Machine Learning Research Scientist

Job Description

We are looking for a Machine Learning Research Scientist to join our team.

In this role, you’ll be working directly with our research, engineering and data science teams to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing the construction industry.

We want to inspire the world to forecast correctly and empower it to tackle risk, thanks to our unique ability to forecast the outcomes of construction projects. We can change how construction projects are managed and executed, and will lead us to build the world’s largest infrastructure bank in the process. A crucial part of getting there is being able to accurately forecast delays and risk on for very large construction schedules.

We're working with some of the largest infrastructure projects in the world (think HS2, Heathrow, Crossrail), which means an opportunity to have a significant impact on the world around us, and what it will look like in the future, from the very first day.

You’ll be joining a world class and very well funded team, backed by top investors including GV (formerly known as Google Ventures) that all believe in the future we are creating. We’ve been on a tremendous growth trajectory for the last three years, and thanks to our latest $18.5m investment round we have even more ambitious growth plans for 2022 and beyond, scaling our product and team at an exciting pace. We think a lot of our success is due to our strong sense of culture.

We are a data driven company heavily focused around product, with engineering squads (we use the Spotify model) that align directly to user needs, and have a lot of autonomy. You will be part of one of the squads, working in collaboration with other machine learning and data scientists and engineers to draw valuable insight from the company’s large database of schedules.

What we need you to do:

You will join our newly formed nPlan’s Experimental Research Department and report to its Director. You can read more about nERD at nerd.nplan.io. You will work in tight collaboration with our diverse research, data science and engineering teams trying to solve the most challenging problems in and beyond machine learning with a potential to revolutionise the construction industry.

• You will drive our research efforts to find novel solutions for new problems arising from learning on large construction schedules
• You will continuously test new ML solutions to solve our standing problems, as well as propose novel ideas that can add value for our customers
• You will follow ML research and to contribute to our efforts to publish in top ML conferences. We are most interested in graph representation learning, calibration, uncertainty estimation and other related fields.
• You will work in a very collaborative environment, with a team that’s a mix of Software Engineers, Data Scientists, ML Engineers and Researchers and various other roles

We would like you to have:

• PhD or peer reviewed publications in machine learning or a related field
• Deep understanding of machine learning, information theory, linear algebra and statistics
• Expertise implementing novel ML methods (preferably using TensorFlow 2.0)
• Knowledge of at least some of the following libraries: SciPy, sklearn, NumPy, matplotlib/seaborn, pandas, multiprocessing
• Habit of writing good quality code (preferably in Python 3.6+) and documenting it where required
• Please mention the word 'crane' in your application
• (bonus) Experience in graph representation learning
• (bonus) Experience working in a collaborative coding environment, including version-control systems (git or similar), testing and code review processes
• (bonus) Proficiency to write scalable ML code for very large datasets
• (bonus) Experience in self-driven exploration of datasets and models and communication of results to stakeholders

What working at nPlan will be like:

• We are still a small team so there is plenty of opportunity for a high degree of ownership over different areas of the product, and you will be directly exposed to all areas of the business.
• Your voice will always be heard. What you do or say counts, not who you are or where you're from.
• We have three core values that underlie everything we do: Learn from Everything, Be Radically Truthful, and Aim High, Run Fast. These enable us to create a collaborative, inclusive environment where we can move effectively and efficiently to implement the best solutions.
• We are a cross-disciplinary team, and come from all backgrounds and countries. We offer visa sponsorship and contribute to relocation costs.
• Fantastic benefits package for Health & Wellbeing, Learning & Development, family leave, weekly team lunches and more.
• We give all employees share options in the company - these have the potential to grow in value significantly if we continue on our current trajectory (though it’s important to know that the value of shares can go down as well as up)
• We are committed to addressing the diversity problem in the tech industry, and that starts with making sure we have a diverse team where everyone feels at home and can contribute as an equal.
• Having time to yourself and a private life is important. We offer a very flexible work environment and a generous holiday policy.