Lead Data Scientist

**ABOUT THE TEAM**:
At WDL, you’ll be part of a dynamic, international team of data scientists, software engineers, sales executives, designers, and project managers who are passionate about using data to drive positive change. While most of our team is based in Vienna, we also have a growing presence in Africa and collaborators across the globe. Our team brings together diverse backgrounds and perspectives, creating a vibrant and inclusive work culture. We value curiosity, initiative, and collaboration and we’re united by a shared commitment to delivering high-quality, impactful work in a fast-paced, supportive environment.

**ABOUT THE ROLE**:
We are looking for a **Lead Data Scientist (M/F/d)** to head a talented team focused on delivering cutting-edge insights into consumer spending and other socio-economic parameters. This role combines deep technical expertise with team leadership, project management, and stakeholder engagement. You’ll design and implement scalable data pipelines, guide analytical workflows, ensure high-quality outputs, and represent WDL in both internal and international settings.

**THE CHALLENGE**:

- Design, implement, and maintain robust, scalable data pipelines for ingestion, harmonization, transformation, and analysis - primarily using R.
- Lead the development of clean, well-documented, and reproducible code across multiple projects, ensuring alignment with best practices in version control (e.g., GitHub) and collaborative workflows.
- Drive innovation in data architecture and modeling strategies to support complex analyses and forecasting.
- Provide hands-on support in debugging, performance optimization, and methodological problem-solving.
- Translate analytical goals into actionable project tasks and oversee the technical execution from planning to delivery.
- Mentor and support data scientists, fostering a collaborative, high-performance team culture.
- Coordinate project workstreams to ensure timely delivery, code consistency, and adherence to WDL’s technical standards.
- Review analytical code and outputs to ensure methodological rigor, reproducibility, and transparency.
- Enforce internal standards for documentation, data ethics, and research integrity.
- Communicate project progress and results to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Represent WDL at meetings, workshops, and occasionally at international events.

**YOUR PROFILE**:
**Required**:

- Master’s degree or PhD in a STEM field (e.g., Data Science, Economics, Computer Science, Statistics, or a related discipline).
- Specialization in or demonstrable experience with economic analysis.
- Advanced proficiency in R, including building reproducible workflows and reviewing complex team codebases.
- Strong experience in data pipeline design, dataset harmonization, and wrangling large data sets from diverse sources.
- Proficiency in version control systems (e.g., Git) and collaborative development environments.
- 5+ years of experience in data science or a related field, including 3+ years in a technical leadership role.
- Solid understanding of economic data, policies, and household-level spending dynamics.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to explain complex data topics to non-technical audiences.
- Strong organizational skills, including managing competing deadlines and deliverables.
- A collaborative, team-oriented mindset and commitment to a positive team culture.

**Preferred**:

- Experience working in command-line interfaces and managing workloads on virtual machines or remote servers.
- Familiarity with data visualization and storytelling tools such as ggplot2, Shiny, or Tableau.
- Demonstrated success leading complex, data-driven projects and delivering actionable insights to external clients.
- Experience in mentoring junior team members and providing constructive feedback.
- Demonstrated project management skills, including coordinating cross-functional initiatives and aligning deliverables with strategic goals.
- Ability to inspire and motivate others, fostering a culture of learning and continuous improvement.

**OUR OFFER**:

- The opportunity to make an impact in a well-established big data SaaS scale-up
- Clients who are leading global institutions and companies
- Be part of a diverse team of highly motivated and like-minded individuals (we collaborate with colleagues from all around the world)
- Opportunity to shape your career through personal development plan supported by the growth opportunities
- A collaborative environment with colleagues from all over the world
- Flexible working time & hybrid work model with office in the center of Vienna (near Schwedenplatz)
- Vienna Transportation ticket
- Team activities

While we appreciate the option to work from home, we believe that coming together in person helps us grow stronger, share ideas, and tackle challenges as a team. Also through these connections we become better as individuals and as a company. T