Head of Applied Science & Engineering – Ranking
About the Role
We are looking for a Head of Applied Science to lead the scientific strategy and execution for Ranking across Europe’s largest fashion & lifestyle platform. This leader will define the long-term vision for Ranking relevance and visibility, leveraging machine learning, AI, and experimentation to help millions of customers find the right products quickly and confidently.
You will lead a team of applied scientists driving the core ranking platform across Zalando’s discovery surfaces. Partnering with Product, Engineering, Analytics, and Design, you will shape cross-surface experiences by balancing customer relevance, commercial steering governance, and marketplace health in line with Zalando's Platform-First strategy.
WHAT WE'D LOVE YOU TO DO
- Define and drive the long-term Applied Science strategy, aligning roadmap investments with customer needs and business priorities.
- Lead the development of advanced ML models for retrieval, ranking, and personalization to improve product ranking and discovery.
- Build and inspire a high-performing team of Applied Scientists, fostering a culture of scientific rigor, mentorship, and continuous learning.
- Optimize for business outcomes by balancing relevance, diversity, monetization, and operational efficiency.
- Accelerate innovation by investing in scalable machine learning platforms, data infrastructure, and experimentation frameworks.
- Establish best practices for model governance, offline evaluation, online experimentation, and standardized scientific methods across teams.
- Drive adoption of emerging AI/ML techniques, ensuring the organization stays at the forefront of technological advancements.
- Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, UX, and leadership to define priorities and influence the broader organizational strategy.
WE'D LOVE TO MEET YOU IF YOU BRING..
- Proven experience leading high-performing Applied Science or Machine Learning organizations.
- Track record of defining technical vision and delivering business impact through AI and machine learning.
- Ability to attract, develop, and retain exceptional scientific talent.
- Deep expertise in machine learning for ranking and recommender systems, particularly learning-to-rank and personalization.
- Strong understanding of experimentation, causal inference, statistical modeling, and evaluation methodologies.
- Experience deploying and operating large-scale ranking systems in production.
- Demonstrated ability to translate customer problems into scientific solutions that deliver measurable business impact.
- Experience balancing customer experience, operational considerations, and commercial objectives.
- Strong strategic thinking with the ability to prioritize long-term investments alongside near-term delivery.
- Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills.
- Experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives across engineering, product, analytics, and business teams.
- Ability to influence senior leadership through data, scientific reasoning, and clear communication.
OUR OFFER
- 27 days of holiday a year to start for full-time employees
- 2 paid volunteering days a year
- Employee shares program
- 40% off fashion and beauty products sold and shipped by Zalando, 30% off Lounge by Zalando, discounts from external partners
- Relocation assistance available (subject to prior agreement)
- Family services, including counseling and support
- Health and wellbeing options (including Wellhub, formerly Gympass)
- Mental health support and coaching available
- Drive your development through our training platform and biannual peer-to-peer review
