Expert Data Scientists on Credit Scoring

Job Title: Expert Data Scientist on Credit Scoring

Job Purpose Statement:

Data Science is a function within Data Management Office whose role is to transform raw data into actionable insights that drive smarter decision-making, stronger risk management and improved customer experiences. Leveraging on advanced analytics, statistic modelling and machine learning, the function supports in the areas such as Credit scoring, Fraud detection,

Customer segmentation, Product personalization, risk forecasting and regulatory compliance. Seeking an experienced Data Scientist with proven expertise in credit scoring in financial institutions. The candidate will take ownership of building robust credit scorecards, ensuring delivery of a production-ready, regulatory-compliant solution that drives lending decisions i.e. Risk based pricing.

Data Science and Innovation

Responsibility:

·      Lead and implement the end-to-end development of credit scorecards, from problem definition to deployment

·      Conduct data exploration, cleaning, transformation, and feature engineering.

·      Apply statistical modeling and machine learning techniques (i.e, logistic regression, decision trees, ensemble methods, neural networks) for scorecard development.

·      Perform model validation, back-testing, and monitoring to ensure stability, accuracy, and fairness.

·      Collaborate with risk, credit, and technology teams to integrate models into production systems.

·      Document methodology, assumptions, and outcomes for monitoring/governance.

·      Train and mentor internal staff on scorecard use, monitoring, and governance

Output:

·      Fully developed credit scorecard models for retail, SME, or corporate lending (as applicable).

·      Detailed model documentation (methodology, validation results, monitoring framework).

·      Deployment-ready model integrated into production environment.

·      Model performance tracking framework (e.g., KS, Gini, ROC AUC, stability index, population stability).

·      Knowledge transfer to internal data science/risk teams

Job Dimensions

Stakeholder Management: key stakeholders that the position holder will need to liaise/work with to be successful in this role.

Internal: Data Engineers, IT, Credit, Operations, Customer Experience, Business Performance function, Business Support Services

Ideal Job Specifications

Academic:

·      Bachelor's degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Machine Learning, Economics, or any other related quantitative field. Working experience of the equivalent is also acceptable for this position.

·      Masters in Data Science/Math or any Quantitative discipline is an added advantage

Professional:

·      Big Data or Data Science certification from recognized institutions

·      Cloud and/or AI certifications from recognized institutions

Desired work experience:

·      
Must have
a minimum of 6 years of proven experience in credit risk modeling and scorecard development in a banking or financial services environment.

·      Hands-on experience with scorecards I.e. application, behavioral and collection scorecards

·      Strong knowledge of statistical and machine learning methods (logistic regression, decision trees, gradient boosting, neural networks).

·      Proficiency in Python, SQL or SAS, R.

·      Prior experience in model governance and validation

·      Demonstrated ability to work independently and deliver within tight timelines.

Behavioral Competencies

·      Communication Skills: The Data Scientist will be required to explain advanced statistical content to senior data scientists and relevant stakeholders.

·       Have the ability to translate and tailor this technical content into applicable business material with clear recommendations and insights relevant to the audience at hand.

·      Interpersonal Skills: ability to work effectively in a group/collaborative setting, be result oriented, be highly analytical, be a strategic and creative thinker, have superior organizational skills, have a strong attention to details, have an ability to work on multiple projects and meet tight deadlines, have exceptional problem-solving skills, and remain calm and composed in times of stress and uncertainty.

·      People Skills: people person, demonstrating an ability to create and maintain strong, meaningful, and lasting relationships with others. He must also be a confident but friendly and approachable individual who will inspire confidence and trust in his seniors and key stakeholders, leading them to give credit to his insights and judgments.

Location
: Nairobi

Terms
: Full Time, On site;
Contract duration
: 1 Year with possibility of extension

Please share your cv to:

Emai
l:

Subject
: Prefix the subject matter as – Expert Data Scientist on Credit Scoring

Forma
t: PDF ONLY (Any other format will be automatically disqualified)

Resume
: If sending via email, ensure your resume is clearly saved with your full names correctly indicated e.g. John Smith Cv not "Latest Cv" as this will lead to automatic disqualification

Deadline
: 21
st
/ August/2025

N/B: For this position, kindly
only
apply if your profile matches the above criteria and note the job is contract based