Principal Data Scientist

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Canada.

📋 Description

• Establish the technical vision for data science at Forward Financing

• Develop the multi-year roadmap for data science initiatives

• Oversee the design, development, and deployment of intricate, high-stakes statistical and machine learning models

• Spearhead key data science projects from problem identification and model design to deployment, monitoring, and refinement

• Direct the technical strategy and architecture for the modeling ecosystem, which encompasses credit risk, pricing, and loss forecasting

• Collaborate with senior leaders across Portfolio Strategy, Engineering, Product, Underwriting, Sales, and Collections

• Recognize high-value opportunities and shape business strategy through data insights

• Establish and uphold organization-wide standards for model development, validation, code quality, and documentation

• Act as the technical authority on design decisions

• Mentor data scientists at all levels, including senior and lead team members

• Articulate technical concepts, tradeoffs, and business implications to executives and non-technical stakeholders

• Represent data science in strategic planning sessions

• Design and enhance production machine learning pipelines and monitoring systems

• Ensure models are dependable, scalable, and consistently improving

⛳️ Requirements

• Extensive experience in building and deploying credit risk models, particularly underwriting models, within fintech, lending, or financial services

• Over 10 years of practical model development and deployment experience

• Proficient in advanced statistical and machine learning techniques, including generalized linear models, gradient boosting, and deep learning

• Demonstrated success in leading impactful data science projects from uncertainty to production with measurable business outcomes

• Preferred experience with real-time models, decisioning engines, and production-grade machine learning pipelines

• Expertise in Python, SQL, and Git

• Experience in designing and deploying models on cloud platforms, such as AWS or SageMaker, including making architectural decisions

• Preferred familiarity with workflow orchestration tools like Metaflow

• Strong background in statistics and machine learning

• Capability to influence technical direction across teams and mentor senior technical personnel

• Excellent project management and communication skills, particularly in presenting to executive audiences

• Strong analytical thinking and problem-solving capabilities

• Familiarity with cloud data warehouses such as Snowflake and Databricks; Arize; Metaflow; SageMaker; decision engines like Taktile; and feature stores such as Tecton is advantageous

• Bachelor’s degree in Financial/Applied Mathematics, Operations Research, Economics, and/or Statistics

• Authorization to work for any employer in Canada

• Must not require sponsorship to work in Canada

🏝️ Benefits

• Flexible work arrangements: employees may work remotely, in the office, or a combination of both

• Flexible working hours

• Medical insurance coverage

• Dental insurance coverage

• Vision insurance coverage

• Flexible time-off policy

• Paid parental leave

• RRSP matching

• Wellness reimbursement

• Days allocated for volunteering

• Annual budget for professional development

• Charitable donation matching program

• Virtual and in-person team events

• Potential for an additional 12% annual bonus