Data Scientist Lead

Penny The Recruiter; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

A recruitment agency is looking for a Data Science Team Lead to drive the design, development, and deployment of innovative LLM and generative AI solutions. With over 5 years of experience in data science and strong leadership skills, the ideal candidate will manage a talented team, conduct cutting-edge research, and ensure best practices in AI ethics are followed. This role provides an exciting opportunity to impact the company's global product offerings significantly.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in data science, with a recent focus on generative AI.
• Proven track record of Data Science or AI project delivery.
• Deep understanding of LLMs like GPTs, LLaMA, Gemini.
• Experience providing strategic oversight in a data science division.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and deployment of LLM-based solutions.
• Mentor and manage a team of data scientists and engineers.
• Communicate complex technical concepts to stakeholders effectively.
• Conduct research into state-of-the-art LLMs and Generative AI.

Skills

Data science expertise

Leadership

Strong programming skills in Python

Problem-solving

Stakeholder management

Education

Completed BSc / IT degree

Tools

Cloud platforms (GCP, Azure, AWS)

MLOps practices and tools

Job description

What you will be doing :

• Lead the design, development, and deployment of LLM- and generative AI-based solutions that address large-scale and complex problems and materially drive the company’s global product offerings and strategy forward.
• Collaborate with product owners, project managers, and executive stakeholders to identify and prioritise business problems that can be solved with LLMs.
• Conduct desktop research into the state-of-the-art in LLMs and Generative AI and apply findings to real-world applications (either requested by business or suggested by yourself).
• Conduct experimental research on the use of LLMs in real-world company applications to ensure that design and development decisions are made scientifically, and optimise for and balance all business requirements. These include accuracy, scalability, efficiency, reliability, safety, and cost-effectiveness.
• Help to manage and grow a team of data scientists, developers, and engineers, likely having 1-3 direct reports. Mentor, motivate, and guide your team (direct reports and the team as a whole) in best practices and the strategic direction of projects. Understand your team’s career goals and work to advance their careers in line with these.
• Translate strategic direction into technical product definitions and roadmaps.
• Participate actively in internal and external communities discussing and designing policies for the ethical use of AI, and ensure your team’s work meets ethical AI standards.
• Contribute substantially to a culture of innovation, leading the prototyping and development of novel methodologies and approaches. Provide strong thought leadership in this regard.
• Communicate complex technical concepts to executives and non-technical stakeholders effectively.
• Demonstrate strong emotional intelligence by understanding and uplifting team members, and skilfully managing challenging situations with composure.
• Advise other teams in the business on best practice based on your experience.

What we are looking for :

• Completed BSc / IT degree or other related fields
• 5+ years of experience in data science, with a recent focus on generative AI.
• Proven track record of Data Science or AI project delivery.
• Strong programming skills in Python.
• Deep understanding of LLMs and experience with models like the GPTs, LLaMA, Gemini etc.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong communication, stakeholder management, and leadership skills.
• Experience in a leadership role within a data science, research & development, or consulting team.
• Self-motivated and proactive, with a strong ability to identify and tackle challenges independently, demonstrating a keen entrepreneurial spirit.
• Experience with cloud platforms such as GCP, Azure, or AWS.
• Familiarity with MLOps practices and tools.
• Experience providing strategic oversight and helping manage a data science division.

Please note that if you do not hear from us within 3 weeks, consider your application unsuccessful.