Lead Data Scientist

Lead Data ScientistLincoln Financial Group is seeking a Data Scientist to join our AI Product & Delivery organization, focused on the agentic AI systems powering our next generation of products. You will generate insights from data, build and validate models, design experiments, and measure the business value AI agents deliver — while establishing rigorous evaluation frameworks that keep agentic systems accurate, safe, and reliable in a regulated financial services environment. You will partner closely with product owners, engineers, and business stakeholders to turn analysis into decisions and evals into guardrails.Insights & AnalysisAnalyze usage, performance, and outcome data to surface actionable insights on how agentic AI features are used and where they fall short.Translate findings into clear, actionable recommendations for product, engineering, and business stakeholders.Build and maintain dashboards and reporting that track agent performance and business impact.Modeling & Agentic AI SystemsDesign, build, and validate models and agentic workflows.Evaluate model and agent architecture choices, balancing accuracy, latency, cost, and risk.Collaborate with engineering to productionize models and agents and monitor them post-launch.ExperimentationDesign and run experiments — A/B tests, offline evaluations, holdouts — to test agent behavior, prompt or model changes, and feature variants.Define hypotheses, success metrics, and sample size or power requirements; ensure statistical rigor.Interpret results and translate them into clear go/no-go recommendations.Value MeasurementDefine and track metrics that connect agentic AI features to business value — efficiency gains, cost savings, revenue, and customer or employee experience.Build measurement frameworks that isolate AI-driven impact from other contributing factors.Report on ROI and value realization to product and business leadership.Evaluations (Evals) for Agentic AIDesign and maintain eval suites and benchmarks covering task success, reasoning quality, tool-use correctness, safety, and failure modes.Build regression frameworks and test case libraries to catch performance degradation across model or prompt updates.Partner with product owners on human-in-the-loop review processes and use eval findings to guide model and agent improvements.Must haves:3–8 years of experience in data science, applied machine learning, or a related analytical role.Hands-on experience building and evaluating ML models; experience with agentic AI systems (LLM agents, tool use, multi-step reasoning) strongly preferred.Experience designing and analyzing experiments (A/B testing, causal inference, or similar).Proficiency in Python, SQL, and standard ML/data science tooling.Strong ability to communicate technical findings to non-technical stakeholders.Bachelor's or Master's degree in Data Science, Statistics, Computer Science, or a related field.Nice to haves:Experience building or evaluating LLM-based agents or multi-agent systems.Familiarity with eval frameworks and observability tools (e.g., LangSmith, Weights & Biases, Ragas).Experience with LLM APIs or enterprise AI platforms (e.g., Azure OpenAI, AWS Bedrock, Anthropic Claude, Google Vertex AI).Advanced degree (Master's or Ph.D.) in a quantitative field.Domain experience in life insurance, annuities, retirement planning, or employee benefits.Application DeadlineApplications for this position will be accepted through September 30, 2026, subject to earlier closure due to applicant volume.What's it like to work here?At Lincoln Financial, we love what we do. We make meaningful contributions each and every day to empower our customers to take charge of their lives. Working alongside dedicated and talented colleagues, we build fulfilling careers and stronger communities through a company that values our unique perspectives, insights and contributions and invests in programs that empower each of us to take charge of our own future.What's in it for you:Clearly defined career tracks and job levels, along with associated behaviors for each of Lincoln's core values and leadership attributesLeadership development and virtual training opportunitiesPTO/parental leaveCompetitive 401K and employee benefitsFree financial counseling, health coaching and employee assistance programTuition assistance programWork arrangements that work for youEffective productivity/technology tools and trainingThe pay range for this position is $120,375 - $192,600 with anticipated pay for new hires between the minimum and midpoint of the range and could vary above and below the listed range as permitted by applicable law. Pay is based on non-discriminatory factors including but not limited to work experience, education, location, licensure requirements, proficiency and qualifications required for the role. The base pay is just one component of Lincoln's total rewards package for employees. In addition, the role may be eligible for the Annual Incentive Program, which is discretionary and based on the performance of the company, business unit and individual. Other rewards may include long-term incentives, sales incentives and Lincoln's standard benefits package.About The CompanyLincoln Financial (NYSE: LNC) helps people to confidently plan for their version of a successful future. We focus on identifying a clear path to financial security, with products including annuities, life insurance, group protection, and retirement plan services. With our 120-year track record of expertise and integrity, millions of customers trust our solutions and service to help put their goals in reach. Lincoln Financial Distributors, a broker-dealer, is the wholesale distribution organization of Lincoln Financial. Lincoln Financial is the marketing name for Lincoln Financial Corporation and its affiliates including The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, Fort Wayne, IN, and Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York, Syracuse, NY. Lincoln Financial affiliates, their distributors, and their respective employees, representatives and/or insurance agents do not provide tax, accounting or legal advice.Lincoln is committed to creating an inclusive environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity 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.