Data Scientist- Huntsville, AL

Location

AL, Huntsville

Schedule

Full Time

Salary Range

-

Davidson is seeking a Data Scientist in Huntsville, Alabama.

The Davidson team for this effort is split between full-remote, hybrid, and on-site team members, with the on-site work being done in Huntsville, AL. This position is an integral part of a fast-paced, innovative program for the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) involving the creation of advanced M&S, Optimization, and AI capabilities in support of the Guam Defense System (GDS). The program works cross-functionally with innovative team members skilled in Modeling & Simulation (M&S), Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Machine Learning (ML), DevSecOps, and Cybersecurity.

All team members should be able to:

• Experiment with innovative theories, ideas, and concepts to expand the realm of the possible
• Self-organize and participate in an Agile development lifecycle
• Ask questions and build consensus within a cross-functional team
• Provide design inputs and collaborate to decompose, estimate, and refine backlog requirements
• Communicate and collaborate through verbal and visual methods (e.g., diagramming, white-boarding)

Experience Level: Technical Professional or Experienced Technical Professional

High Level Role and Responsibilities:

• Candidate will serve as the Data Scientist for a team of data and AI experts working in the R&D space
• Primary responsibilities include close collaboration with data team members, collaboration with functional SMEs, and developing advanced optimization models for customer product enhancement
• The role consists of developing optimization models and algorithms within a software product across a cross-functional team to provide value to our customer
• It is expected that customer needs will continue to evolve over time and likely trend towards AI/ML solutions, so the ideal candidate will have a strong optimization/OR background, experience with AI/ML technologies, and a general understanding of software best practices for code deployment

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM or STEM-adjacent field
• Demonstrable experience applying analytical and programming skills to solve optimization problems
• Proficient in building optimization models with one of the following languages: Python, C, C++, R
• Strong algorithmic understanding of classical optimization techniques. (e.g., linear programming, gradient descent).
• Algorithmic understanding of heuristic and black box approaches for optimization, such as GA, SA, BO, and PSO.
• Familiarity with ML algorithms, such as DT, RF, SVM, NN, ConvNN, LSTM, etc.
• Understanding of Python's common data stack (NumPy, Pandas, SciPy)
• Experience with common ML frameworks for Python (scikit-learn, Tensorflow, PyTorch)
• Experience with collaborative programming tools (Git, Gitlab)
• Excellent communication skills

Desired Competencies/Experience/Certifications:

• 5+ years of relevant experience in Operations Research/Machine Learning
• Demonstrable experience building ML models in Python
• Experience with data manipulation and ML for big datasets
• Experience with MLOps tools (Kubeflow, MLflow, DVC)
• Knowledge of modern application development to include containerization (Docker/K8S)
• Familiarity with Agile processes/development methodology

Clearance Requirements:
Currently holds or able to obtain Top Secret Security Clearance