Director of Data Science, Cobalt
$200-250k
+ Equity plan
More information about location
Penetration testing software provider
Be an early applicant
Penetration testing software provider
201-500 employees
Be an early applicant
$200-250k
+ Equity plan
More information about location
201-500 employees
Company mission
To become the world's interface to the security workforce.
Role
Who you are
- A Master's or Ph.D. degree is highly preferred in a quantitative field such as Statistics, Mathematics, Data Science, Physics, or a closely related discipline
- A minimum of 10+ years of progressive, hands-on experience in data analytics, data science, machine learning engineering, or a related analytical field
- At least 3+ years of dedicated experience in a data science leadership role, demonstrating a proven track record of successfully managing, mentoring, and scaling high-performing, cross-functional data science teams
- Demonstrated success in leading and delivering complex, large-scale data science projects from initial conceptualization through to robust production deployment and ongoing maintenance
- Proven experience in managing significant budgets and strategically allocating resources for analytics initiatives to achieve impactful business outcomes in a start-up environment. Lean-forward, be scrappy
- Advanced Analytical & Statistical Skills: Profound expertise in advanced statistical modeling, a wide array of machine learning algorithms (e.g., linear and logistic regression, advanced ensemble models such as Random Forest, XGBoost, CatBoost), deep learning architectures, natural language processing (NLP) techniques, and rigorous experimentation methodologies
- Programming Languages: Advanced proficiency in Python and SQL is absolutely essential. Practical familiarity with other relevant languages such as R, Java, C++, Go, or Scala is highly advantageous
- Big Data Technologies & Cloud Platforms: Extensive hands-on experience with big data technologies (e.g., Hadoop, Spark) and a strong working knowledge of GCP-based data platforms
- MLOps & Data Engineering Concepts: A comprehensive understanding of the end-to-end machine learning pipeline, practical experience with MLOps practices for reliable model deployment and maintenance, strong grasp of data engineering principles, ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, and workflow management platforms
- Data Visualization: Proven proficiency with industry-standard data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, PowerBI, Python libraries like Matplotlib, Seaborn) and the ability to translate complex data understandings into clear, compelling visual narratives
What the job involves
- The Director of Data Science position is a pivotal leadership role responsible for overseeing all data science and advanced analytics initiatives across the enterprise
- Reporting directly to Cobalt’s CTO, the director is responsible for guiding the conceptualization, development, and implementation of comprehensive data strategies that directly drive critical business decisions and align with overarching company objectives
- The successful candidate is responsible for leading, inspiring, and empowering a multidisciplinary team of highly skilled data scientists and analysts from the ground up - identifying strategic opportunities for leveraging data science and integrating data-driven solutions across the organization
- As a lean-forward leader you’ll take a hands-on role in transforming raw, complex data into meaningful, actionable understandings that directly propel the company's growth, innovation, and competitive advantage in the world of penetration testing and AI
- Define, lead, and continuously refine the data science vision, overarching strategy, and multi-year roadmap, ensuring direct alignment with the organization's overarching business goals and clearly defined, measurable outcomes
- Serve as a principal strategic advisor and thought leader, proactively championing the ethical and responsible adoption and pervasive utilization of AI/ML technologies across all relevant organizational functions
- Collaborate intimately with cross-functional teams, including Product, Engineering, Marketing, and Sales, to systematically identify, evaluate, and prioritize high-impact data science opportunities
- Oversee the entire lifecycle of machine learning models, encompassing their conceptual design, rigorous development, comprehensive validation, robust production deployment, continuous monitoring, and iterative improvement
- Drive the development of sophisticated copilot and AI pentester solutions
- Ensure that the data science, engineering, and product management teams build reliable and accurate models, and rigorously selects and applies appropriate evaluation techniques to validate their performance
- Establish, implement, and promote industry-leading best practices in data collection, storage, analysis, data governance, and model reproducibility across all data science projects
- Ensure stringent compliance with all applicable data privacy regulations, security standards (e.g., SOC 2, GDPR, CCPA, specific student data privacy requirements if relevant), and ethical guidelines for data utilization throughout the organization
- Collaborate strategically with Data Engineering teams to design and implement scalable, well-defined data assets, robust feature stores, and precise metrics that support evolving analytical and product requirements
- Serve as a critical liaison and bridge between highly technical teams and business stakeholders, ensuring seamless alignment on strategic priorities, project deliverables, and the demonstrable strategic value of data science initiatives
- Represent the organization effectively in external collaborations, industry conferences, and professional consortia to maintain a leading position at the forefront of data science advancements
- Proactively monitor and integrate understandings from industry trends and emerging technologies (including advanced ML, AI, Deep Learning, Natural Language Processing, and agentic AI) to continuously enhance the team's collective knowledge and elevate the organization's data science capabilities
- Lead and champion experimentation efforts to systematically test, iterate upon, and refine models and user experiences, ensuring continuous evolution aligned with evolving business needs
- Proactively identify opportunities for process automation, optimization of data workflows, and effective mitigation of potential risks inherent in data science projects
Our take
Cobalt is a penetration testing platform providing PtaaS to significantly improve the efficiency and deliverability of penetration testing. The company is working to transform a multi-billion dollar industry that is set to grow in value as vulnerabilities become an increasing liability. Usefully for Cobalt, this applies across smaller and larger businesses alike, as the use (and protection) of data becomes increasingly important across all scales.
Its approach, using a curated marketplace of 400+ highly vetted ethical hackers, is pioneering in an industry typically hobbled by inefficient practices. Existing services tend to deliver a PDF list of vulnerabilities at the end of a testing period. Cobalt delivers results in real-time, integrated into the client’s existing environment.
In an age where hacker tech is continuously and rapidly developing, a service allowing companies to match this with continuous (as opposed to periodic) pen-testing will no doubt prove a vital and attractive tool.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 4 rounds)
Aug 2020
$29m
SERIES B
May 2018
$5m
SERIES A
Total funding: $36.5m
Company benefits
- Equity plan
- 401k matching for retirement savings plan
- Paid parental leave
- Flexible PTO, to support work life balance from anywhere in the US, UK, and Germany
- Monthly WFH stipends for equipment, lunches, wellness and learning & development
- Work directly with experienced senior leaders
- Make your mark in the rapidly expanding PtaaS space
- Join an award-winning “best workplace” and fast growing team
- Medical, dental and life insurance benefits
Company HQ
South Beach, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Sonali Shah
(CEO)Joined Cobalt as CEO in 2024. They are a seasoned Business Leader with more than 20 years of experience scaling high-growth businesses across the cybersecurity landscape.
Lisa Matherly
(CMO)Joined Cobalt as CMO in 2023. They have over 2 decades of experience in B2B Marketing and Cyber Security. Prior to Cobalt, they spent most of their career at McAfee, Intel, and 3Com in various leadership roles across Marketing, Customer Service, and Sales.
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