Sr. Data Scientist - Supply Chain

US Foods; Des Plaines (IL); Remote; USD 100,000 - 155,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement benefits

Employee stock purchase plan

Paid time off

Job summary

US Foods is seeking a Sr Data Scientist to lead forecasting, optimization, and ML initiatives across supply chain functions. You will develop production-ready models for demand, buying, inventory, and replenishment while collaborating with product teams and leadership.

The role emphasizes time series modeling, deep learning, optimization techniques, and end-to-end deployment, including documentation, drift monitoring, and mentoring junior staff.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in data science, mathematics, CS or statistics with 3+ years of experience or a Bachelor’s degree with 6+ years of experience in data science.
• Expert-level understanding of classification, regression, clustering, dimensionality reduction, association rule learning, ensemble methods, neural networks, deep learning, model evaluation, cross-validation, hyperparameter tuning, optimization, NLP, and related topics.
• Experience with Agile/SCRUM and cloud ML workflows; ability to deploy in production and collaborate with cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead development of forecasting, optimization, and ML models for large-scale supply chain challenges.
• Design, implement, and refine time series forecasting and optimization models.
• Collaborate with product and business stakeholders to translate models into actionable insights.
• Own ML pipeline, documentation, drift monitoring, and remodeling strategy from inception to deployment.
• Mentor junior data scientists and contribute to best practices across the group.
• Assist in feasibility documents and core team process improvements.

