Sr Applied Data Scientist - Search Ranking (Applied ML, NLP, LLMs))
Core
Develop and deploy scalable ML models for search ranking, browse personalization, semantic retrieval, and query understanding systems to improve product discovery and customer engagement at Target's digital platforms.
Role type
Senior Applied Data Scientist (Search Ranking & NLP)
Builds
Scalable ML systems for semantic search, retrieval, and AI-native commerce discovery
Domain
E-commerce, Retail, Search, NLP, Generative AI
Deliverable
production ML models
Required skills
retrieval/ranking systems, semantic search, NLP, vector search, GenAI/RAG, embeddings, transformers, Python, SQL, distributed data processing, experiment design, production ML system tradeoffs
Preferred skills
long-tail search relevance, zero-shot item understanding, conversational AI, large-scale system optimization
Technologies
Python, SQL, transformers, vector search, RAG
Responsibilities
Develop and deploy scalable ML models for search ranking and personalization; Design and execute offline and online experiments; Build scalable feature pipelines and evaluation frameworks; Improve query and catalog understanding; Partner with Product, Engineering, and Infrastructure teams; Mentor junior scientists
Seniority
Senior, hands-on IC with mentorship
