Senior Product Data Scientist

About the Role

British Airways is seeking a Senior Product Data Scientist to join the Operations Delivery Intelligence (ODI) directorate in Hounslow, England. In this role, you will work within integrated operations product squads that create data-led decision support software for airline operations. The work focuses on improving operational performance by applying advanced analytics, machine learning, optimisation, and robust software delivery practices to everyday decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement industrial-grade decision support tools that use machine learning and optimisation methods.
• Own one or more modules within a production data science product from a technical standpoint.
• Analyse end-to-end business challenges and identify where decision-support tooling can improve operational outcomes.
• Use analysis and visualisation to uncover opportunities and compare trade-offs between solution designs and features.
• Lead decisions on modelling approach and technical direction, balancing speed of delivery, runtime performance, technical debt, and business impact.
• Rapidly build prototype models in Python for machine learning and optimisation use cases.
• Deliver production-ready ML and optimisation components using strong software engineering practices.
• Create dependable data pipelines for ingestion, cleansing, and processing.
• Contribute to software orchestration and cloud-based CI/CD deployment workflows.
• Participate in system design discussions with software architects.
• Improve reliability through logging, exception handling, and automated tests.
• Strengthen algorithms so they perform well across edge cases in real operations and data.
• Measure product adoption and the business value generated by the solution.
• Work with stakeholders to understand requirements and collect feedback.
• Help prioritise features and shape roadmap planning.
• Support the embedding of products into live operational processes.
• Explain modelling choices, trade-offs, and outcomes clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Mentor junior colleagues and support their growth.
• Contribute to agile delivery practices, including Git-based version control, code reviews, and predictable releases.

Requirements

• Proven experience applying machine learning, optimisation, and operational research to real business problems.
• Strong Python skills, including experience with data science and optimisation libraries.
• Background in building production-quality data science software.
• Familiarity with cloud environments, CI/CD pipelines, and modern orchestration tools.
• Solid software engineering habits, including testing, logging, and version control.
• Ability to break down complex technical and business problems into practical solutions.
• Confidence in communicating advanced concepts to both technical teams and business stakeholders.
• A systems-thinking mindset with close attention to detail.
• A curious, proactive, and resilient approach to work.
• Collaborative working style and commitment to continuous improvement.
• Focus on producing measurable business value.
• Master’s degree or higher in data science, machine learning, or operational research, or at least 4 years of highly relevant industry experience.
• At least 2 years of experience working on production ML or optimisation software products at scale.
• Experience developing industrialised software, especially data science or machine learning products.
• Experience in transportation, airlines, operations, or network-related domains is preferred.

Benefits

• Competitive salary package.
• Unlimited basic and premium standby travel on British Airways flights from day one.
• Up to 30 discounted Hotline airfares each year for yourself, friends, and family.
• Opportunities to move across different parts of the business and develop your career.
• A workplace culture focused on inclusion, diversity, and originality.

Inclusion & Diversity

British Airways values a diverse workforce and aims to create an environment where colleagues can bring their own identity, creativity, and perspective to work. Inclusion and diversity are seen as essential to innovation, and the company is committed to building a culture where everyone feels they belong.

About British Airways

British Airways is the United Kingdom’s flag carrier and has been connecting Britain with the world for more than 100 years. Since launching the world’s first international scheduled air service between London and Paris, the company has been driven by originality and ambition. It encourages colleagues to think big, take on new challenges, and help shape the future of the business.