This role sits within NCS AI Central's (AIC) Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) model — the combined capability that takes AI solutions from proof-of-concept through to hardened production systems. As Data Scientist, you apply statistical modelling, classical machine learning, and structured analysis to complement the squad's Gen AI work — validating problem framing with data, building baseline and comparison models, and ensuring Gen AI solutions are evaluated against rigorous, quantitative benchmarks rather than only qualitative judgement
What will you do:
1. Problem Framing & Statistical Analysis
- Work with SMEs and PMs to translate business problems into well-defined statistical/ML problems, including hypothesis definition and success metrics.
- Perform exploratory data analysis to understand distributions, correlations, and data quality issues before any model is proposed.
- Advise when a classical ML or rules-based approach is more appropriate, defensible, or explainable than a Gen AI solution, and make that case clearly to stakeholders.
2. Model Development & Validation
- Build and validate classical ML models (regression, classification, clustering, time-series forecasting) as baselines or standalone solutions.
- Apply rigorous statistical validation — train/test/holdout design, cross-validation, significance testing — to avoid overfitting and unsupported claims.
- Where a Gen AI solution is in play, build the classical-ML or statistical baseline it must beat, so "the LLM helped" is a provable claim, not an assumption.
3. Applied Gen AI Collaboration
- Partner with AI Engineers on evaluation design, contributing statistical rigor to benchmark and evaluation methodology.
- Support feature engineering and structured-data pipelines that feed both classical models and Gen AI/RAG systems.
- Maintain working awareness of the broader Gen AI model landscape, including China-origin models (DeepSeek, Qwen, GLM), sufficient to design fair comparisons between classical and Gen AI approaches.
4. FDE & Development/Maintenance Coverage
- During FDE engagements: rapidly build baseline models and statistical analyses to validate problem framing and set a quantitative bar for any Gen AI solution to clear.
- During system development & maintenance engagements: monitor model performance and data drift over time for any classical models in production, and support recalibration/retraining as needed.
5. Collaboration
- Work closely with AI Engineers and the AI/LLM Specialist to ensure Gen AI outputs are compared fairly against rigorous statistical baselines.
- Document methodology, assumptions, and results clearly for both technical and non-technical audiences.
Role Levels We Are Hiring For
We are hiring at two levels for this role. All responsibilities above apply to both; the distinction is in scope of ownership, years of experience, and seniority of judgement expected.
Data Scientist
- 4–5 years of hands-on experience in statistical modelling / classical machine learning. Builds and validates models for individual engagements, under guidance from a Senior Data Scientist or AI Architect.
- Executes defined analysis and modelling tasks; escalates ambiguous problem-framing decisions to senior team members.
Senior Data Scientist
- 6+ years of hands-on experience, including prior ownership of statistical/ML strategy for complex or high-stakes problems. Owns problem framing and model validation approach across multiple engagements.
- Advises stakeholders directly on when a classical or rules-based approach is more defensible than a Gen AI solution; mentors junior Data Scientists.
We are hiring at two levels for this role. All responsibilities above apply to both; the distinction is in scope of ownership, years of experience, and seniority of judgement expected.
Data Scientist
- 4–5 years of hands-on experience in statistical modelling / classical machine learning. Builds and validates models for individual engagements, under guidance from a Senior Data Scientist or AI Architect.
- Executes defined analysis and modelling tasks; escalates ambiguous problem-framing decisions to senior team members.
Senior Data Scientist
- 6+ years of hands-on experience, including prior ownership of statistical/ML strategy for complex or high-stakes problems. Owns problem framing and model validation approach across multiple engagements.
- Advises stakeholders directly on when a classical or rules-based approach is more defensible than a Gen AI solution; mentors junior Data Scientists.
Qualifications
The ideal candidate should possess:
- 4+ years hands-on experience in statistical modelling / classical machine learning (see Role Levels for the split between Data Scientist and Senior Data Scientist).
- Strong grounding in statistics — hypothesis testing, regression, experimental design, causal inference basics.
- Proficiency in Python (pandas, scikit-learn, statsmodels) and SQL.
- Comfortable working with structured/tabular data at production scale, not just Gen AI-adjacent unstructured data.
- Familiarity with Gen AI concepts (embeddings, RAG, prompting) sufficient to collaborate effectively with AI Engineers — not required to build LLM systems directly.
- Working knowledge of the China AI model landscape (DeepSeek, Qwen, GLM) a plus, for informed cross-comparisons where relevant.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with time-series forecasting or causal inference in a production setting.
- Exposure to MLOps practices for classical model deployment/monitoring.
- Prior experience in a regulated or Government analytics context.
- Familiarity with visualization/BI tooling (Tableau, Power BI, or similar) for stakeholder-facing reporting.
Tech Stack (Illustrative)
- Languages: Python (pandas, scikit-learn, statsmodels, numpy), SQL
- Modelling: Regression, classification, clustering, time-series (ARIMA/Prophet)
- MLOps (light): MLflow or equivalent experiment tracking
- Visualization: Matplotlib/Seaborn, Tableau/Power BI (where used)
- Cloud: AWS/Azure/GCP; GCC/HCC exposure a plus
Why Join NCS
We are driven by our AEIOU beliefs—Adventure, Excellence, Integrity, Ownership, and Unity—and we seek individuals who embody these values in both their professional and personal lives. We are committed to our Impact: Valuing our clients, Growing our people, and Creating our future.
Together, we make the extraordinary happen.
Learn more about us at ncs.co and visit our LinkedIn career site.
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