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Tripadvisor is seeking a Principal Data Scientist to lead experimentation strategy and capability across the organization. As a leading individual contributor, you will set technical standards for experimentation, from conventional A/B testing to quasi-experimental and Bayesian methods, and make these standards practical through protocols, frameworks, and tooling.
Key responsibilities include:
- Setting technical standards for experimentation across Product Data Science and making them practical through frameworks and tooling
- Partnering with Product, Engineering, and Data Platform teams to improve experimentation velocity without sacrificing rigor
- Assessing how experimentation and resulting decisions affect platform health and growth, making that relationship visible to leadership
- Owning measurement approaches for Viator's most complex questions where standard experimentation is insufficient
- Developing and validating statistical methods the organization relies on, including simulation-based verification
- Acting as the final technical authority on measurement validity, adjudicating disputed results
- Standardizing recurring analytical and experimentation processes using automation and AI where appropriate
- Designing and landing methodological improvements with organization-wide impact (variance reduction, low-traffic approaches, proxy metrics, designs for shared supply)
- Growing technical depth of the wider team through design reviews, mentoring senior data scientists, and improving measurement reasoning
- Advising on when experimentation is the wrong tool and defining alternatives
You will work in a data-driven culture where measurement and experimentation inform all product decisions. The role offers significant technical leadership opportunity without requiring direct people management, though you will mentor and influence senior colleagues.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Extensive experience in data science or similar quantitative role with proven track record supporting and influencing a product organization
- Authoritative command of experimentation in all forms: experimental design, variance reduction, causal inference, bandits, Bayesian methods; ability to develop and validate methodology, not only apply it
- Expert-level proficiency in Python and SQL; deep hands-on experience with statistical modeling, (quasi) experimentation, multi-arm bandits, regression, classification, clustering
- Demonstrated ability to define, implement, and operationalize crucial product and feature-level metrics from scratch
- Proven ability to improve how other teams work through guidance, tooling, and protocols, increasing both speed and quality of experimentation
- Ability to critically assess how product decisions affect platform health and growth over time
- Experience standardizing processes, frameworks, or methods across multiple teams, including use of AI and automation
- Proven ability to build strong relationships and drive outcomes across Product, Engineering, Data Platform, and other functions without direct authority
- Demonstrated habit of establishing whether a result is trustworthy before establishing what it means
- Exceptional ability to explain measurement, method, and uncertainty clearly to technical and non-technical audiences at all levels
- Bachelor's degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Data Science, Engineering, Physics, Economics, or related quantitative field
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Experience with experimentation in two-sided marketplaces where interference between users and finite shared supply complicate measurement
- Experience building and validating proxy or surrogate metrics for long-horizon outcomes
- Experience with Bayesian and hierarchical approaches for low-traffic surfaces or pooling evidence across many small markets
- Experience building or materially improving experimentation platforms, measurement frameworks, or self-service capabilities
- Experience in high-scale technology companies, marketplaces, e-commerce, or travel technology organizations
- Breadth in statistical modeling and machine learning alongside experimentation depth
- Experience applying AI, Large Language Models, agentic AI, or automation to improve analytical productivity
- Reputation for raising the standard of thinking and decision-making in every team you join
- Experience with SaaS experimentation tools (Statsig, Eppo, GrowthBook) or in-house platforms
