Associate Data Scientist

Spotlight Sports Group is a global media and technology company specialising in content and data within sports betting, horse racing and fantasy sports. With over 400 employees, the group operates multiple award-winning brands, including Racing Post, the world’s largest horse racing affiliate, Pickswise, myracing and Free Super Tips. We partner with leading operators across the betting industry to produce and build multilingual, best-in-class digital products and content to engage and educate customers. ICS-digital, an international marketing agency including ICS-translate, also operates under the group.

Job Purpose

We are seeking an Associate Data Scientist to join our passionate Sports Content Generation (CG) who lead innovation within SSG.  The CG team comprises Data Scientists, Content Developers and Software Engineers who work alongside the rest of the Product Team (Product Managers, UX Designers and Researchers) and collaborate with business stakeholders to create market leading products. 

The successful candidate will be intrinsically involved in the development of unique, rich and authoritative sports content and data initiatives, engineered to help engage sports fans and help them find smart ways to bet. 

Working collaboratively with the subject matter experts in the team, you will run analytical experiments and evaluate alternate models via theoretical approaches to enable the scaling of these initiatives to grow our digital business in B2B and B2C products and ventures. 

In this role you will be developing live products and the ability to write robust, scaleable code is essential.

Data Science is an established discipline at Spotlight Sports Group, giving the successful candidate an exciting opportunity to help shape the future of our content and customer experience by building analytical tools to generate insight, recognise patterns and predict behaviour, and to deliver quality content directly to our customers.  They will work alongside and report to a Lead Data Scientist in a team who will help the business realise the opportunities arising from our horse racing, customer and sports data. 

The ideal candidate will be adept at using models to test the effectiveness of different courses of action. They must have strong experience using a variety of data mining/data analysis methods, using a variety of data tools, building and implementing models, using/creating algorithms and creating/running simulations. The right candidate will have a passion for discovering solutions hidden in large data sets and working with stakeholders to improve business outcomes.

Key accountabilities

Whilst specific responsibilities will be dependent upon the changing needs of Spotlight Sports Group, the following provides an overview of the key responsibilities:

• Research and develop custom data models and algorithms to apply to data sets
• Develop processes and tools to monitor and analyse model performance and data accuracy
• Collaborate with product management, subject matter experts and engineering departments to understand company needs and devise possible solutions with the emphasis on quality, innovation and scalability within an agreed timeframe
• Communicate results and ideas to key decision makers
• Keep up to date with latest technology trends and adapt accordingly
• Implement new statistical or other mathematical methodologies as needed for specific models or analysis
• Optimise joint development efforts through appropriate database use and project design
• Work within agreed agile methodology to manage workloads effectively
• Write scalable and robust code which can be relied upon in a production environment.

Requirements

• A Masters or PHD in a quantitative discipline such as mathematics, physics, computer science or statistics.
• Demonstrable interest or experience with manipulating sports data, ideally in predicting outcomes of sports events 
• Some commercial experience manipulating data sets and building statistical models - although graduates will be considered
• Strong problem solving skills and a hands-on mindset with an emphasis on product development
• Experience using statistical computer languages (R, Python, SQL etc.) to manipulate data and draw insights from large data sets
• Experience creating and using a variety of machine learning techniques (clustering, decision tree learning, artificial neural networks, etc.) and knowledge of their real-world advantages/drawbacks
• Knowledge of advanced statistical techniques and concepts (regression, properties of distributions, statistical tests and proper usage, etc.) and experience with applications
• Practical experience using common data science packages such as pandas and NumPy, along with deep learning frameworks such as Tensorflow or Pytorch.
• Experience of using LLMs or an understanding of their application in business use cases

Personal Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to clearly articulate concepts, ideas and requirements that are understood by technical and non-technical teams
• A drive to learn and master new technologies and techniques
• Highly self-motivated with a passion to succeed as an individual and as part of a team 
• Excellent attention to detail with a keen eye for accuracy
• Excellent time management skills and ability to work to and meet deadlines
• Ability to gain respect & trust of people you work with by consistently demonstrating commitment in your work

Benefits

We offer a range of well-being initiatives, including private medical insurance, excellent parental leave, a working globally policy, mental health support, assistance programs, and social gatherings. We also provide a pension scheme and various other benefit schemes. Plus, we all get our birthdays off work and enjoy 25 days of holiday per year, as well as the opportunity to buy 5 additional days per year and you can be flexible about when you use your public holidays.

We’ve also got you covered with life assurance and exclusive perks like the Star card and our Step Further Awards (our employee recognition program) to recognise your dedication. For those working via the hybrid model (in the office and at home) we’ve made commuting easier with our Season Ticket Loan and Cycle to Work Scheme.

You can also take advantage of complimentary access to our Racing Post Members Club, complete with an Ultimate Membership. We believe in making a positive impact beyond the workplace, and you'll have the chance to volunteer two days per year with our charity partner, Autism in Racing.