Lead Data Scientist - Fintech

Placements24; Midrand; Remote; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work

Professional development budget

Flexible schedule

Job summary

Placements24 is seeking a Lead Data Scientist to spearhead advanced analytics initiatives in a fully remote role. You will design, develop, and deploy machine learning models that drive product innovation, enhance customer experience, and optimize operations.

Lead a team of data scientists, mentor juniors, and partner with engineering and product teams to shape data-driven strategy. You will work with cutting-edge technologies on vast datasets, translating complex insights into actionable

Qualifications

• PhD or Master's in CS, Statistics, Mathematics or related field.
• 7+ years in data science and ML; 2+ years in leadership.
• Proficient in Python and ML frameworks; strong SQL.
• Experience deploying ML models to production; cloud & big data.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end development and deployment of ML models.
• Design data pipelines for ETL from diverse sources.
• Perform EDA to identify patterns in large datasets.
• Evaluate and select ML methods for business problems.
• Mentor data scientists and guide team growth.
• Collaborate with engineers to productionize models.
• Communicate findings to stakeholders clearly.
• Stay updated on ML/AI advancements and champion adoption.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring

Remote collaboration

Stakeholder communication

Education

PhD or Master’s in CS/Statistics/Math

Tools

Python

Scikit-learn

TensorFlow

PyTorch

Pandas

SQL

Spark

Hadoop

AWS

Azure

GCP

Job description

About the Role

Our client is revolutionizing the Fintech landscape and is looking for a Lead Data Scientist to spearhead their advanced analytics initiatives. This is a fully remote, hands-on role where you will lead the design, development, and deployment of machine learning models that drive product innovation, enhance customer experience, and optimize business operations. You'll work with cutting-edge technologies and vast datasets to uncover insights that shape our client's future. As a Lead, you will mentor junior data scientists, collaborate closely with engineering and product teams, and contribute significantly to the strategic direction of our data science function. Embrace the opportunity to make a substantial impact from a remote setting, fostering a culture of data-driven decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end development and deployment of machine learning models for applications such as fraud detection, credit scoring, customer segmentation, and algorithmic trading.
• Design and implement robust data pipelines for data extraction, transformation, and loading (ETL) from diverse sources.
• Perform exploratory data analysis (EDA) to identify patterns, trends, and anomalies in large, complex datasets.
• Evaluate and select appropriate statistical methods and machine learning algorithms for various business problems.
• Mentor and guide a team of data scientists, fostering their technical and professional growth.
• Collaborate with software engineers to integrate models into production systems and ensure scalability and reliability.
• Communicate complex findings and recommendations to stakeholders, including non-technical audiences, through clear visualizations and presentations.
• Stay current with the latest advancements in data science, machine learning, and AI, and champion their adoption where beneficial.

Requirements

• PhD or Master's degree in Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, or a related quantitative field.
• Minimum of 7 years of hands-on experience in data science and machine learning, with at least 2 years in a leadership or mentoring role.
• Expertise in programming languages such as Python (including libraries like Scikit-learn, TensorFlow, PyTorch, Pandas) and SQL.
• Proven experience in deploying machine learning models into production environments.
• Deep understanding of statistical modeling, machine learning algorithms, and experimental design.
• Experience with big data technologies (e.g., Spark, Hadoop) and cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP).
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, crucial for effective remote collaboration.
• Demonstrated ability to lead projects, manage priorities, and deliver results in a dynamic, remote work environment.

Benefits

• Our client offers a highly competitive salary, comprehensive benefits package including health and wellness programs, and significant performance-based incentives.
• We provide a generous budget for professional development, conference attendance, and continuous learning.
• As a fully remote position, you benefit from unparalleled flexibility and work-life balance.
• Enjoy access to state-of-the-art collaboration tools and a supportive, innovative culture within the thriving Fintech segment of the Banking & Finance industry.
• This role is perfect for an experienced data scientist looking to lead and shape the future of financial technology from anywhere.