Head of Data Science

about UPL:

UPL is focused on emerging as a premier global provider of total crop solutions designed to secure the world's long-term food supply. Winning farmers hearts across the globe, while leading the way with innovative products and services that make agriculture sustainable, UPL is the fastest growing company in the industry. UPL has a rich history of 50+ years with presence in 120+ countries. Based on the recognition that humankind is one community, UPL's overarching commitment is to improve areas of its presence, workplace, and customer engagement.

Our purpose is OpenAg. An Open agriculture network that feeds sustainable growth for all. No limits, no borders.

In order to create sustainable food chain, UPL is now working to build a future-ready, analytics-driven organization that will be even more efficient, more innovative, and more agile. We are setting up Digital and Analytics CoE to work on some disruptive projects that will have an impact that matters for the planet. It will help us reimagine our business to ensure the best outcomes for growers, consumers, employees, and our planet.

Work with us to get exposure to cutting-edge solutions in digital & advanced analytics, mentorship from senior leaders & domain experts, and access to a great work environment.

Job Responsibilities:

The Head of Data Science will combine strategic leadership with deep technical expertise to lead teams of data scientists across commercial, supply chain and Generative AI initiatives. This role is pivotal in conceptualizing, scoping, and delivering complex use cases that drive business impact. The individual will oversee the development, testing, and deployment of data science models that inform critical business decisions, while fostering innovation and excellence within the Analytics Centre of Excellence.

• Define and manage Data Science & GenAI strategy across multiple businesses of UPL
• Provides Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence expertise in the process of model development, refining and implementation in a variety of use cases spread across a variety of domains
• Work closely with translators and business teams to develop and implement solutions
• Collaborate with data engineering, application Engineering, product & Enterprise architects teams to implement and deploy scalable solutions
• Be on top of latest research, publications and best practices in the field of Data Science, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Natural Language Processing, MLOps and Generative AI
• Ensure technical know-how and market understanding (outside-in approach) to align solutions with industry trends.
• Lead Build vs Buy evaluations for data science and AI solutions.
• Manage financial aspects, including Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), for the initiatives.
• Scale models effectively from prototype to enterprise-level deployment.
• Oversees large teams of associate and mid-level data scientists, de-bottlenecking issues related to project execution across Manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, Marketing, R&D, Commercial, Sales & Legal
• Exhibit executive presence to manage high-level conversations with leadership and stakeholders.

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor/master's degree in computer science, Statistics, Math, Operations Research, Economics, or a related field
• Hands on experience in programming in at least 2 languages
• Sound theoretical and hands on knowledge of working with advanced statistical algorithms, including machine learning, deep learning, MLOPS, Artificial Intelligence Algorithms and exposure to GenAI, agentic workflows and RAG, LLM, Python etc
• At least 15 years of experience of working in data science, Lead a team of at least 20+People (FTE Candidates)
• Strong business understanding. Worked in developing solutions in 3-4 domains

Location: Bangalore

Come join us in this transformational journey!