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#SST-P017Grade B

Lead Data Scientist (Anonymised)

Senior Fullstack Engineer | React & Node.js | Nairobi

Nairobi, Kenya, KenyaMLOps Engineer

About

Accomplished Lead Data Scientist with over 8 years of experience in machine learning, risk analytics, and fintech solutions across Africa. Expert in designing, building, and deploying production-ready alternative credit scoring models, credit scorecards, and predictive modeling frameworks that drive financial inclusion. Proficient in Python, SQL, cloud infrastructures, MLOps, and automated ML pipelines. Highly skilled in translating complex transactional and behavioral datasets into predictive risk frameworks, with a proven track record of reducing loan default rates and optimizing underwriting processes. Demonstrates strong experience leading cross-functional teams, managing stakeholders, and ensuring robust AI model governance.

Skills

2 of 15 verified by assessment

AirflowData AnalysisData EngineeringETL Pipeline DevelopmentExperiment DesignForecastingMLOpsMachine LearningModel EvaluationModel ServingPySparkPythonStatistical ModelingverifiedDatabricksverifiedApache Spark

Experience

  1. Lead Data Scientist – Credit Risk & AI Solutions

    Jan 2022 to Present

    M-KOPA / Fintech Consulting Projects

    Led development of alternative credit scoring models utilizing mobile money, behavioral, and transactional data. Improved loan default prediction accuracy by 27% through advanced ensemble machine learning techniques and extensive feature engineering. Built automated machine learning pipelines leveraging Python, Airflow, and cloud infrastructure. Developed fraud detection and early-warning risk systems for digital lending platforms. Collaborated with cross-functional teams to deploy explainable AI models aligned with regulatory standards while mentoring junior team members.

  2. Senior Software Engineer

    Mar 2021 to Present

    PesaFlow Technologies

    Led redesign of core payments API, reduced latency by 40%. Managed team of 4 engineers rebuilding the transaction engine to handle 50,000+ daily transactions.

  3. Senior Data Scientist – Risk Analytics

    Jan 2019 to Dec 2022

    NCBA Bank Kenya

    Built application and behavioral scorecards for retail and SME lending portfolios. Conducted rigorous model validation, monitoring, and governance tasks using AUC, KS, PSI, and Gini metrics. Designed analytical dashboards for senior executives utilizing Tableau and Power BI. Optimized underwriting decision systems, resulting in accelerated customer approvals and reduced credit losses.

  4. Fullstack Developer

    Jan 2019 to Feb 2021

    HealthConnect Kenya

    Built telemedicine booking platform, grew to 20,000 MAU. Implemented USSD gateway integration and end-to-end patient record encryption.

  5. Data Scientist

    Jan 2017 to Dec 2019

    Safaricom PLC

    Analyzed large-scale telecom and mobile money datasets to generate customer analytics insights. Developed predictive churn and customer segmentation models using machine learning algorithms. Utilized big data tools including Hadoop and Spark to support scalable data analytics workflows.

  6. Junior Developer

    Jun 2017 to Dec 2018

    Andela

    Client projects in React and Node.js. Contributed to 3 open-source libraries. Completed intensive training in software engineering best practices.

Education

  1. Master of Science (MSc) in Data Science

    University of Nairobi

    Jan 2019 to Dec 2021

  2. Bachelor of Science, Computer Science

    University of Nairobi

    Sept 2013 to May 2017

  3. Bachelor of Science in Statistics & Computer Science

    Kenyatta University

    Jan 2013 to Dec 2017

Certifications

  • AWS Certified Machine Learning – Specialty

    Amazon Web Services

    Recognised

  • Google Professional Data Engineer

    Google Cloud

  • IBM Data Science Professional Certificate

    IBM

  • Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals

    Microsoft

Lead Data Scientist (Anonymised) | Silicon Savannah Talent