Penguin Random House · 3 weeks ago
Staff/Senior Machine Learning Scientist - Pricing/Forecasting (Open to Remote)
United States
Full-time
Remote
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$180K/yr - $220K/yr
3+ years expPenguin Random House is the largest trade publishing company in the world. The Data Science team is seeking experienced Machine Learning Scientists to drive business-critical forecasting and pricing products, focusing on demand forecasting and e-book pricing optimization.
MusicE-CommercePublishingAudiobooksBooksEBooksPrinting
Responsibilities
Own end-to-end ML systems: scoping, feature engineering, model development, backtesting/validation, deployment (with platform partners), monitoring/alerting, retraining cadence, and ongoing reliability improvements
Create and maintain production-safe evaluation infrastructure: automated backtests, error decomposition, uncertainty quantification, data validation, regression gates, and auditable model/version lineage
Build AI-assisted/agentic development workflows (e.g., Claude Code) to automate repetitive tasks with human review and measurable quality gates
Define success metrics tied to business outcomes; communicate assumptions, limitations, and risk so model outputs are used correctly by stakeholders
Write production-quality, testable code and support reproducible workflows
Partner across functions to translate business needs into a prioritized technical roadmap and measurable impact
Build and improve forecasts across time horizons and business segments (demand, inventory, supply chain, resource allocation), selecting approaches that balance accuracy, stability, interpretability, and operational cost
Productize forecast outputs for stakeholders: clear definitions and assumptions, versioned releases, and reporting that explains what changed, why it changed, and how uncertainty should shape decisions
Feature engineering, uncertainty quantification and calibration, hierarchical/segmented forecasting where appropriate
Partner with operations, supply chain, inventory, finance, and marketing leaders
Full technical ownership of our automated e-book pricing system, including model architecture (Bayesian hierarchical models), inference pipelines, and decision logic
Design, run, and analyze backtests and live A/B tests to validate pricing strategies and measure real-world revenue impact
Evaluate when to enhance the existing system versus migrate to new approaches; make and execute on architectural recommendations
Balance revenue optimization with brand considerations and sales stability
Collaborate with the print book pricing team, identifying transferable techniques and shared infrastructure
Qualification
Required
5+ years in applied ML/data science, including owning models in production (deployment, monitoring, incident response, retraining)
Strong forecasting expertise (time-series methods, feature engineering, rigorous backtesting) OR deep expertise in Bayesian statistical methods and probabilistic programming
Strong statistics fundamentals; comfort with probabilistic forecasting and explaining uncertainty in practical terms
Strong Python (or R) and SQL; writes production-quality, testable code
Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration with non-technical stakeholders
Experience using AI-assisted development workflows responsibly (verification loops, reproducibility, automated checks)
8+ years in applied ML/data science, or PhD with 3+ years of applied experience
Experience building ML systems end-to-end (not just models): backtesting frameworks, scheduled retraining, monitoring/alerting, and automated reporting into planning or decision workflows
Demonstrated ability to inherit complex systems built by others and make sound architectural decisions with high autonomy
Technical leadership: raises the bar on evaluation, reproducibility, and production practices; mentors less-senior team members
Preferred
Experience with Claude Code or agentic workflows is a plus, but we prioritize strong fundamentals and the ability to learn new workflows effectively
Location: Remote eligible (U.S.), but NYC area preferred
Benefits
Annual profit award or bonus, subject to company results
Medical/Prescription drug insurance
Dental
Vision
Health Care/Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account
Health Savings Account
Pre-Tax and Roth 401(k)
Short and Long-Term Disability Insurance
Life/AD&D Insurance
Commuter Benefits
Student Loan Repayment Program
Educational Assistance
Generous paid time off
Company
Penguin Random House
Penguin Random House is a book publishing company that provides audiobooks, eBooks, and printing services.
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
Penguin Random House has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
100%
Represents job field similar to this job
Engineering and Development
Trends of Total Sponsorships
*2025 (3)
2024 (2)
2023 (2)
2022 (4)
2021 (2)
2020 (1)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageLeadership Team
Manuel Sansigre
Deputy Chief Financial Officer and EVP, Head of M&A
Brian Redler
SVP, Chief Information Security Officer
Recent News
2026-04-01
Company data provided by crunchbase