Senior Applied Scientist - CRM (All Genders)

THE ROLE & THE TEAM

The Marketing Science team acts as the engine behind Zalando’s growth, partnering with business units across the full marketing funnel. We extend the Zalando experience beyond our platform, connecting customers with the fashion inspiration and shopping convenience they love. By leveraging cutting-edge technology, we ensure our marketing is relevant, engaging, and deeply respectful of customer privacy.

We collaborate closely with product managers, engineers, and analysts to refine our industry-leading marketing engine. Our mandate covers:

• Rigorous Experimentation: Establishing the "ground truth" framework for measuring marketing effectiveness.
• Advanced Modeling: Building attribution models to value touchpoints and propensity models to refine targeting.
• Audience Optimization: creating customer uplift models to identify incremental value and building audiences that improve marketing efficiency.
• Investment Strategy: Steering external advertising platforms and optimizing marketing spend to align with core business objectives.

As a Senior Applied Scientist, you will own the scientific roadmap for our CRM domain, working with Principal Scientists and leaders to maximize marketing efficiency by moving beyond simple metrics to true incrementally.

• Measure: Design and implement advanced experimentation frameworks to measure the causal impact of CRM campaigns.
• Optimize: Build sophisticated models to identify which customers should receive specific promotions, minimizing waste and maximizing relevance.
• Steer: Directly influence how Zalando allocates marketing investment, ensuring we attribute value correctly and optimize for long-term growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Enhance Experimentation: Advance our approach to measuring incrementality within CRM channels.
• Optimize Spend: Develop methods to attribute the incremental return on every Euro spent, ensuring strategic capital allocation.
• Precision Targeting: Utilize uplift modeling and propensity scoring to optimize promotions and communications, maximizing customer lifetime value and Return on Investment (ROI).

INCLUSIVE BY DESIGN

At Zalando, our vision is to be inclusive by design. And this vision starts with ourhiring - we do not discriminate on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation, personal expression, ethnicity, religious belief, or disability status. You are welcome to leave out your picture, age, or marital status from your application. We only assess candidates on their qualifications and merit.

We want to provide you with a great candidate experience. Feel free to inform us of any accommodations you may need, so we can best support you throughout the hiring process.

do.BETTER - our diversity & inclusion strategy:https://corporate.zalando.com/en/our-impact/dobetter-our-diversity-and-inclusion-strategy

WHAT WE’D LOVE YOU TO DO (AND LOVE DOING)

• Take ownership of complex research questions, prioritizing pragmatic, rapid solutions to establish baselines before iterating for complexity.
• Apply advanced Causal Inference and Economics methodologies to drive CRM strategy, specifically through the development and application of uplift models.
• Utilize advanced Python, SQL, and PySpark skills to build robust data processing pipelines and analytical solutions at scale.
• Champion MLOps best practices by ensuring models are production-ready, thoroughly tested via unit/integration tests, and well-documented.
• Mentor junior scientists and foster a culture of continuous learning and knowledge sharing within the team.
• Bridge the gap between technical and business stakeholders by clearly communicating complex analytical findings and engineering decisions to non-expert audiences.

WE’D LOVE TO MEET YOU IF…

• A strong academic foundation in Economics, Machine Learning, and Causal Inference (specifically Uplift Modeling), paired with at least 2 years of practical industry experience in the CRM or a related domain.
• A self-starter with a track record of navigating ambiguity independently, favoring simple, effective solutions over unnecessary complexity.
• Deep proficiency in Python, SQL, and PySpark, with a commitment to high coding standards, including active participation in code reviews and elevating the team's engineering culture.
• Knowledge of Algorithmic Optimization is considered a plus.
• Demonstrated experience in guiding less experienced colleagues and organizing team educational initiatives.
• Exceptional communication abilities, capable of simplifying technical concepts for business partners while maintaining technical precision with peers.

OUR OFFER

• Zalando provides a range of benefits, here's an overview of what you can expect. Ask your Talent Acquisition Partner to learn more about what we offer.
• Employee shares program
• 40% off fashion and beauty products sold and shipped by Zalando, 30% off Lounge by Zalando, discounts from external partners
• 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Hybrid working model with up to 60% remote per week, actual practice is up to each team to best support their collaboration
• Work from abroad for up to 30 working days a year
• 27 days of vacation a year to start for full-time employees
• Relocation assistance available (subject to prior agreement)
• Family services, including counseling and support
• Health and wellbeing options (including Wellhub, formerly Gympass)
• Mental health support and coaching available
• Drive your development through our training platform and biannual peer-to-peer review