Data Scientist - Locals Only

W2 0r 1099 independent candidate only
Hybrid for Northboro, Ma
Data Science Contractor with a strong data development/engineering and data modeling focus to support the development of a scalable data foundation for reporting, analytics, and future AI initiatives. As part of the transition to a new incident management system, this role will build and maintain the upstream data structures needed to enable reliable, efficient, and scalable analytics while aligning with future enterprise data platform plans.
Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement data pipelines to ingest data from APIs into a centralized database
• Develop and maintain structured analytical datasets such as fact and dimension tables
• Integrate legacy SQL Server data with new API-based data to support consistent reporting across time
• Implement incremental data loading and manage schema changes from evolving API sources
• Understanding of data architecture principles, including designing data solutions with future scalability and platform migration (e.g., cloud data warehouses) in mind
• Establish data validation and quality checks to ensure accuracy and reliability
• Optimize data models for query performance and reporting efficiency
• Design transformation logic to reduce complexity within Power BI
• Collaborate with analytics and AI teams to support reporting, modeling, and AI use cases
• Apply platform-agnostic design patterns to support future migration to Snowflake
• Document data models, pipelines, and assumptions for maintainability and knowledge transfer
• Implement and manage recurring data refresh processes to ensure analytical datasets are updated on an appropriate cadence for reporting and analytics needs

Required Skills & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in a quantitative field (e.g., Computer Science, Data Science, Information Systems, Engineering) with 4–6 years of hands‑on experience
• Experience supporting Power BI or similar BI tools, including building models optimized for reporting performance
• Understanding of predictive analytics concepts and experience designing data structures that support forecasting, trend analysis, and machine learning workloads
• Strong proficiency in SQL, including writing complex queries and designing relational schemas
• Proven experience designing and maintaining relational databases or analytical data warehouses
• Hands-on experience with database definition and manipulation languages (DDL and DML) to create, modify, and maintain tables and structures
• Experience building and managing data pipelines using APIs, including incremental data loading
• Proficiency in Python or a similar language for data ingestion, transformation, and automation
• Solid understanding of ETL/ELT concepts and managing data transformations upstream of reporting tools
• Experience handling semi-structured data (e.g., JSON) and managing schema evolution
• Understanding of data architecture principles, including designing data solutions with future scalability and platform migration in mind

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with SaaS platforms and API based data sources
• Exposure to modern data transformation or modeling frameworks (e.g., dbt or similar approaches)
• Familiarity with database performance optimization concepts such as indexing and query tuning
• Experience working in cloud-based data environments or modern data platforms (e.g., Snowflake or equivalent)