Fraud & Risk Data Science

Summary

Join Sardine, a leader in fraud prevention and AML compliance, as the Head of Fraud & Risk Data Science. Lead a team transforming raw data into real-time decisions powering our platform. Drive critical proof-of-concept (POC) and proof-of-value (POV) projects for enterprise clients. This hands-on leadership role requires passion for fraud prevention, building from first principles, and thriving in high-stakes environments. Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and GTM teams to reduce fraud, improve conversion, and demonstrate ROI. Present findings to various stakeholders. Shape the roadmap for new signals and features. The role offers a competitive salary and benefits package.

Requirements

• 7+ years in fraud analytics, data science, or machine learning; 2+ years leading technical teams that ship real‑time risk solutions at high‑growth payments, financial, or fintech companies
• Proven record of reducing fraud losses and false positives for consumer and/or B2B products, processing millions of daily transactions or selling millions of products annually at a minimum
• Strong background in applied ML, anomaly detection, and experimentation design
• Advanced SQL skills and familiarity with modern data infra (Kafka, Flink, feature stores, vector DBs)
• Executive presence and storytelling ability; able to communicate data insights to technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Experience owning and delivering POC/POV workstreams with measurable customer outcomes

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end POCs and POVs with prospective customers to demonstrate fraud-loss reduction and ROI using Sardine’s risk engine
• Build, optimize, and scale real-time decision systems combining ML models, features, and rules across billions of events
• Hire, coach, and mentor a team of fraud analysts and data scientists
• Implement experimentation frameworks (A/B tests, bandit models) to safely validate new strategies
• Partner with Product, Engineering, and Commercial teams to embed insights into dashboards, APIs, and pricing strategies
• Present findings and strategies to customers, execs, and external stakeholders in a clear and compelling way
• Drive roadmap thinking on new signals, feature builds, and feedback loops that make our platform smarter and faster

Benefits

• Generous compensation in cash and equity
• Early exercise for all options, including pre-vested
• Work from anywhere: Remote-first Culture
• Flexible paid time off, Year-end break, Self care days off
• Health insurance, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents - US and Canada specific
• 4% matching in 401k / RRSP - US and Canada specific
• MacBook Pro delivered to your door
• One-time stipend to set up a home office — desk, chair, screen, etc
• Monthly meal stipend
• Monthly social meet-up stipend
• Annual health and wellness stipend
• Annual Learning stipend
• Unlimited access to an expert financial advisory