Lead Data Scientist

MSP Staffing (PTY) LTD; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

MSP Staffing (PTY) LTD is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to drive production-grade data science solutions. The role is remote, with occasional travel to Johannesburg or Cape Town for in-person meetings, and requires a strong track record in leadership and hands-on ML/AI development.

The candidate will lead design, deployment, monitoring, and retraining of models, leverage Delta Lake, PySpark, Azure Synapse, and Power BI to deliver business impact across data platforms.

Qualifications

• 7+ years' experience in data science, data analytics or data warehousing.
• At least 2 years' experience in a technical or engineering leadership role.
• Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline or equivalent professional experience.
• Strong production-level experience across machine learning, statistical modelling and AI system design.
• Advanced Python proficiency with strong experience in pandas, NumPy, scikit-learn and Jupyter.
• Experience with Delta Lake or comparable lakehouse environments and PySpark.
• Strong data warehousing and SQL expertise.
• Experience with Power BI and data visualisation.
• Demonstrated technical leadership, mentoring and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills.
• Willingness to travel to Johannesburg or Cape Town a few times per year for in-person meetings; proximity to either city is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, deployment, monitoring and retraining of machine learning and AI models.
• Apply advanced statistical modelling and data science techniques to solve complex business problems.
• Develop robust data science solutions using Python, Jupyter Notebooks, pandas, NumPy and scikit-learn.
• Work with Delta Lake or comparable lakehouse architectures, including PySpark, feature stores, training-data versioning and schema evolution.
• Develop and optimise data solutions using Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure SQL, T-SQL and/or ANSI SQL.
• Produce meaningful analytics and visualisations using Power BI and Python-based tools.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to data scientists.
• Take ownership of delivery and collaborate with senior stakeholders.
• Potentially lead an Agile delivery squad within the Platform organisation.

Skills

Python

pandas

NumPy

scikit-learn

Jupyter

Power BI

SQL

Azure Synapse

Delta Lake

PySpark

Leadership

Mentoring

Stakeholder Mgmt

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in STEM

Tools

Delta Lake

PySpark

Azure Synapse

Azure SQL

T-SQL

ANSI SQL

Job description

Our client is seeking an accomplished Lead Data Scientist to drive the development and delivery of advanced data science solutions in a production environment. This permanent remote opportunity is suited to a senior data professional with strong technical expertise and proven leadership experience.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the design, development, deployment, monitoring and retraining of machine learning and AI models.
• Apply advanced statistical modelling and data science techniques to solve complex business problems.
• Develop robust data science solutions using Python, Jupyter Notebooks, pandas, NumPy and scikit-learn.
• Work with Delta Lake or comparable lakehouse architectures, including PySpark, feature stores, training-data versioning and schema evolution.
• Develop and optimise data solutions using Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure SQL, T-SQL and/or ANSI SQL.
• Produce meaningful analytics and visualisations using Power BI and Python-based tools.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to data scientists.
• Take ownership of delivery and collaborate with senior stakeholders.
• Potentially lead an Agile delivery squad within the Platform organisation.

Requirements:

• 7+ years' experience across data science, data analytics or data warehousing, with substantial recent data science experience.
• At least 2 years' experience in a technical or engineering leadership role.
• Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline or equivalent professional experience.
• Strong production-level experience across machine learning, statistical modelling and AI system design.
• Advanced Python proficiency with strong experience in pandas, NumPy, scikit-learn and Jupyter.
• Experience with Delta Lake or comparable lakehouse environments and PySpark.
• Strong data warehousing and SQL expertise.
• Experience with Power BI and data visualisation.
• Demonstrated technical leadership, mentoring and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills.
• Willingness to travel to Johannesburg or Cape Town a few times per year for in-person meetings; proximity to either city is preferred.