Applied Data Scientist - AI Enablement (Transportation)

At HDR, our employee-owners are fully engaged in creating a welcoming environment where each of us is valued and respected, a place where everyone is empowered to bring their authentic selves and novel ideas to work every day. As we foster a culture of inclusion throughout our company and within our communities, we constantly ask ourselves: What is our impact on the world?

Watch Our Story:' https://www.hdrinc.com/our-story'

Each and every role throughout our organization makes a difference in our ability to change the world for the better. Read further to learn how you could help make great things possible not only in your community, but around the world.

We believe transportation is more than movement, it’s the foundation of connected, thriving communities. As part of HDR’s Transportation Business Group, you’ll help shape the systems that move people and goods safely, efficiently, and sustainably. From designing resilient highways and iconic bridges to advancing transit, passenger and freight rail, aviation, federal transportation ports and marine infrastructure, your work will directly support economic vitality, public safety, sustainable and resilient communities and quality of life. We bring together planners, engineers, architects, construction management staff, environmental, strategic communications, economists, management consultants and specialists across disciplines to solve complex mobility challenges with innovation, technical excellence, and a deep understanding of community needs. Whether you're modernizing aging infrastructure or pioneering next-generation transportation solutions, your contributions will help define the future of mobility. This isn’t just a job, it’s a chance to lead progress, drive meaningful impact, and leave a legacy of smarter, more connected transportation networks. We are all employee-owners at HDR, which is the foundation of our collaborative culture that connects employees around the world.

Primary Role:

The Applied Data Scientist - AI Enablement is a high-impact individual contributor role focused on building internal AI capabilities and removing systemic constraints that limit HDR’s ability to scale artificial intelligence across the Transportation Business Group. In the initial phase, this role is primarily internally focused, developing AI solutions, improving data and technology foundations, and identifying bottlenecks in systems, processes, and tooling. As internal capabilities mature, the role will progressively transition to client-facing AI delivery and advisory work, leveraging internally proven solutions as repeatable services.

Utilization Expectations:

• 40% Internal AI solution development
• 40% Client AI delivery and pilot engagements (as capabilities mature) (0% year 1)
• 20% Skill development and continuous learning

Primary Responsibilities:

Internal AI Capability Development:

• Design, develop, and deploy AI solutions addressing internal transportation business needs (e.g., document intelligence, predictive analytics, copilots, workflow automation).
• Build reusable AI components, data pipelines, and workflows that can be scaled for future client delivery
• Manage full model lifecycle including development, deployment, monitoring, drift detection, retraining, and inference.

Constraint & Bottleneck Identification:

• Proactively identify limitations in data availability, system integration, tooling, governance, and processes that inhibit AI adoption.
• Partner with IT, data architects, and business stakeholders to recommend scalable improvements.
• Document technical debt and architectural gaps that must be addressed before scaling AI capacity.

Collaboration & Communication:

• Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to translate ambiguous problems into structured AI solutions.
• Communicate AI concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Future Client-Facing Work:

• Support client pursuits and pilot projects using internally developed AI capabilities.
• Contribute to the evolution of repeatable AI services and offerings.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list. This role requires flexibility to perform other duties as required.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in a closely related field or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience with generative AI and modern AI services.
• Hands-on experience developing, deploying, and maintaining data and AI solutions in cloud environments (e.g., Azure, AWS, or GCP), including cloud-native data pipelines, scalable compute, and production model deployment.
• Experience managing end-to-end data science projects and model lifecycles.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
• Advanced Degree
• Experience designing or improving data pipelines and AI infrastructure.
• Consulting or professional services experience.
• Six Sigma or other process improvement certifications.

Required Qualifications

• A degree in a closely related field or combination of education and relevant experience
• A minimum of 3 years experience with data engineering tools and languages such as SQL, Power Query, and Pandas
• A minimum of 3 years experience with business intelligence tools such as Power BI, Tableau, Plotly, Seaborn, and Matplotlib
• A minimum of 3 years experience with data science languages such as Python and R
• Self-motivated, detail-oriented professional, ability to multitask a must
• Proficiency with MS Office including Word and Outlook
• Ability to handle confidential information
• Excellent writing and people skills
• Strong math and organizational skills
• Flexibility and ability to prioritize and handle multiple tasks and various managers in a fast-paced environment
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including grammar, punctuation, proofreading, spelling and telephone skills
• An attitude and commitment to being an active participant of our employee-owned culture is a must
• In-depth knowledge of machine learning algorithms, statistical models, and data analytics
• Experience completing multiple data science projects

What We Believe

HDR is our company. Together, we build on each other's life experiences and perspectives to make great things possible every day. This shapes our collaborative culture, encourages organizational trust and connects us closer to the clients and communities we serve.

Our Commitment

As employee owners, we all have a role in creating an inclusive environment where each of us is welcomed, valued, respected and empowered to bring our authentic selves to work every day.

Our eight Employee Network Groups (Asian Pacific, Black, Hispanic/Latino(a), LGBTQ+, People with Disabilities, Veterans, Women, Young Professionals) help create a sense of belonging and foster a supportive environment where everyone is empowered to engage and contribute. Each group has an executive sponsor and is open to all employees.

At HDR, we are committed to the principles of employment equity.

We are an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employe r.

We consider all qualified applicants, regardless of criminal histories, arrest and conviction records.