Data Scientist, Advanced Analytics & Commercial Effectiveness

AstraZeneca • Mississauga, ON

3d • CA$134,708 - CA$176,804 • Hybrid

About The Position

This role focuses on leveraging advanced statistical methods and AI-native analytics to analyze de-identified healthcare data. The goal is to identify patients, enhance commercial strategies, and improve outcomes for individuals with rare diseases. The position involves transforming complex data into actionable insights that refine field execution, optimize investments, and ensure therapies reach those most in need. The successful candidate will join a dynamic analytics team that combines deep statistical expertise with modern machine learning and Snowflake Cortex AI to accelerate model development while maintaining interpretability and compliance. Responsibilities span areas such as patient identification, adherence prediction, marketing effectiveness, and causal impact analysis, delivering trusted models for leadership and daily team use.

Requirements

• Master’s or PhD in Statistics, Biostatistics, Data Science, Econometrics, Applied Mathematics, or a related quantitative field.
• 4–8+ years in data science, applied statistics, or quantitative commercial analytics with a track record of deploying production-grade models in healthcare or life sciences.
• Expert-level proficiency in hypothesis testing, regression analysis (linear, logistic, mixed-effects, regularized), ANOVA, survival analysis, Bayesian inference, experimental design, power analysis, significance testing, and multiple comparison corrections.
• Deep understanding of statistical method applicability and limitations, especially in small-population rare disease contexts.
• Proficiency in XGBoost, LightGBM, Random Forest, SVM, ensemble methods, neural networks, and time-series forecasting with thorough validation.
• Expert-level Python (scikit-learn, XGBoost, LightGBM, statsmodels, lifelines, scipy.stats, PyMC, CausalML, DoWhy, SHAP, PyTorch) and SQL.
• Proficiency with Jupyter, Git, and CI/CD integration for model deployment.
• Proficiency with Snowflake (Snowpark Python, Snowpark Container Services, Cortex AI), Spark/PySpark, and MLflow or equivalent experiment tracking and model registry tools.
• Hands-on experience building Bayesian MMM (PyMC, LightweightMMM, Robyn) and Next-Best-Action recommendation engines.
• Experience with AI coding agents (Cortex AI, Claude Code, Copilot) for analytical development and ability to critically evaluate agent-generated code.
• Solid understanding of HIPAA de-identification standards, model explainability frameworks (SHAP, LIME), bias detection, and compliance in regulated healthcare data environments.
• Ability to translate sophisticated statistical findings into actionable recommendations for non-technical commercial stakeholders and senior leadership.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in rare disease or specialty pharma analytics, including small-population modeling, patient identification, specialty pharmacy data, hub/PSP, REMS-related data, and high-value-per-patient environments.
• Hands-on experience with Komodo Health (open and closed claims), IQVIA (Symphony, NPA, DDD), Veeva CRM, MMIT, Model N, specialty pharmacy dispense data, and EMR/EHR data.
• Experience with NLP (topic modeling, NER, embeddings, text classification) and neural network architectures (RNNs, LSTMs, transformers) for healthcare analytics.
• Experience with RLHF concepts, benchmark design, systematic prompt evaluation, and agent reasoning quality assessment.
• Proficiency with PowerBI, Tableau, or Qlik for executive-facing dashboards and self-service reporting.

Responsibilities

• Act as the go-to expert for analytical standards in hypothesis testing, regression, inference, and experimental design, ensuring outputs meet publication-grade rigor.
• Design, validate, and deploy predictive models using various machine learning algorithms (XGBoost, LightGBM, Random Forest, SVM, neural networks, ensembles) and address class imbalance.
• Build survival models (Cox, AFT, competing risks) to predict adherence, discontinuation, and patient lifetime value.
• Create and maintain ensemble time-series forecasting frameworks (ARIMA, Prophet, exponential smoothing, gradient-boosted) for demand planning and revenue scenarios.
• Design A/B tests and apply quasi-experimental methods (DiD, PSM, synthetic control, IV, RDD) to quantify the impact of commercial initiatives.
• Develop Bayesian Marketing Mix Models (MMM) to estimate channel ROI and response curves, recommending promotional reallocations.
• Build and refine HCP-level recommendation systems using contextual bandits, collaborative filtering, and reinforcement learning.
• Train supervised classifiers on claims, labs, and specialty pharmacy data for patient identification.
• Deploy models to detect early risk signals for patient adherence and retention.
• Construct HCP and patient segments using clustering and NLP-enriched profiles.
• Create real-time switching surveillance models from claims and formulary data for competitive intelligence.
• Utilize Snowflake Cortex AI and AI coding agents for rapid prototyping and feature engineering, with human-led statistical validation.
• Build guardrails and evaluation suites to stress-test agent outputs and prevent flawed insights.
• Design domain-specific prompts, benchmarks, and feedback loops to improve agent analytical performance.
• Operate exclusively with de-identified patient-level data, implementing minimum-necessary access and re-identification risk assessments.
• Implement bias detection, fairness audits, SHAP/LIME, drift monitoring, and validation gates, maintaining audit trails aligned with regulatory standards.
• Translate sophisticated statistics into clear recommendations for commercial stakeholders and influence senior leaders.
• Create documentation, conduct code reviews, and provide training to ensure sustainable and repeatable excellence.

Benefits

• Competitive Flex Benefits & Retirement Savings Program
• 4 weeks’ paid vacation
• Annual Personal Days
• Annual Variable Pay Bonus/Short Term Incentive opportunity
• Eligibility to participate in equity-based long-term incentive program (if applicable to role)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior