Principal Data Scientist

Salary: £47,000 - 87,000 per year

Requirements:

• Bachelors or Masters degree in a quantitative field such as Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Physics, Engineering, or equivalent.
• Extensive professional experience in data science, with a proven track record of technically leading and successfully delivering complex, impactful, production-grade data science solutions.
• A background in data science within finance or insurance is advantageous but not required.
• Demonstrated capacity for independent, high-quality research and exploratory data analysis, with the ability to develop and apply novel methodologies to solve ill-defined and challenging business problems.
• Proven ability to design, implement, and maintain robust technical frameworks for evaluating commercial impact.
• Proven ability to technically mentor data scientists, fostering best practices, elevating technical standards, and contributing to the overall technical growth of the team.
• Strong understanding and practical experience with Agile development methodologies and software engineering best practices such as version control, comprehensive testing, and modular code relevant to data science product delivery.
• Ability to articulate complex technical findings and methodologies into clear, concise, and actionable insights for diverse audiences, effectively influencing technical and non-technical stakeholders to drive data-driven decision-making and solution adoption.
• Demonstrable experience collaborating effectively with cross-functional teams such as engineering, product, and business stakeholders to translate business challenges into robust technical requirements and ensure seamless delivery.
• Exceptional proficiency in Python and R for data science, coupled with SQL capabilities for data manipulation and extraction.
• Demonstrable mastery in a wide range of machine learning and statistical modelling techniques, from classical linear models and tree-based methods to advanced deep learning architectures.
• Practical experience with, or demonstrable capability for, applications of Generative AI, Large Language Models, and related areas such as Natural Language Processing or Computer Vision, relevant to business solutions.
• Solid understanding of foundational statistics and experimental design.
• Familiarity with or experience on cloud platforms.

Responsibilities:

• Utilise industry standards, emerging methodologies, and empirical research to develop critical business inputs and help leaders innovate their approaches.
• Technically lead the end-to-end delivery of our most complex data science initiatives.
• Understand intricate business challenges and translate them into technical problem statements.
• Work with diverse datasets, both internal and external.
• Apply and develop advanced machine learning or statistical modelling techniques to generate actionable insights and deliver measurable impact.
• Provide hands-on technical mentorship and guidance to junior and mid-level data scientists, fostering best practices and elevating technical standards.
• Engage closely with other members of the data and analytics community to deliver value through various analytics techniques, share advanced knowledge, and drive the adoption of robust analytical capabilities.
• Design, implement, and maintain robust technical frameworks for monitoring, evaluating, and quantifying the commercial impact and efficiency of data science solutions.
• Pioneer the development and robust deployment of highly impactful machine learning and AI-driven solutions.
• Translate complex data science insights into tangible, measurable improvements across critical business processes and key performance indicators.
• Actively elevate the technical maturity and capabilities of the data science team by shaping and implementing industry-leading AI, data, and analytics techniques, methodologies, and engineering best practices.

Technologies:

• AI
• Cloud
• Computer Vision
• Machine Learning
• Python
• SQL
• Excel

More:

We are Hiscox, offering a permanent Principal Data Scientist role in London. You will be part of a dynamic technical team focused on leveraging data science across our diverse business functions, with particular influence on underwriting and the wider insurance value chain. We value a multi-disciplinary approach to complex problem-solving, technical leadership, and collaboration across disciplines to maximise business value. You will work with amazing people and be part of a unique culture.

last updated 35 week of 2026