Sr. Research Scientist

Yahoo serves as a trusted guide for hundreds of millions of people globally, helping them achieve their goals online through our portfolio of iconic products. For advertisers, Yahoo Advertising offers omnichannel solutions and powerful data to engage with our brands and deliver results.

A Little About Us: 

Yahoo’s back-end systems process and analyze 100’s of petabytes of data to glean insights on Yahoo products and to improve the experience for its 1B+ user base. Our team develops advanced stochastic streaming algorithms (a.k.a., sketches) that are used in these back-end systems (including external cloud systems, e.g., Google Cloud Platform) to provide analysis results orders-of-magnitude faster than traditional methods. In addition, many of these algorithms are also released to the Apache DataSketches open-source project and used by scores of companies and government agencies world-wide. Your work will directly influence product changes and you will work with very experienced engineers that have developed these advanced production-quality sketches from scratch. Along the way, you will solve problems for an Internet Pioneer that is hard to match in the industry.

Responsibilities:

• Keep abreast of current theoretical publications in the fields of sketching, streaming and sublinear algorithms.

• Translate published scientific algorithms and pseudo-code into workable prototype code in a suitable language, e.g., Python or Java.

• Characterize and understand the error & performance properties of these new algorithms.

• Work with the team on developing new algorithms or modifications of existing algorithms that can dramatically improve our ability to generate new business insights.

• Opportunistically publish research and development results in suitable scientific and/or engineering conferences/journals.

• Work with product owners, engineers, and analysts to understand Yahoo’s product goals and data analysis needs.

• Build data expertise and own data quality for allocated areas of ownership

Minimum Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Computer Science, Physics, Math, or a related major.

• Math background should preferably include stochastic modeling, linear algebra, discrete math and combinatorics.

• Programming experience using Python, Java or C/C++.

• Experience in publishing papers in scientific journals as author or co-author.

• Strong data mindset with a deep appreciation for analyzing data to identify opportunities to improve our current product offerings.

• Excellent communication skills and ability to tell insightful stories using data.

• Experience with Google Cloud Platform and BigQuery is a plus.

The material job duties and responsibilities of this role include those listed above as well as adhering to
Yahoo policies; exercising sound judgment; working effectively, safely and inclusively with others; exhibiting
trustworthiness and meeting expectations; and safeguarding business operations and brand integrity.

Yahoo is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, and will not be discriminated against based on age, race, gender, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability or any other protected category. Yahoo will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable law. Yahoo is dedicated to providing an accessible environment for all candidates during the application process and for employees during their employment. If you need accessibility assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability, please submit a request via the Accommodation Request Form (www.yahooinc.com/careers/contact-us.html) or call +1.866.772.3182. Requests and calls received for non-disability related issues, such as following up on an application, will not receive a response.

At Yahoo, we know that diversity makes us stronger. We are committed to a collaborative, inclusive environment that encourages authenticity and fosters a sense of belonging. We strive for everyone to feel valued, connected, and empowered to reach their potential and contribute their best. Check out our diversity and inclusion (www.yahooinc.com/diversity/) page to learn more.

The compensation for this position ranges from $128,250.00 - $266,875.00/yr and will vary depending on factors such as your location, skills and experience. The compensation package may also include incentive compensation opportunities in the form of discretionary annual bonus or commissions, in addition to equity incentives. Yahoo provides industry-leading benefits including healthcare, 401K savings plan, company holidays, vacation, sick time, parental leave and an employee assistance program. Eligibility requirements apply.

Yahoo has a high degree of flexibility around employee location and hybrid working. In fact, our flexible-hybrid approach to work is one of the things our employees rave about. Most roles don’t require specific regular patterns of in-person office attendance. If you join Yahoo, you may be asked to attend (or travel to attend) on-site work sessions, team-building, or other in-person events. When these occur, you’ll be given notice to make arrangements. 

If you’re curious about how this factors into this role, please discuss with the recruiter.

Currently work for Yahoo? Please apply on our internal career site.