Lead Data Scientist
My client is a fast-growing UK FinTech business serving thousands of customers. They are investing heavily in their data capability and are now looking to appoint a Lead Data Scientist to drive end-to-end machine learning delivery within a regulated financial environment.
This is a hands-on leadership role combining technical ownership, team development, and production-grade model deployment.
The Role
As Lead Data Scientist, you will:
* Lead and develop a growing Data Science team, setting standards and delivery cadence
* Own end-to-end ML solutions - from problem framing and feature engineering to deployment, monitoring, and governance
* Translate business objectives into modelling strategies aligned to risk appetite and operational constraints
* Build and deploy models using Python, SQL, and AWS (SageMaker or equivalent)
* Partner closely with Engineering, Data, and Risk/Financial Crime teams to ensure robust, production-ready solutions
* Establish monitoring frameworks for performance, drift, and retraining
* Drive clear documentation, traceability, and governance appropriate for a regulated environment
This role requires someone who thinks beyond experimentation - focusing on operational impact, adoption, and long-term model performance.
Essential Experience
* Proven commercial ML/Data Science delivery with measurable impact
* Experience taking models into production and managing performance over time
* Prior experience leading or mentoring Data Scientists
* Strong Python (pandas, numpy, scikit-learn or similar)
* Strong SQL (complex joins, aggregations, analytical functions)
* Solid grounding in applied statistics, evaluation design, calibration, bias/fairness
* Experience working closely with Engineering/Data teams in production-first environments
* Comfortable operating within regulated industries
Desirable
* AWS experience (S3, Athena/Glue, IAM, Lambda)
* SageMaker or equivalent ML platform experience
* Financial services domain knowledge (risk, fraud, affordability, payments)
* Experience with model explainability and governance documentation
Package & Benefits
* Hybrid working model
* Competitive pension
* Additional paid leave (birthday, charity, wellbeing, life events)
* Employee assistance programme & Virtual GP
* Modern collaborative office environment
Interested? Please Click Apply Now! Lead Data Scientist