t mean distant. We’re intentional about in-person connection through team onsites, planning sessions, and moments that spark creativity and trust. And whether you choose to work primarily from home or collaborate in-person from one of our offices in Columbus, Austin, the Bay Area, or New York City, you’ll have the support to work in the way that works best for you.

If you’re energized by tackling meaningful problems, excited to innovate with purpose, and motivated by work that truly matters, we’d love to hear from you.

The Team

Marketing Science sits within Upstart's Growth, Product, and Ops Analytics team and answers two questions for the business: is our marketing working, and where should it go next? The team's analysts and data scientists are embedded with growth marketing across every channel that brings borrowers to Upstart, including direct mail, paid search and social, video, mobile, email, brand campaigns, and lending partnerships. Within a channel, they work out what's performing and how to make it better. Across channels, they look at how spend should be divided and how each channel affects the others.

At Upstart, a marketing dollar only pays off if it reaches someone our AI models approve and who then takes the loan, so the team's questions go well past the click. And since we see the full path from first touch to funded loan, the team can measure marketing against that outcome rather than a stand-in for it.

You’ll lead that team and work directly with Upstart's marketing leaders, acting as a thought partner to optimize for what is best for the company. We're looking for an experienced data science and analytics leader who can raise the impact this team has on Upstart's growth.

How you’ll make an impact

• Lead a team of analysts and data scientists who are embedded with each marketing channel and responsible end to end for its work
• Put experimentation at the center of the team's work: decide which tests are worth running across channels, and make sure the results change what marketing does next
• Guide the team's analysis toward explaining why a channel's performance moved and what marketing should do about it
• Push the team to bring forward work nobody asked for, like analysis that spots a problem or an opportunity, before marketing knows to ask
• Hold a high bar on the team's measurement work, including incrementality tests and attribution, and ensure high-quality outputs
• Work with marketing, finance, and product leaders to set the team's roadmap, and bring that business context back so your team works on the right problems
• Hire and develop a team that marketing leaders treat as a partner, not a reporting service

Minimum Qualifications

• 10+ years in data science and analytics, including 5+ years managing teams of analysts and data scientists
• Technical depth across the work a marketing analytics and data science team does, including reporting, experiments, causal inference, and attribution, and a clear sense of which approach a given question needs
• Enough SQL and Python to check your team's work yourself
• A record of hiring well and growing people into more senior roles
• Good judgment in ambiguous, greenfield areas: you can frame a question nobody has asked yet and decide whether it's worth the team's time
• Clear written and verbal communication with marketing, finance, product, and technical audiences, and the willingness to tell a senior leader when the evidence doesn't support their plan

Preferred Qualifications

• An exceptional candidate will also have:
• A PhD or master's degree in statistics, economics, computer science, or another quantitative field
• Experience bringing AI tools into a team's analysis and reporting work

Position location

This role is available in the following locations: Remote

Time zone requirements

The team operates on the East/West coast time zones.

Travel requirements

As a digital first company, the majority of your work can be accomplished remotely. The majority of our employees can live and work anywhere in the U.S but are encouraged to to still spend high quality time in-person collaborating via regular onsites. The in-person sessions’ cadence varies depending on the team and role; most teams meet once or twice per quarter for 2-4 consecutive days at a time.

What you'll love

At Upstart, our benefits for full-time employees are designed to support your health, financial well-being, family, and personal growth. Here’s what you can expect:

• Competitive compensation, including base pay, bonus opportunities, and annual equity grants that vest quarterly
• Retirement benefits to help you plan for the future, including a 401(k) or Group Retirement Savings Plan with a company match of $2 for every $1 contributed, up to $15,000 annually (USD in the US, CAD in Canada)
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) with discounted stock purchase options for eligible employees (US only)
• Comprehensive health coverage designed to support you and your family, including medical, dental, vision, and wellness resources for US and supplemental health coverage for Canada.
• Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart for eligible plans (US only)
• Income protection benefits, including life insurance and disability coverage for added financial security
• Paid time off, sick leave, and company holidays, in line with local requirements
• Paid family and parental leave to support caregiving and major life moments (duration varies by country)
• Family-centered benefits to support fertility, parenthood, and caregiving needs
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offering mental health support and life-centered resources
• Financial wellness resources, including access to financial planning tools and a financial concierge service (US Only)
• Annual wellness allowance to support your physical and emotional well-being and personal development, based on what matters most to you
• Annual productivity allowance to invest in relevant tools and resources you need to do your best work, no matter where you work from
• Connection and community through team events, all-company updates, and employee resource groups (ERGs)
• Onsite perks, including catered lunches and fully stocked micro-kitchens when working from one of our offices in the Bay Area, Austin, Columbus, and New York City

For roles based in Canada, please note that we are not currently able to hire in Quebec.

Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. Just as we are dedicated to improving access to affordable credit for all, we are committed to inclusive and fair hiring practices.

https://www.upstart.com/candidate_privacy_policy

At Upstart, your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic location–with our “digital first” philosophy, Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

In addition, Upstart provides employees with target bonuses, equity compensation, and generous benefits packages (including medical, dental, vision, and 401k).

United States | Remote - Anticipated Base Salary Range

$195,300—$270,400 USD

At Upstart, your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic location–with our “digital first” philosophy, Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

In addition, Upstart provides employees with target bonuses, equity compensation, and generous benefits packages (including medical, dental, vision, and 401k).

Canada | Remote - Anticipated Base Salary Range

$182,800—$230,000 CAD