Lead Data Scientist

Lead Data Scientist Senior technical leadership role at one of the UK's leading AI and Data businesses Cutting-edge work across machine learning, generative AI and agentic AI at citizen scale Hybrid working with UK-wide client engagement Salary £85,000 to £105,000 Active UK Government Security Clearance required About the Company Our client is a leading digital technology consultancy recognised as one of the UK's foremost AI and data businesses, with a decade-long track record of delivering production-grade AI solutions across government, healthcare, defence and commercial sectors. Their 150-strong AI and Data Practice brings together deep expertise in machine learning, generative AI and agentic AI, and they are trusted by Microsoft, AWS and others to deliver advanced solutions at citizen scale. Pioneers in responsible AI, they authored the UK government's AI Cyber Security Code of Practice implementation guide. This is a genuinely exciting practice to join at a pivotal moment in its growth. The Role A senior technical leadership position for an experienced Data Scientist who wants to architect, design and deliver advanced AI will drive the adoption of modern AI frameworks, AIOps best practices and scalable cloud-native architectures, working hands-on alongside clients to translate complex business challenges into trustworthy, responsible AI solutions. Alongside delivery, you will manage, coach and develop a small team of data scientists, fostering a culture of innovation, continuous learning and engineering excellence. This role suits someone equally comfortable leading a client engagement and reviewing a model architecture. Key Responsibilities Architect, design and deliver advanced AI solutions leveraging state-of-the-art machine learning, generative AI and agentic AI technologies Drive adoption of modern AI frameworks, AIOps best practices and scalable cloud-native architectures Work closely with clients to translate business challenges into practical, trustworthy AI solutions Ensure responsible AI principles, model interpretability and ethical considerations are embedded throughout delivery Provide hands-on technical leadership and mentorship across the team, setting standards and fostering engineering excellence Manage, coach and develop a small team of data scientists, supporting performance and career development Contribute to the growth of the wider AI and Data practice and community Stay current on advancements in AI and ML, bringing new ideas and approaches into client engagements What You'll Need Essential: Minimum 2:1 degree in Computer Science, AI, Data Science, Statistics or a related quantitative field Deep expertise in developing AI and ML models including time series, supervised and unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning and LLMs Experience with modern AI engineering approaches including prompt engineering, RAG and agentic AI Strong Python skills with a solid grounding in software engineering best practices including CI/CD, testing and code reviews Expertise in data engineering for AI, including large-scale, unstructured and multimodal data Strong understanding of responsible AI principles, model interpretability and ethical considerations Excellent client-facing skills with the ability to lead engagements and establish requirements with non-technical stakeholders Demonstrated ability to manage, coach and develop junior team members Active UK Government Security Clearance Desirable: Experience with modern deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow, and fine-tuning or distillation of LLMs including GPT, Llama and Gemini Experience with vector databases, semantic search and knowledge graphs Contributions to open-source AI projects or research publications Familiarity with AI security, privacy and compliance standards including ISO 42001 Why Apply? Salary of £85,000 to £105,000 Work at the cutting edge of AI and ML delivery on programmes that operate at genuine national scale Join a 150-strong AI and Data Practice at a pivotal moment in its growth Trusted partner to Microsoft, AWS and some of the UK's most significant public and commercial organisations Pioneer in responsible AI with real influence over policy, standards and the direction of the industry People-first culture with a strong focus on innovation, continuous learning and engineering excellence Hybrid working within a collaborative and ambitious practice Interested? For a confidential conversation about this opportunity, connect with Justin Donaldson on LinkedIn or submit your CV via the link below. Skills: AI ML LLMs RAG Python CI/CD
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