Principal Data & AI Scientist

PEMCO•Seattle, WA

About The Position

We are seeking a Principal Data Scientist to lead the design, development, and deployment of advanced analytics and machine learning solutions across our insurance portfolio. This is a hands-on technical leadership role for an experienced data scientist who can translate ambiguous business problems into scalable, production-ready models that drive measurable impact. As a Principal Data Scientist, you will operate as a trusted technical advisor to senior leadership, set modeling and experimentation standards, mentor senior and staff-level data scientists, and influence the company’s long-term data and AI strategy.

Requirements

B.A. or B.S. degree or equivalent work experience in a related field, such as Computer Science, Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Science, or Data Engineering.
10 years of enterprise-scale experience in designing, implementing, and deploying AI/ML models.
7 years of experience working with cloud-based AI platforms, including Azure Machine Learning, Databricks, and Snowflake.
7 years of experience in implementing both supervised and unsupervised learning techniques in real-world applications.
Experience in the insurance industry, particularly in Auto, Home, and Umbrella insurance processes, underwriting, claims analysis, and risk assessment is required.
Strong problem-solving skills and a deep understanding of statistical and mathematical principles.
Strong experience in natural language processing (NLP) and generative AI applications.
Expertise in MLOps, model lifecycle management, and AI model deployment at scale.
Proficient in Python, PySpark, and SQL.
Deep understanding of Azure Databricks, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, Azure Synapse Analytics, and Azure Data Factory.
Experience with distributed model training and serving on Databricks
Expertise in both supervised and unsupervised learning techniques and the ability to implement AI/ML solutions that enhance data-driven decision-making in the insurance industry, particularly in Auto, Home, and Umbrella insurance.
Familiarity with agile software delivery methodologies such as Scrum.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or Ph.D. in a related field, such as Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, or Machine Learning preferred.
Experience working with advanced AI frameworks such as LangChain, LlamaIndex, and Hugging Face transformers is preferred.
Hands-on experience with Gen AI, RAG pipelines, Vector Databases, and Knowledge Graphs.
Familiarity with Azure OpenAI, LLM fine-tuning, or cognitive services is preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead the development of advanced statistical and machine learning models across core insurance domains such as: Pricing and rating
Underwriting and risk selection
Claims severity, frequency, and fraud detection
Customer lifetime value, retention, and growth
Design end-to-end analytical solutions, from problem formulation and feature engineering to model deployment and monitoring.
Champion best practices in model validation, explainability, fairness, and performance monitoring, aligned with regulatory and ethical standards.
Evaluate and select appropriate modeling techniques (e.g., GLMs, gradient boosting, deep learning, survival analysis, Bayesian methods) based on business context.
Partner with executives, product leaders, and actuarial teams to shape analytics strategy and identify high-impact opportunities.
Translate complex analytical findings into clear, actionable insights for both technical and nontechnical audiences.
Influence roadmap decisions by quantifying business impact, risk, and uncertainty.
Collaborate closely with data engineering and ML platform teams to ensure models are productionized effectively and maintained at scale.
Define and promote standards for model reproducibility, documentation, testing, and lifecycle management.
Contribute to the evolution of internal data science tooling, experimentation frameworks, and ML infrastructure.
Serve as a technical mentor and role model for emerging data scientists.
Raise the bar for analytical rigor, code quality, and scientific thinking across the organization.
Foster a culture of curiosity, experimentation, and evidence-based decision-making.
Demonstrate behaviors consistent with PEMCO's policies, values, code of ethics, and business conduct.
Authentically support the PEMCO Brand and constantly are on the lookout for top talent to join us to achieve our Mission to Worry Less and Live More.
Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

covered by employer-paid basic life and accidental death & dismemberment insurance policies as well as long- and short-term disability benefit coverages.
eligible to participate in PEMCO’s 401(k) plan which includes a generous employer match (2 for 1 on the first 6% employee pre-tax and/or Roth deferral, up to federal maximums).
Vacation accrues at a minimum rate of 10 days for new hires, and increases based on a schedule to a maximum annual accrual of 25 days based on tenure.
Granted four (4) floating holidays immediately upon hire.
Paid holidays for the eight (8) holidays observed by PEMCO throughout the calendar year.
Granted up to ten (10) days of sick leave immediately upon hire (pro-rated based on hire date and full-time/part-time status), which is approximately 28 hours more per year than the Washington state-required accrual.
In addition, PEMCO provides paid time off for bereavement, jury duty, and employee volunteering in the community.
Flexible Spending Accounts.
Education Assistance Program after one year of service.
Scholarship program for children of PEMCO employees after one year of service.
Employee Assistance Program.
Well-being program.
Discretionary taxable gifts and gift cards.
And other Perks & Benefits, including discounts on computer software and hardware, cell phone plans, and rental cars.