This role does not come with relocation assistance
About Us: At Booking.com, data drives our decisions. Technology is at our core. And innovation is everywhere. But our company is more than datasets, lines of code or A/B tests. We're the thrill of the first night in a new place. The excitement of the next morning. The friends you encounter. The journeys you take. The sights you see. And the memories you make. Through our products, partners and people, we make it easier for everyone to experience the world.
Role and Team Overview
As a Senior Data Scientist in Ranking and Ads, you will work autonomously on impactful strategic business problems, translating them into data stories and delivering insights that inform business decisions across multiple products. The Senior Data Scientist for this team will specialise specifically in Ads. You will design and interpret experiments to guide long-term strategic decisions, build proofs of concept and prototypes, and actively manage stakeholders from operational to Director level. You'll collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, and Data Engineering teams, writing high-quality, reproducible code to ensure your work lands impactfully and enables solid decision-making across leadership.
Ranking and Ads Insights is a new and expanding, highly commercial team providing Data Science and Analytics support within Marketplace. Our mission is to power Ads across Booking.com and support Ranking ML teams to show the right properties to the right people.
Our work enables partners to reach travelers at the perfect moment while preserving customer experience and driving commercial impact. This is a unique opportunity to apply your business awareness to high-stakes initiatives, ensuring your work not only solves complex data problems but actively shapes the strategy for the Ads part of our scope in particular.
You'll work in a cross-functional team alongside Machine Learning, Data Engineering, and Data Management to support our product vision. Strong commercial acumen and stakeholder management will ensure that your work is impactful and drives business results.
To get a flavor of the Data Science & ML work at Booking, check out our blog here.
Key Job Responsibilities and Duties
- Responsible for defining the strategy and vision for generating impact in one or more Data Science solutions by driving it from ideation to prototyping to full productionisation.
- Responsible for proactively identifying and autonomously prioritizing impactful strategic business problems, translating them into data stories and solving them effectively by applying suitable statistical data analysis and modeling methods. Leverages input from product stakeholders in all of the above to determine the right technical solutions to deliver customer value. May seek guidance from the manager on complex business problems.
- Responsible for driving key projects within the scope of their team to deliver work that informs business decisions across multiple products / business topics in parallel and/or core products / business topics of the area they work in, while self-prioritizing at high velocity. Regularly collaborating across multiple teams.
- Responsible for designing and interpreting quantitative experiments to objectively drive long-term strategic business decision making.
- Responsible for autonomously identifying and managing a broad range of stakeholders, from operational to senior managerial roles and, as required, Director level stakeholders. Maintains effective communication, addresses stakeholder needs, and conveys complex analysis results clearly. Continues to guide less experienced colleagues in all of the above, but may seek guidance from the manager in complex situations with senior stakeholders.
- Responsible for exploring and modifying existing internal and external Data Science approaches. Makes these solutions reusable by designing for easy adoption and proactively educating and upskilling peers on how to effectively utilize these solutions in their work.
- Responsible for incorporating scalability, reproducibility and long term orientation in the work they do. Regularly sharing best practices with peers in their area.
- Responsible for acting as a force multiplier for peers in their area by actively helping them with their craft through means of coaching, mentoring and setting a good example.
- Responsible for contributing significantly to the community of their area by thinking of and implementing ways to make other data professionals more effective (ie. group trainings, community projects), actively participating in community strengthening activities (ie. recruitment) and connecting their area to the rest of the business.
- Must have a deep understanding of the larger data ecosystem at Booking and how it relates to the work they do.
- Responsible for proactively collaborating with peers in related crafts (ie. Data Engineering) on all projects owned by their team, anticipating data needs to maintain smooth execution of projects.
- Responsible for having significant deep knowledge about the operational, tactical and strategic goals of their area (ie. track / vertical) and be knowledgeable of the goals of their wider area (ie. Business Unit).
- Responsible for ensuring quality of their own work by validating it through peer review.
- Responsible for influencing business decisions within their wider area (ie. track / vertical).
- Must be a subject-matter expert in one area of Data Science (ie. methodology, technology) and its application as an end-to-end product that generates business impact, acting as a go-to Data Science authority for senior business stakeholders of their area.
Role Qualifications and Requirements
- Knowledgeable about statistical properties of (good) metrics, and ability to scalably test them
- Expertise in experimentation and knowledge of causal inference beyond A/B testing
- Expertise in SQL, Python and familiarity with other languages like R
- Experience building libraries/modules in python
- Familiarity with apis using is good, building/maintaining is great
- Strong understanding of fundamental machine learning concepts
- Strong knowledge of reporting/visualization techniques (e.g., Tableau, Graphite, Power BI, etc.)
Benefits & Perks: Global Impact, Personal Relevance- Annual paid time off and generous paid leave scheme including: parental (22-weeks paid leave), grandparent, bereavement, and care leave
- Hybrid working including flexible working arrangements, working from home furniture and ergonomic support, and up to 20 days per year working from abroad (home country)
- A beautiful sustainable HQ Campus in Amsterdam, that offers on-site meals, coffee, and snacks, multi-faith and breastfeeding rooms at the office
- Commuting allowance and bike reimbursement scheme
- Discounts & Wallet credits to spend on our products, upgrade to Booking.com Genius Level 3, and friends & family Booking.com discount vouchers
- Free access to online learning platforms, development and mentorship programs
- Global Employee Assistance Program, free Headspace membership
Inclusion at Booking.com:
Inclusion has been a core part of our company culture since day one. This ongoing journey starts with our very own employees, who represent over 140 nationalities and a wide range of ethnic and social backgrounds, genders and sexual orientations.
Take it from our Chief People Officer, Paulo Pisano: "At Booking.com, the diversity of our people doesn't just build an outstanding workplace, it also creates a better and more inclusive travel experience for everyone. Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. It's a place where you can make your mark and have a real impact in travel and tech."
We ensure that colleagues with disabilities are provided the adjustments and tools they need to participate in the job application and interview process, to perform crucial job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.
Application Process
- The interview process will entail a call with one of our Recruiters and a total of 3 interviews, all conducted via Zoom video conferencing.
- This role does not come with relocation assistance.
Booking.com is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. We strive to move well beyond traditional equal opportunity and work to create an environment that allows everyone to thrive.
Pre-Employment Screening
If your application is successful, your personal data may be used for a pre-employment screening check by a third party as permitted by applicable law. Depending on the vacancy and applicable law, a pre-employment screening may include employment history, education and other information (such as media information) that may be necessary for determining your qualifications and suitability for the position.
