{"id":3664080,"url":"https://alion.io/job/forward-financing-principal-data-scientist-2","title":"Principal Data Scientist","company":{"id":176044,"name":"Forward Financing","domain":"forwardfinancing.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/forward-financing","size_band":null,"is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":null},"role":"Data Science","role_family":"Data Science","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"remote","remote_scope":"stated_countries","remote_scope_basis":"board_field","remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":[],"countries":[],"hiring_countries":["CA"],"hiring_countries_total":1,"salary":{"min":208000,"max":null,"currency":"CAD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":148885},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":10,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Amazon SageMaker","optional":false},{"name":"AWS","optional":false},{"name":"Git","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Metaflow","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"SQL","optional":false},{"name":"Arize Phoenix","optional":true},{"name":"Databricks","optional":true},{"name":"Feature Store","optional":true},{"name":"Snowflake","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-09-21T18:12:28Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-09-21","last_verified_at":"2026-11-03T19:21:33Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":43,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":43},"description":"Forward Financing is a financial technology company based in Boston, Massachusetts with team members throughout the United States, Dominican Republic, and Canada. The company is on a mission to unlock the capital that fuels small businesses across America. Recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In Boston and certified as a Great Place To Work®, Forward is investing in its employees, technology, and customer experience - with long-term success in mind every step of the way.\nWe are seeking a Principal Data Scientist to set the technical vision for data science at Forward Financing and drive our highest-impact, most ambiguous initiatives from concept to production. As the most senior individual contributor on the team, you will shape the multi-year data science roadmap, define how models are built and deployed across the organization, and serve as a trusted technical advisor to senior leadership. You will operate at the intersection of deep technical execution and strategic business partnership, delivering advanced analytical solutions with measurable impact across all business domains.\nIn this role you will:\nLead the design, development, and deployment of the company's most complex and highest-stakes statistical and machine learning models, particularly in ambiguous problem spaces with no established playbook\n\nDrive end-to-end delivery of flagship data science initiatives, from problem framing and model design through deployment, monitoring, and ongoing iteration\n\nLead the technical strategy and architecture for Forward's modeling ecosystem, including credit risk, pricing and loss forecasting, ensuring solutions are built for long-term scalability and business impact\n\nPartner with senior leaders across Portfolio Strategy, Engineering, Product, Underwriting, Sales, and Collections to shape the data science roadmap, proactively identify high-value opportunities, and influence business strategy with data\n\nDefine and enforce organization-wide standards for model development, validation, code quality, and documentation; serve as the technical authority on design decisions\n\nMentor data scientists at all levels, including senior and lead team members, raising the technical bar and fostering a culture of rigorous, continuous learning\n\nCommunicate complex technical concepts, tradeoffs, and business implications to executives and non-technical stakeholders, and represent data science in strategic planning\n\nArchitect and evolve production machine learning pipelines and monitoring frameworks to ensure models are reliable, scalable, and continuously improving\n\nWhy you should apply:\nMission driven company: Forward is a trusted source of fast, flexible funding for small businesses that have often been underserved by traditional financing options. When you join the team, you will help ensure all small businesses have access to the financial support they need to succeed.\n\nFlexibility is a top priority: Our employees are empowered to choose where they want to work (whether that’s from home, in the office, or a combination of both) with flexible hours.\n\nRole Requirements:\nDeep experience in building and deploying credit risk models, especially underwriting models, in the fintech, lending or financial services industry\n\n10+ years of hands-on model development and deployment experience using advanced statistical and machine learning techniques such as generalized linear models, gradient boosting and deep learning\n\nProven track record of leading high-impact data science initiatives from ambiguity to production, with demonstrated business results\n\nExperience with real-time models, decisioning engines, and production-grade machine learning pipelines is preferred.\n\nExpert in Python, SQL and Git\n\nExperience designing, deploying models within a cloud platform (e.g., AWS, SageMaker), including architectural decision-making\n\nExperience with workflow orchestration tools, such as Metaflow is preferred\n\nStrong foundation in statistics and machine learning\n\nDemonstrated ability to influence technical direction across teams and mentor senior technical talent\n\nExcellent project management and communication skills, including experience presenting to executive audiences\n\nStrong critical thinking and problem-solving ability\n\nNice to have experience: cloud data warehouses (e.g. Snowflake, Databricks), Arize, Metaflow, Sagemaker, decision engines (e.g. Taktile), feature stores (e.g. Tecton)\n\nBachelor's degree in Financial/Applied Math, Operations Research, Economics, and/or Statistics. Masters/PhD is a plus.\n\nCompensation:\nAnnual Salary: $208,000 - $286,000 CAD\nAnnual Bonus: You have the potential to earn an additional 12% annual bonus.\nAt Forward Financing, we're committed to fair and transparent compensation. We believe in providing a compensation package that recognizes your skills, experience, and the unique value you bring to our team. We take a market-based approach to pay, regularly reviewing benchmark data to ensure our compensation remains competitive, equitable, and aligned with our performance-driven culture.\nFinal offers are determined by a variety of factors, including the candidate's qualifications, relevant experience, specific skills, and internal equity. This approach ensures that our compensation is competitive and equitable. Your recruiter will provide specific details on the expected base and variable earnings as it pertains to this specific role.\nTotal Rewards:\nAdditionally, we offer a comprehensive total rewards package, including but not limited to: medical, dental, vision, a flexible time-off policy, paid parental leave, RRSP match, wellness reimbursement, volunteering days, annual professional development budget, and charitable donation match.\nForward is proud to be a remote-first company, keeping workplace flexibility a top priority for our employees. As a business, we are focused on impact; we are more concerned with your contributions to the success of the company than where you get your work done. To help facilitate in-person collaboration, employees are welcome to work from one of our premiere office locations.\nWhen we aren’t collaborating to drive business and support our customers, we’re finding virtual and in-person ways to get to know our colleagues, celebrate team wins, and have fun together!\nOur Culture: The Forward Compass\nThe Forward Compass is the standard we hold for ourselves and one another-guiding how we lead, collaborate, and show up every day to move in the same direction.\nBack the Builders: We are wired to fuel customer progress, not just provide support.\nRooted in People: We create an environment that balances deep connection with the extreme ownership and honesty required to reach our highest potential.\nFlying V: We move through coordinated effort with speed and urgency to achieve what no individual could do alone.\nAlways Forward, Never Finished: We pursue growth with a relentless drive that keeps us ahead of the competition.\nAbout Us:\nForward Financing is a fintech company based in Boston, Massachusetts with team members throughout the United States, Dominican Republic, and Canada. The company is on a mission to unlock the capital that fuels small businesses across America. Whether facing challenges accessing traditional financing or simply needing a convenient, flexible solution, Forward is committed to funding more of the millions of small businesses nationwide. By simplifying the requirements, streamlining the process, and using advanced proprietary technology, Forward is often able to deliver approvals within hours and funds that same day - giving more businesses the financial opportunity they need to thrive. Plus, with their dedicated teams and award-winning service, customers get personalized support when they need it most.\nSince 2012, Forward has expanded access to capital by providing over $4.8 billion in funding to more than 92,000 small businesses. The company is A+ rated by the Better Business Bureau with an Excellent / 4.7 stars rating on Trustpilot.com. Recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In Boston and certified as a Great Place To Work®, Forward is dedicated to empowering both its team and the customers they serve, helping them succeed and thrive.\nEqual Opportunity Employment Information\nIt is the policy of Forward Financing to ensure equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, religion, national origin, status, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or domestic/civil partnership status, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by law. We welcome and encourage applications from people with disabilities. Please let us know should you require any accommodations. 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