Data Scientist

Momentum Financial Services is a leading provider of financial services in North America. For 40 years, we've been committed to providing financial solutions that meet the evolving needs of consumers and business owners. Through our retail network of over 400 locations, known as Moneymart, Insta Cheques and the Cheque Cashing store, we provide access to cash and related products to help our customers achieve their goals.

Our highly skilled workforce puts customers first in everything we do. We serve 2 million people annually with diverse and innovative financial products such as loans, cheque cashing, money transfer and prepaid cards. Through this ever-evolving suite of services, we empower customers to manage their finances and improve their lives. Wherever customers are on their financial journey, Momentum Financial Services Group provides solutions.

#Corporate

As a Data Scientist you will play a huge role not only with building models across our lending portfolio but also be involved in evaluating new data sources and testing new techniques. As part of an evolving data science function, you will be deeply involved in all aspects of the model lifecycle.

What you will do:

• Develop and implement models that will be utilized in a variety of applications across Momentum’s financial service business. Application areas include underwriting, account management, servicing, fraud, and marketing.
• Leverage a variety of predictive algorithms and analytical techniques to solve a variety of business problems, from modern ML to traditional statistical algorithms
• Analyze diverse datasets to identify trends and patterns that may impact Momentum’s business objectives.
• Collaborate with partners in the entire model lifecycle: solution design, development, deployment, documentation, approval, and monitoring.
• Conduct thorough model validation and performance monitoring to ensure accuracy and effectiveness across multiple data streams.
• Stay current with industry best practices, emerging trends, and regulatory requirements related to credit risk modeling, particularly in alternative data usage.
• Communicate findings and insights to technical and non-technical stakeholders in a clear and concise manner, emphasizing the incorporation of alternative datasets.
• Support model deployment and provide ongoing support for model maintenance and enhancements, particularly in the context of evolving data sources and regulatory landscapes.
• Leverage your curiosity and analytic insight to design and test new features
• Develop new processes and techniques to enhance model lifecycle activities, including the adoption of CI/CD, automated testing, and collaborative problem solving.
• Work with Python and SQL in your day-day work. Learn new tools and languages as needed.

• 2+ years of hands-on financial services experience building predictive models and analytic solutions. Credit risk models are strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with bureau data and alternate data is a strong requirement.
• Experience with a structured, analytical programming language solving analytic problems. (SAS, R, Python, Matlab, etc). Python is preferred.
• Experience with ML libraries (pandas, NumPy, scikit learn, TensorFlow, Enterprise Miner, Knowledge Studio) required. Python based libraries preferred
• Familiarity with data science solutions such as H2O, Azure ML, Sagemaker are a plus but not required.
• Strong Experience in SQL
• Ability to thrive in a fast paced, team-oriented environment.
• Graduate degree in a quantitative field such as Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, Operations Research, Engineering, or Economics
• Experience in credit scoring models in consumer personal loans in banks and fintech’s preferred.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

*Notice to Ontario Applicants - Momentum Financial Services Group is committed to accommodating applicants with disabilities up to the point of undue hardship during the recruitment, assessment, and selection process. If you are selected for an interview, please notify Momentum Financial Services Group if you require accommodation in respect of the materials or procedures used at any time during this process. If you require accommodation, we will work with you to determine how to meet your needs.

Note to Internal Applicants: All internal applicants are required to notify current manager regarding interest in applying for this role.