Principal Data Scientist, Headspace Health
$162-258.8k
Salary dependent on location + Equity
More information about location
Mental health and wellbeing platform
Open for applications
Mental health and wellbeing platform
1001+ employees
Open for applications
$162-258.8k
Salary dependent on location + Equity
More information about location
1001+ employees
Company mission
To provide every person access to lifelong mental health support.
Role
Who you are
- 8+ years of well-rounded analytics and data science experience, ideally with exposure to Digital Health, high-growth SaaS, and/or Mental Health industries in rapid growth environments
- 6+ years of experience successfully partnering directly with executive leadership and product leaders, showcasing the ability to align analytics, data science with strategic goals
- Proven experience building and deploying forecasting models, optimization solutions and decision frameworks in complex, real-world environments
- Strong expertise in statistical modeling, causal inference, and experimentation
- 6+ years of experience owning and managing data products while driving their strategic utilization to create business impact
- 4+ years of progressive experience in healthcare analytics (preferred)
- 7+ years of expertise in big data technologies (e.g., Redshift, S3, Databricks, Datalakes, Spark)
- Advanced skills in SQL and Python, with Looker, Tableau, Amplitude,Statsig for event-based deep dives and advanced analytics also preferred
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, statistics, mathematics, or a related quantitative field
What the job involves
- We are looking for an innovative, strategic and impact- driven Principal Data Scientist to lead the evolution of data science across our care delivery and marketplace ecosystem
- This role sits at the intersection of forecasting, experimentation, and workforce optimization strategy, enabling us to deliver high-quality, accessible mental healthcare at scale
- You will be designing analytical frameworks, developing data science products, and uncovering insights that power Headspace’s mission to provide lifelong mental health support
- You will play a critical role in shaping how Headspace forecasts demand and supply, optimizes marketplace performance, and measures clinical and coaching outcomes
- Working closely with leaders across Product, Care, Operations, Finance, Engineering, and Marketing, you will design and deploy advanced analytical solutions that directly influence business strategy and member experience
- This is a high-impact leadership role for a seasoned data scientist who combines deep technical expertise, strong business intuition, and a passion for improving mental health outcomes
- Own and evolve end-to-end demand and supply forecasting at both macro and shift levels for care services (coaching, therapy, psychiatry), incorporating behavioral, operational, and external drivers
- Develop high-accuracy forecasting models to support new product launches and partnerships (e.g., large-scale enterprise or channel launches)
- Identify and translate drivers of demand variability into actionable operational levers that improve capacity planning and resource allocation
- Build forecasting and shift optimization systems that integrate multi-modal data sources (including B2B/enterprise signals) to ensure reliable predictions and scalable recommendations
- Enable marketplace leaders with data-driven insights to optimize access, capacity, and fulfillment performance
- Partner with cross-functional leaders to define and track key marketplace metrics, including access (e.g., time-to-appointment), utilization, and network health
- Define and standardize clinical and coaching outcome metrics (e.g., PHQ, GAD, PSS) and ensure they are reliably captured and reported
- Lead the development of end-to-end measurement frameworks for care journeys, ensuring high data quality and instrumentation completeness
- Apply causal inference and statistical modeling to evaluate engagement, and long-term member outcomes
- Partner with stakeholders to translate outcome insights into product, clinical, and operational improvements
- Build and scale data products, forecasting pipelines, and decision-support tools that enable self-service insights and automation
- Collaborate with Data Engineering and BI to define robust data models, metric definitions, and reporting layers
- Translate complex models into intuitive dashboards and tools for business and operational stakeholders
- Act as a thought leader in forecasting, experimentation, and decision science, raising the bar for analytical rigor across the organization and partner on the ROI dashboards
- Drive new uses of AI in analytics and forecasting
- Mentor and develop data scientists and analysts, strengthening capabilities in communication, stakeholder influence, and technical execution
- Communicate complex findings clearly to executive and non-technical audiences, driving alignment and action as member of the Care marketplace leadership team
Our take
The world is facing a growing mental health crisis. In 2022, the US saw the proportion of the population with acute anxiety, depression, or other mental health needs grow from 20% to 40%.
Headspace is a digital mental health platform best known for its guided meditation and mindfulness app, which has expanded into a broader suite of mental health services. Through therapy, coaching, meditation, and self-care tools, the company is making mental health support more accessible and preventative.
In 2021, Headspace merged with on-demand mental healthcare provider Ginger in a $3B deal to form Headspace Health, a move that brings clinical care and everyday mental wellness into a single platform. Today, its services are being used by more than 100M people and over 4,000 enterprises, including Starbucks, Adobe, and Paramount.
Demand for virtual mental healthcare continues to rise, and the market is becoming increasingly competitive, with players such as Hims & Hers Health entering the space. However, Headspace stands out by combining clinical care with everyday mental wellness tools, expanding its offerings through strategic acquisitions like AI health firm Sayana, and now bringing its services directly to businesses in the UK, positioning itself for growth bon a global scale.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
11% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 5 rounds)
Jun 2020
$47.7m
SERIES C
Feb 2020
$53m
SERIES C
Total funding: $175.4m
Company benefits
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision healthcare plans
- 12 weeks paid parental leave $5K annual / $10K lifetime family planning benefit via Carrot
- Quarterly "Refresh Days" (Fridays off for self-care) + "Focus Fridays" for deep work
- Flexible paid time off to rest and recharge
- 12 paid company holidays + 20 bereavement days
- 401K with company match
- Lifetime Headspace membership + access for 10 friends & family
Company HQ
Financial District, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Tom Pickett
(CEO)Prior to joining Headspace in 2024, Tom was a CRO at DoorDash and CEO of Crunchyroll. He also spent nearly 11 years at Google, while there he held various roles, including Senior Director & Global Head of Content Operations at YouTube and VP of YouTube Content and Operations.
Karan Singh
(COO)Karan is also the co-founder and COO of Ginger. Previously, he worked in Sales & Strategy at Humedica and as a Consultant at ZS Associates.
Lisa Mulrooney Gross
(CPO)Lisa is also the Founder and Principal of HRx Leadership Advisors. Previously, she served as the CPO at ChargePoint and as the CPO/SVP/Head of HR Fitbit at Google.
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