Data Scientist

Overview

The Department of Innovation and Technology is looking for a Data Scientist to join our growing Citywide Analytics Team.

As part of a highly collaborative group that uses data to improve all aspects of city government, the Data Scientist will develop and execute Citywide Analytics Team projects from beginning to end. Successful candidates will be able to work closely with other technical staff, project stakeholders, and external partners across City government,  manage diverse technologies and projects, and develop tools and best practices that can be implemented across the organization. The Data Scientist will also seek out opportunities for learning that will complement the team’s existing capabilities, provide expert guidance to other members of the Citywide Analytics Team, and assist in training, mentoring, and hands-on assistance as needed.

The Citywide Analytics team is comprised of a diverse group of analysts, data scientists, product managers, developers, and engineers with a range of skills and backgrounds, working together to use data to improve life for those who live and work in Boston. The Data Scientist will fulfill the responsibilities listed below and bring a collaborative spirit that will strengthen and expand the team’s overall range of abilities.

Responsibilities

• Plan, design and build analytic solutions across a range of use cases (e.g., forecasting, optimization, advanced statistics) that support departments in decision making and solving complex problems related to efficient service delivery and the data driven allocation of resources.
• Develop in-depth understanding of the available data sources and their limitations in order to successfully identify opportunities to apply advanced analytical techniques to support decision-making and solve important operational problems.
• Demonstrate curiosity in proposing different approaches to align the methodology with the problem at hand.
• Implement repeatable, interpretable, dynamic, and scalable analytical products that can be incorporated into existing decision-making processes and operational workflows across the City.
• Generate useful insights based on iterative data analysis and make appropriate recommendations to department partners.
• Coordinate across departments to identify new data sources and opportunities for collaboration and scope new projects.
• Collaborate with colleagues across the City to ensure that deliverables are actionable for decision-making or improving ongoing operations.
• Create and maintain documentation on relevant data, code, and procedures.
• Manage data, perform analyses, and develop visualizations as required to facilitate both internal and external projects and respond to requests for data and information.
• Keep up with new developments in AI, machine learning, and alternative data sources.
• Perform related work as required.

Minimum Entrance Qualifications

• At least four (4) years of full-time, or equivalent part-time, experience working with data science projects in a business, government, or nonprofit setting.
• A bachelor's degree in economics, computer science, social science, engineering, mathematics, public policy, business, or a related quantitative field may be substituted for up to two (2) years of the required experience. A master's degree in one of these relevant fields is preferred.
• Experience planning and executing collaborative projects from start to finish under time and resource constraints.
• Proficiency in statistical data analysis and visualization using Python, R, Stata, or similar tools.
• Strong statistics background, including optimization techniques, hypothesis testing, multivariate linear regression, and related methods to isolate root causes and causal relationships.
• Experience in machine learning, including predictive modeling, clustering, feature selection methods, and regularization techniques.
• Skilled in the machine learning modeling life cycle, including exploratory data analysis, data cleaning, feature engineering, model building, deployment, and monitoring.
• Experience using PowerBI or other similar data visualization platforms.
• Familiarity with relational database systems such as PostgreSQL, MySQL, or Microsoft SQL Server.
• Demonstrated success in learning new skills as needed to succeed in a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated success in translating business needs into data analytics concepts and vice versa.
• Talent for explaining complex subject matter to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Familiarity with geospatial concepts and data, as well as related analysis and visualization tools such as PostGIS, QGIS, or ArcGIS, is a plus.
• Experience in the public sector (especially in local government) is a plus.

Terms:

Union/Salary Plan/Grade:  SENA/MM1-8

Hours per week: 35