Principal Machine Learning Scientist Search Personalization at Fanatics

Fanatics is a leading global digital sports platform, complete with offerings that excite fans and maximize the reach and presence for partners across the entire sports ecosystem. Come help us build a company the world has never seen before! We are first and foremost a technology company. We build innovative fan experiences through highly analytical, forward thinking, and open-minded collaboration. We are passionate about evaluating and finding the right tech for the jobs at hand, and we get excited about building solutions for modern challenges. 

At Fanatics, we are passionate about leveraging data to drive growth and operational efficiencies. We firmly believe in putting data at the forefront of delivering an engaging experience for our sports fans!
 Fanatics Inc. is looking for highly motivated individuals to lead our Data Science initiatives. You will lead a small team of scientists and collaborate closely with engineering teams, PMs, cross-functional business units to address challenging problems using techniques from applied statistics, machine learning and/or data mining fields.

What You'll Be Doing:
•Build, deploy, and maintain predictive models in one or more of the following areas: 
•Typeahead, Query Understanding and Search Ranking, Learning-to-Rank
•Personalized Product Ranking and other personalization 
•Product Recommendations Systems
•Be a Thought-leader and a Visionary with excellent technical abilities, strong leadership skills, communication skills, and adaptability to new, cutting-edge research in the field of AI and Machine Learning
•Provides mentorship/leads a small team of excellent scientists. Coach and guide the work of others in small groups of four to six data scientists to deliver complex models, analytical projects and solve business problems, and act as a point of contact and thought leader for the team
•Handle multiple projects simultaneously and independently with a lot of freedom and accountability for success
•Collaborate cross-functionally with diverse teams (e.g., marketing operations, technology, merchandising, procurement, apparel design/production) to understand business objectives and design and implement data-driven solutions
•Effectively communicate analytical solutions to non-technical stakeholders and senior leadership

What We're Looking For:
•Any prior work in information retrieval, knowledge graphs, recommendations, and personalization in an e-commerce setting is highly desirable.
•Experience in Real-time streaming, Active Learning, Reinforcement Learning, Deep Neural Networks, Graph-based Learning would be really desirable
•Minimum 10 years' relevant experience in the industry (excluding internships/co-op/academic projects) in developing multiple machine learning and statistical models and projects for real-world, business problems in productions. 
•Strong algorithmic thinking and passion for empirical research to answer hard questions.
•Ability to communicate complex quantitative analysis, algorithmic approaches, and findings in a clear, precise, and actionable manner.
•A BS/MS/Ph.D. degree in Statistics, Applied Math, Operational Research, Computer Science or related field is desirable
•Highly effective in leading and working on multiple projects and delivering results on time effectively. Exceptional skills in project management (planning, resource allocation, and execution) and attention to detail. Exceptional leadership owning the outcome and building work relationships in cross-function projects.


Things We Care About

·         Your career growth, your ideas, your work-life balance, and your well-being.
·         Diversity and Inclusion
·         Our Company Culture and Values
·         Providing outstanding Company Perks and Benefits

Company Overview
 
Fanatics is building a leading global digital sports platform to ignite and harness the passions of fans and maximize the presence and reach for hundreds of partners globally. Optimizing these long-standing partnerships, a database of more than 80 million global consumers and a trusted, recognizable brand name, Fanatics is expanding beyond its position as a global leader for licensed sports merchandise to now becoming a next-gen digital sports platform, featuring an array of offerings for fans across the sports ecosystem.
 
The Fanatics family of companies currently includes Fanatics Commerce, a vertically-integrated licensed merchandise business that has changed the way fans purchase their favorite team apparel, jerseys, headwear and hardgoods through a tech-infused approach to making and quickly distributing fan gear in today’s 24/7 mobile-first economy; Candy Digital, a digital collectibles company that is partnering with prominent sports properties, including MLB and MLBPA, to build an official NFT ecosystem; Fanatics Collectibles, through Topps as a cornerstone of the business, building a new model for the collectibles and trading cards hobby with top leagues and players association partners; and Fanatics Betting & Gaming, a mobile betting, gaming and retail sportsbook platform. Fanatics’ partners include all major professional sports leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, NASCAR, MLS, PGA) and hundreds of collegiate and professional teams, which include several of the biggest global soccer clubs.
 
As a market leader with more than 9,000 employees, and hundreds of partners, suppliers, and vendors worldwide, we take responsibility for driving toward more ethical and sustainable practices. We are committed to building an inclusive Fanatics community, reflecting and representing society at every level of the business, including our employees, vendors, partners and fans. Fanatics is also dedicated to making a positive impact in the communities where we all live, work, and play through strategic philanthropic initiatives.
 
At Fanatics, we’re a diverse, passionate group of employees aiming to ignite pride and passion in the fans we outfit, celebrate and support.  We recognize that diversity helps drive and foster innovation, and through our IDEA program (inclusion, diversity, equality and advocacy) at Fanatics we provide employees with tools and resources to feel connected and engaged in who they are and what they do to support the ultimate fan experience.

www.fanaticsinc.com
 
Ensure your Fanatics job offer is legitimate and don’t fall victim to fraud.  Fanatics never seeks payment from job applicants.  Fanatics recruiters will only reach out to applicants from an @fanatics.com or @fanatics.co.uk email address.  For added security, where possible, apply through our company website at www.fanaticsinc.com/careers

Fanatics is committed to responsible planning and purchasing (RPP) practices, working with its business partners across its global and multi-layered supply chain, to ensure that planning, sourcing, and purchasing decisions, along with other supporting processes, do not impede or conflict with the fulfillment of Fanatics’ fair labor practices.


NOTICE TO CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS/APPLICANTS: In connection with your application, we collect information that identifies, reasonably relates to or describes you (“Personal Information”). The categories of Personal Information that we collect include your name, government issued identification number(s), email address, mailing address, other contact information, emergency contact information, employment history, educational history, criminal record, and demographic information.  We collect and use those categories of Personal Information about you for human resources and other business management purposes, including identifying and evaluating you as a candidate for potential or future employment or future contract positions, recordkeeping in relation to recruiting and hiring, conducting criminal background checks as permitted by law, conducting analytics, and ensuring compliance with applicable legal requirements and Company policies.