Skills

Classification

Regression

Clustering

Dimensionality reduction

Ensemble methods

Neural networks

NLP

Model evaluation

Cross-validation

Hyperparameter tuning

Optimization algorithms

Deep learning

Education

Master’s degree in data science/mathematics/CS/statistics or related field

Bachelor’s degree in data science/CS/statistics or related field

Tools

Gurobi

Pyomo

PuLP

Job description

ARE YOU A CURRENT US FOODS EMPLOYEE? PLEASE APPLY DIRECTLY THROUGH OUR INTERNAL WORKDAY CAREER SITEJoin Our Community of Food People!The Sr Data Scientist – Supply Chain role will lead forward-looking analytics initiatives across time series forecasting, supply chain demand, buying, and inventory optimization, including data exploration, decision modeling, statistics, measurement sciences, and machine learning operations. The main responsibilities include, but are not limited to, developing and productionalizing customized forecasting and optimization models that improve demand accuracy, inform buying decisions, and right-size inventory, while enhancing supply chain replenishment by balancing a breadth of constraints, variables, and cost considerations. This role requires a deep analytical, technical, and complex problem-solving skill set with expertise in time series forecasting, mathematical optimization, statistical analysis, and advanced machine learning and deep learning techniques.The Sr Data Scientist proactively works with cross-functional teams to understand the business context of supply chain problems that may be solved using ML and optimization, and presents data science solutions to stakeholders in an iterative fashion. They work with Associate Data Scientists, Data Scientists, and Decision Scientists to translate business challenges into well-structured forecasting, optimization, or ML problems, kickstarting foundational work including data exploration, feature engineering, hypothesis testing, and baseline modeling. They play a key role in selecting and implementing the appropriate analytical approach and create the model feasibility document in close collaboration with the team. The Sr Data Scientist may have direct reports including Associate Data Scientists and Data Scientists.The work for the Sr Data Scientist position is completely remote anywhere in the United States except Hawaii or United States Territories.RESPONSIBILITIESAs a Sr Data Scientist, you will be expected to:Work with Associate Data Scientists and Data Scientists in researching data sources, data cleansing, feature engineering, and creating baseline modelsIndependently lead the formulation and development of forecasting, optimization, and ML models while managing multiple model development projectsDesign, implement, and refine advanced ML and deep learning models for both time series forecasting and optimization to solve large-scale, real-world supply chain demand, buying, inventory, and replenishment problemsCollaborate and engage with various cross-functional stakeholders to ensure close coordination between data science and business stakeholders including the product management teamProvide full ownership of the model development from inception to implementation including the machine learning pipeline, documentation, model drift, and remodeling strategyMentor the Associate Data Scientists and Data Scientists in data science knowledge and their interactions with other stakeholdersCoordinate with the ML team, anticipating deployment issues upfront, setting the stage for resource requirements, and ensuring the success of model deployment and retrainingTake and delegate ownership of critical tickets or issues faced by business stakeholders as assigned by the Lead Data Scientist or Director of Data ScienceRead and independently navigate through extensive codebase with a focus on troubleshooting, debugging, and/or improvement of codeContribute to coding standards and coding conventions and proactively participate in enforcing sound coding practices across the data science teamCreate and maintain documentation of the ML models, data sources, and methodologyAssist in the creation of feasibility documentsProactively participate in the core team processes including R&D, recommending, and implementing process improvements or new methodologiesShare knowledge with other various teams and members by presentation at periodic internal team sessions/workshopsGuide usage of development methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, etc.) and assist in their implementation in the group projects by deciphering details including features, tasks, estimates of efforts and timing, etc.RELATIONSHIPSInternal: Associate Data Scientists, Data Scientists, Lead Data Scientists, Principal Data Scientists, and Director of DS.MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONSAs a Sr. Data Scientist, you have:Master’s degree in data science/mathematics/CS/statistics or similar field and 3+ years of experience OR Bachelor's degree and 6+ years of experience in data scienceEffective written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to work and communicate effectively with team members and cross-functional teamsAn expert-level understanding of the following topics:Classification, Regression, Clustering, Dimensionality reduction, Association rule learning, Bagging (e.g., Random Forests), Boosting (e.g., AdaBoost, Gradient Boosting), Neural Networks and Deep Learning, Model Evaluation and Metrics, Cross-validation, Hyperparameter Tuning, Optimization Algorithms, NLP and moreWorking knowledge of Agile/SCRUM methodologies with 1-2 years of experience and a practical understanding of the epics, features, and tasks that may be most relevant and how much effort is required for themSufficient intellectual curiosity to investigate the latest developments in the field (for example LLM/Generative AI models)Ability to see the big picture and anticipate issues in terms of deployment limitations, data latency, appropriateness of a particular implementation of algorithms, and mathematical details/assumptionsAt least 1+ years of working with a major cloud platform, creating ML models using frameworks from data exploration to deploymentWorking knowledge in handling large datasets in a cloud environmentWorking knowledge of how APIs work, CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment)Understanding of DevOps and MLOps principles1+ years of writing production-grade code in scripting languages including Bash, Python, and SQL with the ability to identify the areas of improvement, optimal choice of data structures, optimization of the code, and creating custom code to address unique situationsProven, independent ability to navigate a data lake environment while creating training datasets or feature storesEffective skills in creating, deploying, and troubleshooting containers in the context of ML modeling1+ years of experience with version control systems/concepts, such as Git, for tracking changes in machine learning projectsAbility to investigate/research ML frameworks/algorithms, datasets, feature stores, and contribute to solving data science problemsCapability of providing macro-level thought leadership to the junior members including the Data Scientists regarding best practices, issues, causes, and respective resolutions of those issuesPreferred Qualifications2 years of supply chain analytics experience, preferably in replenishment systems, time series forecasting, order optimization, network optimization, inventory management, and/or logisticsPreferred 1+ year of Optimization & Operations Research experience with experience writing production-grade code in optimization modeling languages; Gurobi, Pyomo, PuLP, etc.This role may also receive annual incentive plan bonusprogram.Benefits for this role may include health insurance, pre-tax spending accounts, retirement benefits, paid time off, short-term and long-term disability, employee stock purchase plan, and life insurance. To review available benefits, please click here: https://www.usfoods.com/careers/benefits.html.Compensation depends on relevant experience and/or education, specific skills, function, geographic location, and other factors as applicable by law (for example: state or local minimum wage thresholds). The expected base rate for this role is between$100,000 - $155,000***EOE – Race/Color/Religion/Sex/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/National Origin/Age/Genetic Information/Protected Veteran/Disability Status***