We 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.

In this role you will:

• Lead 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
• Drive end-to-end delivery of flagship data science initiatives, from problem framing and model design through deployment, monitoring, and ongoing iteration
• Lead 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
• Partner 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
• Define and enforce organization-wide standards for model development, validation, code quality, and documentation; serve as the technical authority on design decisions
• Mentor data scientists at all levels, including senior and lead team members, raising the technical bar and fostering a culture of rigorous, continuous learning
• Communicate complex technical concepts, tradeoffs, and business implications to executives and non-technical stakeholders, and represent data science in strategic planning
• Architect and evolve production machine learning pipelines and monitoring frameworks to ensure models are reliable, scalable, and continuously improving

Why you should apply:

• Mission 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.
• Flexibility 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.

Role Requirements:

• Deep experience in building and deploying credit risk models, especially underwriting models, in the fintech, lending or financial services industry
• 10+ 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
• Proven track record of leading high-impact data science initiatives from ambiguity to production, with demonstrated business results
• Experience with real-time models, decisioning engines, and production-grade machine learning pipelines is preferred.
• Expert in Python, SQL and Git
• Experience designing, deploying models within a cloud platform (e.g., AWS, SageMaker), including architectural decision-making
• Experience with workflow orchestration tools, such as Metaflow is preferred
• Strong foundation in statistics and machine learning
• Demonstrated ability to influence technical direction across teams and mentor senior technical talent
• Excellent project management and communication skills, including experience presenting to executive audiences
• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving ability
• Nice to have experience: cloud data warehouses (e.g. Snowflake, Databricks), Arize, Metaflow, Sagemaker, decision engines (e.g. Taktile), feature stores (e.g. Tecton)
• Bachelor's degree in Financial/Applied Math, Operations Research, Economics, and/or Statistics. Masters/PhD is a plus.

Compensation:
Annual Salary: $208,000 - $286,000 USD
Annual Bonus: You have the potential to earn an additional 12% annual bonus.

At 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.

Final 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.

Our Culture: The Forward Compass
The 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.
Back the Builders: We are wired to fuel customer progress, not just provide support.
Rooted in People: We create an environment that balances deep connection with the extreme ownership and honesty required to reach our highest potential.
Flying V: We move through coordinated effort with speed and urgency to achieve what no individual could do alone.
Always Forward, Never Finished: We pursue growth with a relentless drive that keeps us ahead of the competition.

Perks & Benefits:

At Forward, our team members are at the heart of our company, and we are committed to taking care of them as people, not just employees. We offer a comprehensive benefits package, including but not limited to: medical, dental, vision, and commuter benefits, a flexible time-off policy, paid parental leave, 401k match for US employees, wellness reimbursement, volunteering days, annual professional development budget, and charitable donation match.

Workplace flexibility is a top priority at Forward too. Our Employee Choice policy means that almost all of our employees get to decide where they work. 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. If face-to-face time is desired, people managers are empowered to find a cadence that works for their team.

When 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!