Principal Data Scientist at Zillow

About the team
Zillow Group’s mission is to give people the power to unlock life's next chapter. The Customer Conversion AI team builds models that enable smarter products and deliver strategic insights that help customers transition from browsing to successfully buying or selling a home.
Zillow, the top real estate website in the U.S., is building an on-demand real estate experience. Whether selling, buying, renting or financing, customers can turn to Zillow to find and get into their next home with speed, certainty and ease.
About the role
This role will employ a variety of machine learning and data science methods with a specific focus on stochastic models (namely, Markov Chains and queueing theory) to model customer journey flows as graphs with probabilistic transitions and inter-event times. You will partner with data infrastructure and engineering teams to apply consumer journey history data to answer questions around how to improve customer experience and drive operational efficiency. Insights derived from your work will guide the design of processes that reduce customer friction and increase transaction conversion. You will mentor and influence other scientists in the organization adopt new methods, new tools and new problem framing paradigms in their work.
You will get to:
Build out a Markov Chain (experimenting with varying levels of memory and time discretization) of customer journey while engaging with ZHL.Build out the corresponding network of service queues to the Markov Chain to estimate metrics such as throughput-rate, inter-event times and staffing level efficiency as a measure of customer experience and friction.-  Collaborate with data architects and data engineers to drive data design decisions for how we gather, model and use customer journey data (ex. how has someone interacted with the site or with various operational steps) to model their flows through processes like Zillow Home Loans and the seller experience. Additionally, you will contribute to the computable journey map (the ZHL Soft credit POC) and have opportunity to work with graphical causal inference (the PyWhy/DoWhy) frameworkLeverage large, multi-modal datasets of online and offline customer data to identify and solve customer challengesPartner with multi-functional teams such as mortgages, agent products, buyers, and sellers to solve the most exciting modeling problems.
This role has been categorized as a Remote position. “Remote” employees do not have a permanent corporate office workplace and, instead, work from a physical location of their choice which must be identified to the Company. Employees may live in any of the 50 US States, with limited exceptions. In certain cases, an employee in a remote-designated job may need to live in a specific region or time zone to support customers or clients as part of their role.In California, Colorado, Connecticut, Nevada, New York City and Washington the standard base pay range for this role is $165,600.00 - $264,500.00 Annually. This base pay range is specific to California, Colorado, Connecticut, Nevada, New York City and Washington and may not be applicable to other locations.In addition to a competitive base salary this position is also eligible for equity awards based on factors such as experience, performance and location. Actual amounts will vary depending on experience, performance and location.
Who you are
At Zillow, we are a group of curious and ambitious problem solvers passionate about all things real estate, and we hope you'd be excited to help consumers make one of the biggest decisions of their lives. Help us guide our business into the future with powerful insights and recommendations! We are always learning and experimenting with new approaches. We're seeking a data scientist with the following qualifications:
A Ph.D or Master's degree in a quantitative field (e.g. science, engineering, economics, quantitative finance, operations research, statistics, or similar)Experience with stochastic models (focus on discrete time Markov Chains, queueing theory, service operations) and data modeling with dbt, especially with applications in loans and/or customer service5+ years of work experience involving quantitative data analysis, experimentation and complex problem-solving.Proficiency in SQL, and either Python or R, along with some experience with Tableau, Mode, or other visualization softwareSuperb verbal and written communication skills with the ability to distill sophisticated issues and detailed analysis into simple, structured frameworks with concrete action plansAble to work cross-functionally and influence business partners to set realistic goals and focus on data-driven solutions.
Get to know us
Zillow is reimagining real estate to make it easier to unlock life’s next chapter.
As the most-visited real estate website in the United States, Zillow® and its affiliates help movers find and win their home through digital solutions, first class partners, and easier buying, selling, financing and renting experiences. Millions of people visit Zillow Group sites every month to start their home search, and now they can rely on Zillow to help make it easier to move. The work we do is helping people move from dreaming to transacting — and no matter what job you're in, you will play a critical role in making this vision a reality.
Our efforts to streamline the real estate transaction are supported by a deep-rooted culture of innovation, our passion to redefine the employee experience, a fundamental commitment to Equity and Belonging, and world-class benefits. We’re also setting the standard for work experiences of the future, where our employees are supported in doing their best work and living a flexible, well-balanced life. But don’t just take our word for it. Read recent reviews on Glassdoor and recent recognition from multiple organizations, including: the 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2022 list, Glassdoor Employees’ Choice Award, honoring the Best Places to Work in 2022, Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index 2022, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Corporate Equity Index and Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality 2022, and TIME 100 Most Influential Companies list.
Zillow Group is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative environment with the best employees. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please contact us at RecruitingAccessibility@zillowgroup.com.
Applicants who receive job offers from Zillow Group will be asked to sign a Proprietary Rights Agreement which includes confidentiality, intellectual property assignment, customer and employee non-solicitation, and non-competition provisions. If you are contacted for a role at Zillow Group and wish to review a copy of the Proprietary Rights Agreement prior to receiving an offer, you may request a copy from your Recruiter.
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